live simply, give lavishly

"Together Forever" Official Music Video

2011-08-30T10:57:00.007-04:00

Song Title: Together Forever
Written and composed by Joseph D. Ryu
Video Recorded, Directed and Produced by Jong Dae Lee and Andrew Ryoo
Music Recorded and Produced by Joseph Kang

Dedicated to one person: Mirim Kang
On the Wedding Day of Mirim Kang & Joseph D. Ryu - August Twenty Seventh Two Thousand and Eleven

Vocals by Joseph D. Ryu
Guitar by Michael S. Kim
Bass by Eric Jo
Electric Guitar by Joseph Kang
Shaker by Derek Hou
Drums by Andrew Ryoo

Should the U.S. Continue to Pursue the Six-Party Talks?

2011-05-06T03:32:00.002-04:00

By Joseph D. Ryu

Final Paper for
Strategies in International Relations

Spring 2011

Abstract

Over the last half of the century, the Korean peninsula has been in a state that it had not been in for thousands of years. It has been divided between the North and the South, more specifically on the 38th Parallel North of the circle of latitude. With the North being supported by the Soviet Union and the South by the United States, the divided Koreas developed into who they are now through the separate decisions that both countries made throughout the Cold War onto today. Early on, North Korea obtained the Soviet’s support to build nuclear weapons and this became America’s most significant threat from North Korea. This had led to the implementation of a series of multilateral meetings called the Six-Party Talks in 2003, designed to find a peaceful resolution to the security concerns of nuclear proliferation in North Korea. The six nation states, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea), the Republic of Korea (South Korea), the People’s Republic of China (China), the United States of America, the Russian Federation (Russia), and the State of Japan (Japan) began meeting in 2003 but stopped meeting in 2009 when North Korea pulled out of the talks because of a disapproval by the United Nations Security Council of North Korea’s actions. By exploring different perspectives of international relations theories, this paper hopes to find the answer to the question of whether or not the United States of America should continue to pursue a multilateral dialogue in engaging North Korea and provide policy recommendations for the United States in regards to its approach towards North Korea post Six-Party Talks.

To download the entire paper: Click Here
The PDF file is password protected.
Email me if you’d like to open it.

The Republic of Korea: The Effects of Economic Development in Population Changes

2011-04-22T11:00:00.001-04:00

By Joseph D. Ryu

Final Paper for
Economic and Political Development in Non-Western States

Spring 2011

Abstract

Over the last half of the century, the rapid economic advances in Asia have been a critical point of study in economics and policymaking. These countries, namely the “Asian Tigers,” and their successes created new economic views and continue to grow influence in the global market. To look even 50 years ago, the progress of countries like China, Japan, Taiwan and the Republic of Korea are astounding. Over the years, these countries have adapted and changed to the issues and hurdles of sustaining growth. The globalization of the world, in particular, has played a great part in the changes as well. The factors attributing to and the transitions from primary goods and industrialization to service goods and modernization has not only affected the positive growth of these nations but have altered the population landscape of these countries, seen clearly on it’s affects on social and cultural norms. This paper would like to study the effect of population changes through the economic success of recently developed countries, specifically focusing on the country of the Republic of Korea. The implications of this research are universal but take keen note on the special perspective that comes from the “Asian Tigers,” namely from in the example of the Republic of Korea.

To download the entire paper: Click Here
The PDF file is password protected.
Email me if you'd like to open it.

The Korean Community has a lot more potential and power than it dares to dream in shifting the balance in the political realm, IN CHRIST

2011-04-06T09:38:00.000-04:00

This is a post about North Korea and how we, the Korean Community in America must rise up. It was a response letter to Jess Yoon since we had talked about it this past winter in early 2011.

Hey Jess,

I'd be glad to elaborate on what I talked about! To clarify the context, the organization that I was referring to that "weren't doing things right" was the Korean Church Coalition http://www.kccnk.org/

And I think a more accurate way of saying it is that they aren't equipped with all the right tools.

They are doing a tremendous job in rallying Korean communities across the country, getting youth involved in social issues, and more than that, embracing God's heart and touching stone hearts to life as they pray and campaign for the adoption act, and fight for the human rights and freedom of North Koreans. They and other Korean organizations voicing their cause definitely have caught the attention of our politicians.

They and others are doing an amazing job and I have complete faith in God that His justice will come and His mercies of love will be abundantly poured over the suffering people of NK. Every single prayer counts. And in His time, very soon, not only is this bill going to be passed but history will be made in the "Jerusalem of the East." I can only imagine the floodgates of heaven opening over this dark and desolate land - we'd best be ready for it. (Another topic which I'm afraid the Church isn't ready for at this moment.. but the enemy definitely is so its serious.)

What I learned through my supervisor and my time at the government internship were eye-opening.

Koreans are the richest (or soon to be) and most successful demographic in America (we're pretty much reigning champions in the upper middle class area. All that doctor and lawyer yabber from our parents really paid off.) comparative to any other minority group in America. This gives the Korean community a really powerful pull in government. Politicians know this but they haven't been pulled by the Korean community as much. (You can see the effects of the pull of other minority groups on government such as the black community in racial justice and the Vietnam and Jewish community in refugee & immigration rights)

However, unlike these other minority groups who assimilated almost completely into American society or relatively a lot more than us, the Korean community withdrew into small niches after the immigration boom of the late 80s and 90s. Mostly into culture driven churches, many producing bad fruit (you can tell from all our church-hating friends and "apostates"). This is definitely about to change as God has been gripping the 2nd and 3rd generations with His Reality and are becoming more involved and voicing out in faith and love the things that are upon His heart. I believe this movement is at its tipping point of explosion, but it hasn't yet culminated.

Specifically for KCC, they are understaffed in the policy agenda division (maybe not anymore, since I'm not involved with them but it was only Mr. Sam Kim who did most of the work and in that was only a part-timer and imagine trying to balance faith and politics as an organization... the other times the Church did that, it didn't end so well for the Church) and their approach to Congress in making a large enough dent to get things rolling is to say the least futile. You can imagine hundreds of thousands of organizations with hundreds of thousands of agendas, all clamoring to get the nation's capitol to even consider listening. Most of their visits to congress members are valuable only for that moment of greetings and when push comes to shove, there are greater agendas for these politicians in sustaining their popularity and power in their party and their biggest investors. Plus, they have bigger problems right now. Much bigger. Debt/Economy, Budget, and Healthcare in the homefront, two wars and rapidly changing regimes in the Middle East, a serious terrorist threat from Pakistan, and now the 2012 elections.

The NK Refugee Adoption Act is definitely one of the steps towards resolving the many issues in NK. But for the US government, its not it's primary concern. Nuclear threat and proliferation is the single issue I think that grips our government in regards to North Korea. What I got from hearing the side conversations between policy experts during their meetings about this bill is that they don't think the Refugee Adoption Act is a big enough issue to invest in. They don't believe any hurdles with the NK will be resolved by passing this bill. I mean, of course, many lives will be affected for good and it's a great social cause, but in regards to gaining enough momentum for the big changes, it's not worth it for them to really give all they got.

The blame is not on the organizations that support this bill on it not getting passed but as I remember listening to my supervisor, he said these organizations can do so much more. They need people who are part of the system, policy analysts and staff workers, who can pull the right strings, connect the right people in government and bring together key events, in addition to rallying the masses to cause politicians to give greater notice and support for the bill. They need more professionals and they need more money. Which I think is partially true but when my supervisor also said that prayer is good but won't get congress to move -- I absolutely didn't buy that. But what did make sense was that KCC was run basically by a coalition of pastors who do not know the political landscape and who are not specially equipped to run a political agenda.

I'm not an expert in US policy or in government and I'm still learning a whole deal about a whole slew of issues but the sense I get is that the Korean community has a lot more potential and power than it dares to dream in shifting the balance in the political realm, IN CHRIST. I mean every word of that. And personally, God's definitely put upon my heart a prayer to be like Daniel who

"became distinguished above all the other presidents and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him. And the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom. Then the presidents and the satraps sought to find a ground for complaint against Daniel with regard to the kingdom, but they could find no ground for complaint or any fault, because he was faithful, and no error or fault was found in him." - Daniel 6:3-4

I believe as Christians rise up in politics, especially in the Korean community, we must be found faithful, with no error or fault (spotless, holy), and with an excellent spirit (zeal for the Lord and passion for His passions)

We live in an exciting day and age where everything is literally being shaken. In social/moral doctrine, power of kings (especially now in the middle east), the very earth beneath our feet, and most definitely the heavenly realms. The most exciting age for man was when Christ came and died and rose again and ascended into Heaven to come once again.

I hope that this helped you in some way or another. I don't know how not to hit these hurdles but believe me, time is on our side. :D Well, God is. And God's got it all in His hands.

Christ with us,

Joseph Ryu

Sex Trafficking in America: from The Boulevard to Planned Parenthood

2011-03-22T17:34:00.001-04:00

Each year, right under our noses, 100,000 American children each year are victimized by sex traffickers. Make no mistake, this is not a problem that's just "over there." These heinous crimes are happening in our own backyards. A special live video webcast was hosted by Family Research Council on Tuesday, March 15 at 2:00 p.m., and brought together leading experts to shed light on this growing problem that affects every corner of our nation -- from neighborhoods, playgrounds, and malls to the local Planned Parenthood clinic. Learn what actions you can take to help restore these victims, and stop those who prey on them.

Webcast participants include:

Tony Perkins, President, Family Research Council
J. Robert (Bob) Flores, former Administrator of the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJD)
Lila Rose, President, Live Action
Pat Trueman, CEO, Morality in Media and Founder, PornHarms.com
Samantha Vardeman, Senior Director, Shared Hope International
Tina Frundt, Founder and Executive Director, Courtney's House
Lisa Thompson, Liaison for the Abolition of Sexual Trafficking at The Salvation Army

Ways You Can Help:

Pray for the victims of sex trafficking, for their deliverance from slavery and their emotional, physical and spiritual healing. Pray also for those who abuse and exploit, that they may be brought to justice and reformed by God's grace.
Morality in Media's petition to Attorney General Eric Holder
View FRC Action's petition to Congress asking them to defund America's abortion giant, Planned Parenthood. (General contact information for elected officials can be found here)
Support ministries that are making a difference in combating sex trafficking and aiding the victims of modern day slavery:
http://www.faastinternational.org - a collaborative effort to end sex trafficking
http://www.salvationarmyusa.org/trafficking - Salvation Army
https://www.care-net.org/- find and support your local Pregnancy Resource Center
Raise awareness in your local church over the tremendous problem of human trafficking. Start praying over this issue and ask God to show you ways that you can get involved as a community.

FRC Action: Planned Parenthood Exposed!

2011-02-04T09:30:00.000-05:00

A new undercover sting operation shows abortion giant Planned Parenthood's willingness to exploit the victims of child prostitution.

Shocking undercover video footage reveals a Planned Parenthood clinic manager assuring a pimp that the clinic would secretly offer full access to abortions and other services -- despite knowing full well that the girls were underage victims.

To respond swiftly to this crisis -- and to take decisive action to strip Planned Parenthood of all taxpayer funding -- the pro-life movement united on a nationwide webcast and our attendance and attention is critical!

FRC Action President Tony Perkins was joined by Lila Rose, President of Live Action. Lila showed the video footage, explained the specifics of the sting operation, and detailed Planned Parenthood's inexcusable actions.

Joining the Webcast will be top pro-life leaders, including:

Lila Rose, Live Action
Tony Perkins, President, Family Research Council Action
Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.)
Marjorie Dannenfelser, Susan B. Anthony List
David Bereit, 40 Days for Life
Charmaine Yoest, President, Americans United for Life
Wendy Wright, President, Concerned Women for America
Abby Johnson, Former Planned Parenthood clinic director turned pro-life advocate and author
Dr. Alveda King, Director, Priests for Life and Niece of Dr. Martin Luther King
Tom McClusky, Senior Vice President, FRC Action
Steve Wagner, President of the Renewal Forum; former Director, Human Trafficking Program, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Taryn Mastrean, Program Associate, Shared Hope International

See the shocking undercover video, explained by Lila Rose, President of Live Action.
Learn from top pro-life experts how Planned Parenthood has abused young innocent victims while receiving hundreds of millions of our tax dollars.

Discover what you can do about it!

The World at Unrest: Middle East

2011-02-01T11:00:00.002-05:00

As an introduction, the land of Israel and more specifically, the people of Israel, is significant to the Church. But do you know how?

This is another account of why the very age that we live in is extremely unique in the history of God's plan. Most of my generation has grown up hearing about Israel very much at a regular basis but if you study history just a little bit back, Israel came into the picture only about 60 years ago. Before then, for almost 2000 years, there was no "Israel" in the sense of the place because after the Romans destroyed the Temple of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., the people of Israel were displaced and since then, the land of Israel had been fought over by Christians and Muslims.

(On a side note, Pastor Mark Driscoll many times talked about how the Messianic texts of the Old Testament speak of the Messiah coming to the Temple of Jerusalem and sharing with Jews that one reason Jesus is the Messiah is because there is no longer the Temple for a messiah to go to any more.)

Even if you do not have any Biblical reference to the significance of Israel to God, most Christians understand that Israel is God's chosen people. This isn't favoritism, it is probably the greatest blessing beside being saved by grace. Apostle Paul even talks about the blessings of Israel and the thankfulness we Gentiles have to God in Romans 11.
Read for yourself: http://bible.us/Rom11.ESV

Anyway, if any of this interests you, a good book to read is "God's Tsunami: Understanding Israel and End-Time Prophecy" by Peter Tsukahira.
Purchase the Book Here.

Or if books aren't your style, check out what he had to say at The Vine Christian Fellowship in Hong Kong.
Listen Here.

So that is the larger picture of the significance of Israel and if you follow the trends of the Church, you will also know that the largest mass of Christians in the world live in East Asia, not in America or Europe. God is definitely raising up the East Asian countries as a Banner of Christ for the Body of Christ to taste and see God's glory and arise to the move of God. The awakening of souls in Asia is unprecedented! The reason for its significance is actually the vision of the Chinese Church to go "back to Jerusalem" as most of the unreached people groups border China and its neighbors.

A good book to read specifically on the vision of the Chinese church is "Back to Jerusalem: Three Chinese House Church Leaders Share Their Vision to Complete the Great Commission" by Brother Yun, Peter Xu Yongze, Enoch Wang with Paul Hattaway.
Purchase the Book Here.

If books aren't your cup of tea, check out this sermon by Jaeson Ma at The Vine Christian Fellowship in Hong Kong. Its a great introduction to what God is doing in Asia.
Listen Here.

---

Anyway, the reason all of this is coming to mind is because of the unrest in the Middle East. If you've been following the news in any extent, you'd know that there are political revolutions happening in the Middle East. A good interview article on this is "The Arab World's 'Unprecedented' Protests" by the Council on Foreign Relation's Robert Danin. Read it Here.

But more than that, I think Christians must all ponder on what all of this means in God's perspective. Recently, my friend Jimmy shared a journal entry with me on this very topic and in re-posting this here, I pray that you may also be challenged and be drawn to Christ.

Start Quote:

"Middle-East Uprisings & The Earth’s Cry for Righteous Governance"

If you have been watching the news, you are well aware of the situation in the Middle East. Tunisia had their government ousted, Lebanon also had their government dismantled after Hezbollah officials stepped down, Egypt is in mayhem as protesters took to streets, and Jordan and Yemen all are following the same chants of protests against their governments. The Arab nations of the Mid-East are crying out for change! But how are we to respond to all this? How do we understand what is happening in light of the Scriptures?

What should our response be regarding wicked, corrupt governments that oppress people and cause harm? What does the scripture call us to do as followers of Jesus?

Our response is to suffer for doing good (thereby, being His children) and become witnesses of Jesus’ resurrection and soon coming Kingdom. We are to humbly submit to wicked governments as much as is possible in the Lord and to be peaceful people leaving vengeance to God (Rom.12:19). We pray that wicked men would be saved on the day of the Lord’s appearing where we will be exalted to rule with Jesus on the earth (Daniel 7:18).

Our hope, as the people of God, is not in any democratic government run by sinful men, but in the Kingdom of God that will be established at the return of Jesus! This is the gospel. His literal reign over the nations of the earth from Jerusalem is the only thing that will bring true peace to the earth. This has been the hope of the prophets, apostles, and all the saints. Is it yours? Democracy is not our hope and Kingdom! We must understand that all human governments are indeed wicked.

Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore, whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves. (Rom. 13:1-3)

It is He who changes the times and the epochs; He removes Kings and establishes kings... (Daniel 2:21a)

He it is who reduces rulers to nothing, who makes the judges of the earth meaningless (Isaiah 40:23)

Why are the nations in an uproar and the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Messiah (Psalm 2:1-2)

So, what is happening in the Middle East? What is God doing at this time? How does this affect me and my family?

There is a cry growing on the earth for a ruler and government that will bring peace and prosperity to all. Who is going to solve the Mid-East problems? Who is going to end all the suffering, oppression, and wars? Who is going to solve the religious conflicts of our day? These are cries that are arising on the earth in the midst of chaos and wars. There is going to be much suffering ahead of us that will reach global proportions and a global cry will arise for “peace and safety.” False justice movements are arising on the earth that have little to do with Jesus and His coming Kingdom and even the Church joins in because it has little clarity about what the gospel really is. Is the gospel merely a code of ethics and morality?

The earth will cry for peace and they will not look to Jesus and His righteous Kingdom. Rather, they will look to humanism and human ingenuity and strength. They will ask for a “Saul” King, just as Israel had. They will look to an Antichrist who will seemingly solve these problems for the earth.

If your heart is not set on pilgrimage for Jesus’ return and not willing to suffer with Him, you will be swept away by what the Antichrist will offer. The pressures and the stakes will be too high. If your hope is in this age, rather than the age to come, you will not be prepared to resist. Every foundation will be tested and shaken so that those things that cannot be shaken will remain (Heb. 12:26- 29). Take heart that Jesus, who’s eyes are like a flame of fire, is motivated by jealous love. It is even He who is fashioning this context to test the hearts and minds. Do you love this man? Are you willing to follow Him at any cost?

He is jealous and He is coming! Come, Lord Jesus!

End Quote.

Keeping Jesus Christ the Center & Greatest Desire: In Dating

2011-01-19T02:24:00.008-05:00

Dear Christian brother and/or sister,

I write this letter in reflection and with a desire to serve you. Instead of going into any of my thoughts, I would like to share a bibliography of sorts that really fundamentally changed my view of relationships in the context of Christ and shaped the way I led my relationship. Not that I have attained anything great, but because these things have helped me so much, I share this with you. If you go through them, you’ll see what I saw, and I pray that you may see even more through the Holy Spirit.

Paradigm Shift: Re-thinking Dating and Marriage in God’s perspective.

I think at the heart of the matter is the way we view relationships in general. So much of what we think is a hodgepodge of what the media, culture, society, our sinful natures, Christian moral teachings, and personal theology say. To walk on the path that God desires, we must first tackle the issue of our hearts and minds that have engrained particularly specific thoughts and ideas on what God has ordained for His children to partake in as we mature as people.

I’m not sure if you’ve sought out good resources to guide you in shifting your paradigm, aside from the Bible, but I would like to recommend some to you and I’ll explain a little bit about them. If you’ve listened or read some of the resources I’ve listed, just remember the biblical truths and principles that were laid out because that’s what I’ve been influenced by as well. But before you go on to click each one, please read through this entire letter.

First of all, I’d like to share with you the easiest medium of learning, sermons! I think sermons are good initial material to work towards the deeper things of God.

1. “Dating Sermon” by Pastor Paul Washer
To Listen, Click Here, Then Click the Underlined Sermon Title
I place this first on the list because it completely took me out what I had first thought on dating and how I ought to go about developing my relationship.

2. “Staying Married Is Not About Staying in Love” by Dr. John Piper
Part 1, Part 2
I listened to this my Junior year of college and it opened my eyes to the glory of marriage. I literally wept in joy and thanksgiving as Dr. Piper opened my eyes to God’s design. I was single and I think this is a really good introduction to a biblical foundation on marriage. I would also recommend you to seek out Dr. Piper’s other sermons on the topic of singleness, marriage, and manhood but I wanted to keep this list to a core group of sermons, not wanting to overcrowd this section with too many options.

3. “Marriage and Men” by Pastor Mark Driscoll
Watch with Sermon Notes
When this first came out, I knew I wasn’t ready for anything at all. I’ve listened to this one probably more than a handful of times. I think it’s a good reminder of who we as men must strive to be if we are serious not simply about marriage but manhood in general. Pastor Driscoll also has a sermon titled “Marriage and Women” but maybe because I am a guy, it didn’t speak as much to me as this one did.

Second, I would like to recommend some books to help you in your search for wider biblical foundations and practical applications.

1. “Boy Meets Girl: Say Hello to Courtship” by Pastor Joshua Harris
Purchase
This book is a great resource that I would recommend for everyone who is thinking of as well as even in a relationship. I just started reading this and it’s been very helpful and I wish I had read it sooner. I think this is a good couple’s book to read together and discuss together the things that it talks about.

2. “This Momentary Marriage” by Dr. John Piper
Download the PDF or Purchase
This book is not another sermon series made into a book. It’s a very short book but every word is intentional and purposeful in communicating God’s views on marriage. Not only does it expound on certain themes learned through his sermons, it’s a very richly organized and developed book that I know I will be going back to over and over again.

Finally, I would like to recommend to you to go through a seminar on courtship that will first fortify our biblical foundations and notions and then teach in wisdom, actions and initiatives we should consider as we are in a relationship.

1. Capitol Hill Baptist’s “Friendship, Courtship, & Marriage” Core-Seminars
Browse All Resources
Capitol Hill Baptist Church has a really wonderful seminar series on dating and marriage. I attended the church for two months, during which I was able to attend one of their discussion panels for men. I definitely learned a lot and I think this is a good resource for you to refer to and study together as a couple.
There are 13 parts to this seminar and the seminar manuscripts and handouts were created to be used in a seminar setting and are not created for two people to read through. I think there should be more initiative on the man's part in this regard but that doesn’t mean he needs to always lead the studies. What I would suggest is that couples take turns with each other in reading through the manuscripts and preparing to lead the conversation by use of the handouts and so both are engaged in teaching and learning.
I would also recommend you read some of the articles that are cited on the resource page as they are also of not only interest but also full of great biblical insight and wisdom.

The question is how to keep a relationship centered on God.

I think it’s fairly simple. A lot of it has to do with communication and a lot of it is out of the man’s initiative.

1. The man should lead the woman as he follows Christ. (But don’t hyper-spiritualize things)
Personal growth will sow exponential growth in your relationship. Don’t force God into every picture but invite Him in and if He isn’t focused, consider why He isn’t on the forefront of any given situation.

2. The man must initiate. (Even despite “under qualifications”)
What I mean by this is that a man who isn’t as good at prayer as the woman can still be the initiator by asking the woman to pray. It’s like the Four Spiritual Laws say, God isn’t so concerned with what we say or do or even how we say or do them. God looks at our hearts. Initiate spiritual meditation, discussion and feeding. It will be helpful for you to seek out situations that are suitable to discuss fundamental beliefs and values that both of you carry.

3. Spend most time together in the company of others. (Never alone in a room)
This one is really helpful and important to keep. Don’t isolate yourselves from other people. Make plans involve each other’s churches, friends and if possible, families as well. This doesn’t mean you can’t do things one on one. Going on dates in public spaces like restaurants, movies, sightseeing, etc. are awesome. Just make sure, never alone in a room. It’s not worth trying to rationalize our abilities of self-control. Don’t stoke the fire because the desires are more real than you believe.

4. Have designated accountability and mentors. (Someone Christian and married is best)
This has been my greatest asset as I have been leading my relationship. Biblical council and mentorship from people whom I trust and whom I learned a great deal from. These people will be pivotal to a healthy relationship and many times guide you through the different stages as they have attained wisdom from folly as well as wisdom from others.

5. Be creative. (You need to continue getting to know the other person)
I forgot who once said this but all of marriage should be a constant study of the other person. As you get to know one another more personally, continue to mature in romancing one another. By that I don’t mean sexually. To clarify “romancing,” I mean communicate and lead her in a way that speaks deeply to her specifically. Serve together at a nursing home or orphanage. Fund Christian relief and aid organizations, missionaries, or ministries. Surprise her with acts of love that speak to her personally. “5 Love Languages” is a good way to start. Find out how the other person receives love and how they give love. For example, “Words of Affirmation” could be spoken in songs, or written as encouragement notes, poetry, postal mailed letters, etc.

I pray for godly relationships to spring forth in my generation. I pray for a redeeming of broken relationships. I pray for the healing of broken hearts. I pray for the almighty, victorious, gracious blood of Christ to renew, restore, revive, and awaken true biblical relationships, marital and friendship, amongst His Church. Lord have mercy on us and lead us in your ways everlasting. Be the center, be the focus, receive the glory, you are worthy God!

Christ with us,
Joseph Ryu

God Answers

2010-12-21T03:36:00.001-05:00

During the last week on a Summer Mission Project to Thailand my freshmen year, this is what I wrote in my journal:

"Today I commit to support TCCC $2,000. I commit to continue to pray for TCCC. I commit to STINT in the future. I pray that I might have faith, that I might obey Him." - July 27, 2006

In the past four years, each one of these commitments were fulfilled word for word. Though I am not always faithful, He is faithful to answer those who commit to Him and hold fast His covenant. Amen!

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy

2010-11-28T23:45:00.002-05:00

Review From Publishers Weekly

In this weighty, riveting analysis of the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Eric Metaxas (Amazing Grace) offers a comprehensive review of one of history's darkest eras, along with a fascinating exploration of the familial, cultural and religious influences that formed one of the world's greatest contemporary theologians. A passionate narrative voice combines with meticulous research to unpack the confluence of circumstances and personalities that led Germany from the defeat of WWI to the atrocities of WWII. Abundant source documentation (sermons, letters, journal entries, lectures, the Barmen Declaration) brings to life the personalities and experiences that shaped Bonhoeffer: his highly intellectual, musical family; theologically liberal professors, pastoral colleagues and students; his extensive study, work, and travel abroad. Tracing Bonhoeffer's developing call to be a Jeremiah-like prophet in his own time and a growing understanding that the church was called "to speak for those who could not speak," Metaxas details Bonhoeffer's role in religious resistance to Nazism, and provides a compelling account of the faith journey that eventually involved the Lutheran pastor in unsuccessful attempts to assassinate Hitler. Insightful and illuminating, this to me makes a powerful contribution to biography, history and theology.

Copyright ? Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Eric Metaxas is the New York Times bestselling author of Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery. He has appeared as a cultural commentator on CNN and Fox News and is the author of Everything You Always Wanted to Know About God (but were afraid to ask) and two sequels.In a decidedly eclectic career, Eric Metaxas has written for VeggieTales, Chuck Colson, and the New York Times, three things not ordinarily in the same sentence. The Hartford Courant has declared figuring him out "like trying to stick a pushpin in a cyclone." Nevertheless, let us try. Eric Metaxas was born in New York City in 1963, on his father's 36th birthday. He grew up in Danbury, Connecticut, attending the public schools there, and graduated from Yale University . At Yale he made a literary splash as editor of the Yale Record, the nation's oldest college humor magazine, and a subsequent literal splash when, following the 99th Yale-Harvard Game, he commandeered a successful effort to throw Harvard's goalpost into the Charles. At graduation Eric was awarded two senior prizes for his undergraduate fiction. He was also "Class Day Speaker," co-writing and delivering "The Class History," a satirical address that is a Yale commencement tradition, in the process upstaging Dick Cavett, the next speaker. They would not speak for nearly two decades. Metaxas' humor writing was first published in the Atlantic Monthly, and has appeared in The New York Times. Woody Allen has called these pieces "quite funny." Eric's book and movie reviews, essays, and poetry have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Regeneration Quarterly, Christianity Today, National Review Online, Beliefnet, and First Things. He has been awarded fellowships to Yaddo and the MacDowell Colony for his short stories. The cult-classic Don't You Believe It! -- his book-length parody of the Ripley's "Believe It Or Not!" books -- led novelist Mark Helprin to dub Metaxas "the true heir to the Far Side's Gary Larson." From 1988-1992, Metaxas was editorial director and head writer for Rabbit Ears Productions, writing over 20 children's videos and books narrated by such actors as Mel Gibson, Robin Williams, Sir John Gielgud, Danny Glover, Sigourney Weaver, John Candy, Michael Caine, Michael Keaton, Geena Davis, Jodie Foster, Emma Thompson, and Raul Julia. His Rabbit Ears videos have won numerous Parent's Choice Awards and three Grammy nominations for Best Children's Recording; they all aired on Showtime and as popular audio programs on NPR's Rabbit Ears Radio, hosted by Mel Gibson and Meg Ryan, whose radio scripts Eric has also written. Parenting magazine and others have called Metaxas "the unsung hero" of Rabbit Ears and a "children's author nonpareil." Mr. Metaxas' The Birthday ABC was chosen as a 1995 "Pick of the List" by the American Bookseller's Association. Reviewers said the book's light verse "sparkled" and "sizzled," comparing it with Odgen Nash, Edward Lear, and Lewis Carroll. Eric's many other children's books include the Angel Award-winning Prince of Egypt A to Z, a tie-in to the Dreamworks film; and the acclaimed Uncle Mugsy & the Terrible Twins of Christmas. Squanto and the Miracle of Thanksgiving was awarded an Amazon.com "Number One Bestseller" Award in 1999. Eric's newest children's book, It's Time to Sleep, My Love, illustrated by Nancy Tillman, had a first printing of 175,000 and debuted in Barnes & Noble.com's Top 100 books in October 2008, where it was hailed as a "Goodnight Moon for the 21st century." Sally Taylor, the daughter of James Taylor and Carly Simon, wrote a lullabye song to Eric's words, and sings it on the book's audio CD. Metaxas was for two years a writer and editor for Chuck Colson's Breakpoint, a nationally syndicated daily radio program with over 400 stations and a weekly audience of five million. He then worked as a writer for VeggieTales, where he co-wrote Lyle the Kindly Viking, and provided the voice of the narrator on Esther. In 3-2-1 Penguins! he provided the voice for "President Wait-Your-Turn" and "Vacuum #10." Eric's children's books for VeggieTales include the #1 bestseller God Made You Special! (over 600,000 copies in print), as well as Even Fish Slappers Deserve a Second-Chance and The Pirates Who (Usually) Don't Do Anything, both also bestsellers. He is the author of the unproduced Gourd of the Baskervilles and an unproduced VeggieBook, The Boy Who Cried Waffle. Metaxas has been frequently featured as a cultural commentator on CNN and the Fox News Channel; and has discussed his own books on C-Span's Book TV and Hannity & Colmes. He has been featured on many radio programs, including NPR's Morning Edition and Talk of the Nation, Hugh Hewitt, the Bob Grant Show, Janet Parshall, Monica Crowley, and The Alan Colmes Show. He is the founder and host of Socrates in the City: Conversations on the Examined Life, a monthly event of "entertaining and thought-provoking discussions on 'life, God, and other small topics'" that features such speakers as Dr. Francis Collins, Sir John Polkinghorne, Baroness Caroline Cox, Dana Gioia, Os Guinness and Peter Kreeft, and which was mentioned in a front page story in the New York Times. The New Canaan Society, of which Eric is a founding and current member, was also mentioned in the article. Eric has debated at the Oxford Union, the world's oldest debating society, and speaks widely on a variety of topics. His no-holds-barred introductions of such figures as U. S. Senator Joseph Lieberman, former Attorney General John Ashcroft, and Rick Warren have made him much sought after as an emcee and moderator. He has moderated debates with Bishop Spong and President Obama's former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright; and has spoken at the White House, on Capitol Hill, at West Point , Yale, Cornell, Princeton , and many other venues, and was the featured speaker at the Louisiana Governor's Prayer Breakfast in Baton Rouge in 2007. That same year he was made an Honorary Fellow of the prestigious British-American Project, the only person ever to have been afforded this privilege. Eric's Everything You Always Wanted to Know About God (but were afraid to ask), came out in 2005, and was praised by Ann B. Davis, Alice on The Brady Bunch ("I am absolutely smitten with this book!"), Tim Keller of Redeemer Presbyterian Church ("The difficulty is not to gush."). The sequel, titled Everything ELSE You Always Wanted to Know About God (but were afraid to ask) was published in 2007. The third book in the trilogy -- Everything You Always Wanted to Know About God (The Jesus Edition) -- was published in hardcover by Regal in February 2010. Eric attends Calvary/St. George's Episcopal Church, and lives in Manhattan, New York, with his wife and daughter.

The Call To Urgency

2010-10-24T10:30:00.001-04:00

It is my confession that there is an innate burden within my heart of the eternal weight of glory and of the pressing times of this generation for the Church. I wonder if you share the same?

As I am becoming more and more aware of the spiritual repercussions of the political decisions of today, I am weary and afraid that our Christian members of the Church are not fully aware or fully comprehending the implications of our times. I don't claim to know fully either but I do feel a spiritual trembling within my heart and a vague yet seriousness of the implications of today's sociopolitical position. I am far from understanding and I am far from correctly expressing these implications, but my soul confirms it with a concern that is beyond conspiracy.

Or on the other hand, I fear that our generation understands the spiritual repercussions of our sociopolitical times and yet is uninterested and apathetic to them. I fear that our generation thinks it is unimportant and inevitable to go against the currents of the times. Oh God have mercy!

I'd like us to ask ourselves in light of our current situation in global and eternal perspective, whatever you think it may be, what kind of desperation or a lack thereof is in our desire for the Lord. I find it more and more explicitly required of those who have the innate burden within our hearts to seek the Lord all the more at this very hour of history.

"When judicial and governmental rulings threaten to silence the voice of the Church, she only has one great recourse; united fasting and prayer as an appeal to heaven. Esther and the Jewish world, finding themselves under the death decree of Haman, fasted and prayed and then God turned the tide on their behalf. So still, we believe that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. When Daniel and his three friends were threatened with abolishment of their club on the campus of the university of Babylon, they united together in an all-night prayer gathering and God reversed the king’s decree and the testimony of Daniel’s God was proclaimed to the whole nation. What the enemy means for evil, the Lord brings about for good." - Lou Engle, July 26, 2010

I firmly believe there truly is another call from God to His people in this generation, that we have been raised up in His presence for such a time as this. There is only one response now, therefore, let us come together in our own respective quiet places to our knees in prayer and even in personal fasting of physical things and grab hold of and ask God more of the spiritual things. We require discernment. We require the Holy Spirit. We require it and there is no other way or means.

Praying that the urgency to gather in prayer especially at Gethsemane would be ignited within our campus leaders.

Awaken!

2010-10-17T12:22:00.003-04:00

I don't know about all of you but starting this week is midterm season for most of us, including myself. Exciting! (Not...) Tonight begins the first night of two weeks of 꾸준한 (steady?) studying and late nights. I don't have any excuses for being behind in my readings so I'm sacrificing the very good things of life, God-given goodness, which in fact I am as much entitled to and also very much in disadvantage for not taking a part of them. But praise be to God even in this moment of weakness!

Without making my introduction too long, I conclude it by confessing that the blessings of the Lord are upon us. He truly lavishes it over us. It is in this season of time, we all with spiritual eyes see awakening in different forms and capacities. I firmly believe that a new dawn is breaking upon the souls of our generation. It is in this very moment that is most critical and most dark, for the enemy the devil prowls with a sense of final ferocity before a spiritual awakening and it is during this most critical and most dark moment the conscious of man is our greatest enemy.

May God continue to pour out His graces and sanctify us through the Word of God. We cannot claim to know the way (the procedures), the truth (the doctrines), and the life (our relation to God, one another, and this reality) in and of ourselves with our interpretations but only through Christ who is the Way itself, Truth itself, and Life itself. May we be found seeking Christ now all the more in this grave hour in which the world bombards us with a million voices and as our own voices so many times mislead us.

As Abraham Lincoln once said in his Second Inaugural Address, "Fondly do we hope -- fervently do we pray -- that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it continue, until all the wealth piled by the bond-man's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash, shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said "the judgements of the Lord, are true and righteous altogether."

So it is similar that there is a great spiritual and moral compromise in our culture and society and there is a great and mighty spiritual war upon us all with all the piled up wealth, power, and influence of the ungodly and the injustice upon the speechless men, women, children, and the unborn of the world and their spilled blood goes unpaid... So we must cry out to the Lord for mercy and cry out to the world for reform and reconciliation (repentance). Lest God's common grace is depleted as our days are truly numbered and on the scale of justice we are found wanting and the judgement of the Lord comes upon us all, for His children also will be found accountable on That Day.

Convicted, struggling, and seeking God. May His face shine upon us and give us peace.

The Meaning of Masculinity, part 4

2010-10-03T16:07:00.001-04:00

While I am not keen on hierarchy and patriarchy as terms describing the man-woman relationship in Scripture, Genesis 2:18-23 . . . and Ephesians 5:21-33 . . . continue to convince me that the man-woman relationship is intrinsically nonreversible. By this I mean that, other things being equal, a situation in which a female boss has a male secretary, or a marriage in which the woman (as we say) wears the trousers, will put more strain on the humanity of both parties than if it were the other way around. This is part of the reality of the creation, a given fact that nothing will change.

This brings us back to the basic insight of Paul Jewett, namely, that

Our self-knowledge is indissolubly bound up not simply with our human being but with our sexual being. At the human level there is no ‘I and thou’ per se, but only the ‘I’ who is male or female confronting the ‘thou,’ the ‘other,’ who is also male or female.

I believe this is true and that God has not left us without a witness to the meaning of our masculine and feminine personhood. I have tried to unfold at least some of what that masculine personhood involves. Now we turn to the meaning of mature femininity.

The Meaning of Masculinity, part 3

2010-09-26T17:04:00.001-04:00

The Meaning of Masculinity, part 2

2010-09-19T15:59:00.002-04:00

From: Recovering Biblical Manhood & Womanhood; A Response to Evangelical Feminism Chapter 1 "A Vision of Biblical Complementarity: Manhood and Womanhood Defined According to the Bible" by Dr. John Piper

AT THE HEART OF MATURE MASCULINITY IS A SENSE OF BENEVOLENT RESPONSIBILITY TO LEAD, PROVIDE FOR AND PROTECT WOMEN IN WAYS APPROPRIATE TO A MAN’S DIFFERING RELATIONSHIPS.

“. . . TO LEAD . . .”
One problem with language is that words tend to carry very different connotations for different people. Hence the word “lead” will sound strong and domineering to some, but moderate and servant-like to others.
Another problem is that one word carries many different nuances and implications for different contexts and situations. For example, the word “lead” could refer to what people do when they direct an orchestra, or persuade a friend to go to the zoo, or inspire a group for a cause, or command a military platoon, or make the first suggestion about where to eat, or take the driver’s seat when a group gets in the car, or take the initiative in a group to push the button in an elevator, or choose a door and open it for another to go through, or chair a committee, or sing loud enough to help others, or point a lost motorist to the freeway entrance, or call the plays on a football team, or call people together for prayer.
Therefore, I need to explain in some detail what I have in mind by the mature masculine responsibility to lead. Otherwise false ideas could easily come into people’s minds that I do not intend. Following are nine clarifying statements about the meaning of mature masculine leadership.

1. Mature masculinity expresses itself not in the demand to be served, but in the strength to serve and to sacrifice for the good of woman.
Jesus said, “Let the greatest among you become as the youngest and the leader as one who serves” (Luke 22:26). Leadership is not a demanding demeanor. It is moving things forward to a goal. If the goal is holiness and Heaven, the leading will have the holy aroma of Heaven about it - the demeanor of Christ.
Thus after saying that “the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church,” Paul said, “Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her” (Ephesians 5:23, 25). Jesus led his bride to holiness and heaven on the Calvary road. He looked weak, but he was infinitely strong in saying NO to the way of the world. So it will be again and again for mature men as they take up the responsibility to lead.

2. Mature masculinity does not assume the authority of Christ over woman, but advocates it.
The leadership implied in the statement, “The husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church” (Ephesians 5:23), is not a leadership that gives to the man all the rights and authority that Christ has. The analogy between Christ and the husband breaks down if pressed too far, first because, unlike Christ, all men sin. Christ never has to apologize to his church. But husbands must do this often.
Moreover, unlike Christ, a husband is not preparing a bride merely for himself but for another, namely Christ. He does not merely act as Christ, but also for Christ. At this point he must not be Christ to his wife lest he be a traitor to Christ. Standing in the place of Christ must include a renunciation of the temptation to be Christ. And that means leading his wife forward to depend not on him but on Christ. And practically, that rules out belittling supervision and fastidious oversight. She also stands or falls before her own master, Jesus Christ.

3. Mature masculinity does not presume superiority, but mobilizes the strengths of others.
No human leader is infallible. Nor is any man superior to those he leads in every respect. Therefore a good leader will always take into account the ideas of those he leads, and may often adopt those ideas as better than his own. This applies to husbands at home and elders in the church and all the other places where leadership is critical. A man’s leadership is not measured by his obliviousness to the ideas and desires of others. A leader of peers may be surrounded by much brighter people than himself. He will listen and respond. And if he is a good leader, they will appreciate his initiative and guidance through the ups and downs of decision-making. The aim of leadership is not to demonstrate the superiority of the leader, but to bring out all the strengths of people that will move them forward to the desired goal.
In Ephesians 5:28-29 the wife is pictured as part of the man’s body as the church is part of Christ’s body. So in loving his wife a man is loving himself. This is clearly an application to marriage of Jesus’ command, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” This rules out a leadership that treats a wife like a child. A husband does not want to be treated that way himself.
Moreover Christ does not lead the church as his daughter but as his wife. He is preparing her to be a “fellow-heir” (Romans 8:17), not a servant girl. Any kind of leadership that in the name of Christlike headship tends to produce in a wife personal immaturity or spiritual weakness or insecurity through excessive control or picky supervision or oppressive domination has missed the point of the analogy in Ephesians 5. Christ does not create that kind of wife.

4. Mature masculinity does not have to initiate every action, but feels the responsibility to provide a general pattern of initiative.
In a family the husband does not do all the thinking and planning. His leadership is to take responsibility in general to initiate and carry through the spiritual and moral planning for family life. I say “in general” because “in specifics” there will be many times and many areas of daily life where the wife will do all kinds of planning and initiating. But there is a general tone and pattern of initiative that should develop which is sustained by the husband.
For example, the leadership pattern would be less than Biblical if the wife in general was having to take the initiative in prayer at mealtime, and get the family out of bed for worship on Sunday morning, and gather the family for devotions, and discuss what moral standards will be required of the children, and confer about financial priorities, and talk over some neighborhood ministry possibilities, etc. A wife may initiate the discussion and planning of any one of these, but if she becomes the one who senses the general responsibility for this pattern of initiative while her husband is passive, something contrary to Biblical masculinity and femininity is in the offing.
Psychologist James Dobson is so concerned about the recovery of the leadership of husbands at home that he calls it “America’s greatest need.”
A Christian man is obligated to lead his family to the best of his ability. . . . If his family has purchased too many items on credit, then the financial crunch is ultimately his fault. If the family never reads the Bible or seldom goes to church on Sunday, God holds the man to blame. If the children are disrespectful and disobedient, the primary responsibility lies with the father . . . not his wife. . . . In my view, America’s greatest need is for husbands to begin guiding their families, rather than pouring every physical and emotional resource into the mere acquisition of money.

5. Mature masculinity accepts the burden of the final say in disagreements between husband and wife, but does not presume to use it in every instance.
In a good marriage decision-making is focussed on the husband, but is not unilateral. He seeks input from his wife and often adopts her ideas. This is implied in the love that governs the relationship (Ephesians 5:25), in the equality of personhood implied in being created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27), and in the status of being fellow-heirs of the grace of life (1 Peter 3:7). Unilateral decision-making is not usually a mark of good leadership. It generally comes from laziness or insecurity or inconsiderate disregard.
On the other hand dependence on team input should not go to the point where the family perceives a weakness of indecision in the husband. And both husband and wife should agree on the principle that the husband’s decision should rightly hold sway if it does not involve sin. However, this conviction does not mean that a husband will often use the prerogative of “veto” over the wishes of his wife or family. He may, in fact, very often surrender his own preference for his wife’s where no moral issue is at stake. His awareness of his sin and imperfection will guard him from thinking that following Christ gives him the ability of Christ to know what’s best in every detail. Nevertheless, in a well-ordered Biblical marriage both husband and wife acknowledge in principle that, if necessary in some disagreement, the husband will accept the burden of making the final choice.

6. Mature masculinity expresses its leadership in romantic sexual relations by communicating an aura of strong and tender pursuit.
This is very difficult to put into words. But sexual relations are so basic to human life we would be delinquent not to at least try to say how masculinity expresses itself here.
It is the mingling of tenderness with strength that makes the unique masculine quality of leadership in sexual relations. There is an aura of masculine leadership which rises from the mingling of power and tenderness, forcefulness and affection, potency and sensitivity, virility and delicateness. It finds expression in the firmness of his grasp, the strength of taking her in his arms, the sustaining of verbal adoration, etc. And there are a hundred nuances of masculine pursuit that distinguish it from feminine pursuit.
It is important to say that there is, of course, a feminine pursuit in sexual relations. This is why the word “initiate” is not an exact way of describing masculine leadership in sexual relations. The wife may initiate an interest in romance and may keep on initiating different steps along the way. But there is a difference. A feminine initiation is in effect an invitation for the man to do his kind of initiating. In one sense then you could say that in those times the man is responding. But in fact the wife is inviting him to lead in a way as only a man can, so that she can respond to him.
It will not do to say that, since the woman can rightly initiate, therefore there is no special leadership that the man should fulfil. When a wife wants sexual relations with her husband she wants him to seek her and take her and bring her into his arms and up to the pleasures that his initiatives give her.
Consider what is lost when women attempt to assume a more masculine role by appearing physically muscular and aggressive. It is true that there is something sexually stimulating about a muscular, scantily clad young woman pumping iron in a health club. But no woman should be encouraged by this fact. For it probably means the sexual encounter that such an image would lead to is something very hasty and volatile, and in the long run unsatisfying. The image of a masculine musculature may beget arousal in a man, but it does not beget several hours of moonlight walking with significant, caring conversation. The more women can arouse men by doing typically masculine things, the less they can count on receiving from men a sensitivity to typically feminine needs. Mature masculinity will not be reduced to raw desire in sexual relations. It remains alert to the deeper personal needs of a woman and mingles strength and tenderness to make her joy complete.

7. Mature masculinity expresses itself in a family by taking the initiative in disciplining the children when both parents are present and a family standard has been broken.
Mothers and fathers are both to be obeyed by their children (Ephesians 6:1). Mothers as well as fathers are esteemed teachers in the home (Proverbs 1:8; 6:20; 31:1). They carry rights of authority and leadership toward their children, as do their husbands. They do not need to wait till Dad gets home from work to spank a disobedient child.
But children need to see a dynamic between Mom and Dad that says, Dad takes charge to discipline me when Mom and Dad are both present.13 No woman should have to take the initiative to set a disobedient child right while her husband sits obliviously by, as though nothing were at stake. Few things will help children understand the meaning of responsible, loving masculinity better than watching who takes the responsibility to set them right when Mom and Dad are both present.
8. Mature masculinity is sensitive to cultural expressions of masculinity and adapts to them (where no sin is involved) in order to communicate to a woman that a man would like to relate not in any aggressive or perverted way, but with maturity and dignity as a man.
This would mean dressing in ways that are neither effeminate nor harsh and aggressive. It would mean learning manners and customs. Who speaks for the couple at the restaurant? Who seats the other? Who drives the car? Who opens the door? Who walks in front down the concert hall aisle? Who stands and who sits, and when? Who extends the hand at a greeting? Who walks on the street side? How do you handle a woman’s purse? Etc. Etc. These things change from culture to culture and from era to era. The point is that masculine leadership will not scorn them or ignore them, but seek to use them to cultivate and communicate a healthy pattern of complementarity in the relationships between men and women. Mature masculinity will not try to communicate that such things don’t matter. Mature masculinity recognizes the pervasive implications of manhood and womanhood, and seeks to preserve the patterns of interaction that give free and natural expression to that reality. A dance is all the more beautiful when the assigned steps are natural and unself-conscious.

9. Mature masculinity recognizes that the call to leadership is a call to repentance and humility and risk-taking.
We are all sinners. Masculinity and femininity have been distorted by our sin. Taking up the responsibility to lead must therefore be a careful and humble task. We must admit as men that historically there have been grave abuses. In each of our lives we have ample cause for contrition at our passivity or our domination. Some have neglected their wives and squandered their time in front of the television or putzing around in the garage or going away too often with the guys to hunt or fish or bowl. Others have been too possessive, harsh, domineering, and belittling, giving the impression through act and innuendo that wives are irresponsible or foolish.
We should humble ourselves before God for our failures and for the remaining tendency to shirk or overstep our responsibilities. The call to leadership is not a call to exalt ourselves over any woman. It is not a call to domineer, or belittle or put woman in her place. She is, after all, a fellow-heir of God and destined for a glory that will one day blind the natural eyes of every man (Matthew 13:43). The call to leadership is a call to humble oneself and take the responsibility to be a servant-leader in ways that are appropriate to every differing relationship to women.
It is a call to risk getting egg on our faces; to pray as we have never prayed before; to be constantly in the Word; to be more given to planning, more intentional, more thoughtful, less carried along by the mood of the moment; to be disciplined and ordered in our lives; to be tenderhearted and sensitive; to take the initiative to make sure there is a time and a place to talk to her about what needs to be talked about; and to be ready to lay down our lives the way Christ did if that is necessary.

The Meaning of Masculinity, part 1

2010-09-12T16:50:00.003-04:00

Heart Commitment: A Prayer

2010-09-05T15:29:00.001-04:00

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever… Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.”
- John 14:15-16; 4:21

There is a choice we make each day, whether or not we will choose God. I pray that you would make that choice to choose God today.

I asked last week what constitutes a successful semester as leaders. I remind you now that there is only one thing. If you fall more in love with God.

This is because when we fall more in love with God, we will keep His commands and His will is fulfilled in us.
How will we keep His commands? He will give us the Holy Spirit.

And if we keep His commandments, we are the ones who love Him and those who love Christ will be loved by the Father.
How will we keep loving Him? He will manifest Himself to us.

Basically, Christ will reveal His love for us. We love Him because He first loved us.

Let’s take this time then to commit to the Lord, make a covenant with Him and our hearts that we desire to love Him and keep His commandments. And what was His commandment? Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your strength. And love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus said the Law and the Prophets (EVERYTHING in the Old Testament) hangs on these two commandments.

"Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks the oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies – in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ."
- 1 Peter 4:7-11

If you are led to prayer, here are some topics of suggestion that I am praying over:

1. As each of you has received a gift, lets pray for a heart for one another and to use our talents and our gifts to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s grace.

2. Let’s commit to God to be accountable for one another as we are called to love. We are our brother’s keeper. There is no greater love than for someone to lay down their life for a friend.

3. Let’s pray that all our planning and strategies would be firmly rooted upon our heart for the Lord. That with everything that we do and say, it would rest upon the solid promises of our loving Father. HE is going to do it. We only need to follow.

4. Let’s pray that through this semester, God would do whatever is necessary for us to be drawn closer to Him and live a life that more fully glorifies Him.

5. Let’s pray that we would be filled and overflowing in abundance with the Holy Spirit who guides us in all truth.

6. Let’s pray that we would take the calling to be God’s Holy generation and devote our lives to His Kingdom and His righteousness.

7. Let’s consecrate ourselves and pray for our hearts and our brothers and sisters around us.

Heart Renewal: A Prayer

2010-08-29T12:23:00.003-04:00

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”
-Matthew 22:37b

This prayer comes out of the prayer for repentance which I posted last week.

During your personal growth in wisdom and understanding of the Lord, I hope that you’ve realized this one thing: The greatest commandment is to seek the Lord with your whole heart. This is THE calling for us as Christians.

Out of everything we’ve done in our lives and will be doing, it is my prayer that we would fall more in love with Christ. Because in the end, we’re not simply doing good work. We are being prepared for the coming of Christ! Our faith is being perfected. The Lord knows your heart, whether or not you desire Him with your whole heart. He doesn’t need us but He is jealous for us. He desires the best for us. He wants us to know Him in all His fullness. Because He knows that fullness of life and joy and freedom is in Him alone.

We all know that we fail whenever we try to fulfill the will of the Lord and follow Him. But with every command of God, there is a promise of God. We must depend on the Lord and devote to Him our whole hearts if we truly desire to be filled with the Holy Spirit and claim the promises of God.

"I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws."
- Ezekiel 36:26-27

This is the promise of God. God says that HE will give us a new heart and put a new spirit in us. HE will do it.

It is on our part to ask and humble ourselves as willing vessels. Empty ourselves of whatever we may be holding on to so that God may fill us with His heart.

Let’s pray as we continue to serve this semester and as we continue in our walk of faith that we would have such a mindset to continually lay ourselves before the Lord and depend on Him with our whole hearts. That we would have such a culture of stepping in faith to seek the Lord first and above all else. That we would have the mentality of ones who serve out of the overflow of a life that is filled with the Holy Spirit. That we would be ones who would pass on that kind of heart to our future leaders. That we would have the habit of meeting with the Lord.

What constitutes a successful semester as leaders? There is only one thing. If you fall more in love with God.

Let’s pray right now in taking a step of faith to having a lifestyle of deep dependence on the Lord. We cannot move unless He moves us. We cannot lead unless He leads us. Let’s ask God for a new heart, clinging to the promise in Ezekiel which Jesus Christ fulfilled on the cross. He went to the Father so that He would be able to send the Spirit. Let’s pray right now to be filled with His love, filled with the Holy Spirit and be constantly drinking the wellspring of Life that Jesus provides.

Repentance: A Prayer

2010-08-22T18:17:00.000-04:00

We're back at repentance.

Don’t take this topic so lightly because we often begin spiritual events and transitions with a time of repentance. God knows your heart and He will not be mocked. He sees to the core of your heart. The Lord is serious about our ignorance, our pride, our sins, our contempt, our disrespect of Him. If we are to come to Him now with simple lip-service, I would be afraid. In Hosea, the prophet Hosea calls the people to come and repent so that God may receive them yet once again. But just like Hosea’s wife who though she experienced the grace and love of her husband went back to prostitution, God interrupts Hosea’s invitation of repentance to the people by bringing to attention the folly of their repentance. We are always customarily praying repentant prayers. Because we are wretched, blind, lost, dead in our sins without Christ! Sometimes we pray with deep conviction, and other times with a certain reluctance which is many times because we know that we’ve been there before.

This is what the Lord said.
"Your love is like a morning cloud, like the dew that goes early away. Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of my mouth, and my judgment goes forth as the light.
For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings."
- Hosea 6:4b-6

God says our repentance and our love for God is like a morning cloud, like the dew that goes early away. God is reminding us that when we repent, we must pray in sincerity and in deep seriousness. He is reminding us of the many times we have repented. Let’s not let this time be the same. God doesn’t need our sacrifice, our service, our offerings. He desires steadfast love. He desires faithfulness to Him. Holiness and purity of the heart. Honesty. Let’s come before Him now, lifting up our hearts and asking for His mercy to touch our hearts and led us into true repentance. If your struggling to pray or you don’t feel like praying right now, I earnestly ask you not to remain silent and ignore God’s invitation for mercy.

Galatians 6:7-10 :: Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

Titus 2:11-14 :: For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

1 Peter 1:13-16 :: Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

I pray that you would not take lightly the mercy God shows us each day. Let us return to Him with all our hearts. We will seek Him and find Him when we seek Him with all our hearts. Lets confess our sins, confess of our selfish hearts and evil minds. Rend your hearts and return to the LORD your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.

I’m not sure if you feel ready to cry out to the Lord but let’s not go through the motions at this retreat and in this upcoming semester. I don’t know where each of your hearts are but we can not simply drive on auto-pilot with this life that God has placed us in.

We all know that faith is not all about “feeling” it. We must remove ourselves from the pedestal. It doesn’t matter what other people think of you. We make nothing of Christ if we are simply doing things by way of “eye-service” and “as people pleasers.”

Let’s come before God in all honesty. And lets seek God desperately in our honesty. Let’s do whatever it takes during this time and during this semester, to be in the arms of Christ confessing our need for Him.

Let’s confess to God: “Do whatever it takes for my heart to be open to Yours. Do whatever it takes to draw me closer to You.”
Let’s not simply stand idle when God is inviting us to meet with Him. Let’s cry out to the Lord!

Amen.

The Commission - Day 40

2010-08-15T16:51:00.002-04:00

A summer ends as I return from the internship at the commission.

The time down in Washington D.C. has really stretched me in many ways. There’s the intellect, the self, the experience, the perspective, and most of all, if you’ve followed my blog through this time, the spiritual.

They all had a cumulative effect on me. I went to Washington D.C. with the mentality of it being a mission field. I believe we should approach all things as an opportunity to bring glory and worship to God, even our internships, our academics, our jobs, our families, our hang outs, our vacations – all things.

The missionary heart is a heart that longs to bring glory and worship to God in every heart and situation. The missionary heart is a heart that prioritizes Christ first and above. Every action and strategy revolves around the person of Christ.

In fact, this is the very best way to be a witness to the people around you. Your friends and coworkers will automatically see that God is important to you when you reveal your priority is in Him. It allows an avenue of rapport without any forced effort, a foundation for spiritual conversations, and it also creates the opportunity for invitation to church events.

In the end, having a missionary heart is at the core of what it means to be a Christian as we love the Lord with all our heart, mind, strength and soul and be the salt and light of the world.

However, all of these things require initiative on our part. Too many a times, we let go of the opportunities God places in our lives to speak words of life and truth into the hearts of those around us.

While in D.C., I experienced this reality every day. It was initially the pressure of being inexperienced in the policy field and the unfamiliarity to the topics that were discussed that silenced me from boldly proclaiming the truth.

But as that pressure abated, another pressure emerged, the pressure of wanting acceptance. The world causes us to quiet the jealous Spirit of God in us. Although He is jealous for our devotion and our witness, we squelch the conviction of the Spirit either through blatant rejection or timidity.

As experience accumulates and comfort levels rise, there is yet another enemy to the Spirit. It is our complacency. To strip it to the core, complacency is the heart’s decision to place its treasures on earth and its hope in man. Complacency is a direct rebellion from God and rooted in pride. Pride in self-reliance. Pride in autonomy. Pride that you are in control. Pride that all of this is okay in the sight of God.

Every single day I was in Washington D.C., God pierced my heart and led me to tears. It was in many ways a mission field as well as a retreat. I was alone for the most part and would remain alone if I would not engage myself with the body of Christ. It was almost as a fortress of solitude. I was accountable for my own and nobody would tell me other wise. I did not seek the Lord every moment of my days but God’s mercy poured out over me in exceeding amounts as I confessed my faltering faithfulness and my lack of desire for Him. Still He touched my heart and led me into His presence. Still He took a hold of my attention many times during the day.

I am faced with overwhelming obstacles. We tend to think, if we’ve thought a lot about it, that we know the will of God. If we’ve devoted enough time and effort and gained experience and wisdom, we tend to think we know the will of God. If we’ve encountered God in incredible ways and have been used by God to do incredible things, we tend to think we know the will of God.

However, the more I follow His leading, the more I realize that to know the will of God is like finding a very singular and specific thought that at the moment you grasp it, it vanishes away. If you keep your hand grasped on that singular thought, you will find yourself at one point realizing that you had lost it before you ever really took hold of it. It is the acknowledgement of this truth that allows many Christians to have freedom and peace, whether they know it or not… because to follow the will of God is faith itself. It is the open hands that are gripped by God that lets the Spirit lead.

I am meditating on many other things that I have experienced and learned through my time at the internship. May God continue to speak to each of us and lead us in His will by His grace.

Christ with us,
Joseph Ryu

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*As my internship has ended, I will be writing on this blog every Sunday evening from now on.

The Commission - Day 39

2010-08-06T22:17:00.002-04:00

Korean Christians for Freedom in North Korea
(Translation)

Our Mandate for North Korean Rights and Freedom

1. We confess to God our selfishness for overlooking and ignoring the plight of the North Koreans

2. We must listen to the cries and testimonies of the North Korean Refugees

3. The rights of the North Koreans we are seeking is not simply political but it is from the Word of God

4. Our actions are not meant to discourage the North and South Korean governments from talking but are meant to make them more successful

5. All humanitarian efforts of the Korean churches towards helping North Koreans must be intricately intertwined with the effort to bring rights and freedom to North Korea

6. The partnership of the South Korean churches and the North Korean churches must focus on increasing religious freedom in North Korea

7. All aid support should be conditioned with human rights improvements.

The president of the Korean Christians for Freedom in North Korea will yearly hold prayer vigils until all points above and the following points below are fully realized.

a. North Korea gives up nuclear weapons
b. North Korea gives freedom of religion
c. North Korea establishes rule of law and abolishes political concentration camps
d. North Korea allows families that have been separated from North and South Korea to reunite
e. North Korea fairly distributes food aid
f. North Korea allows the UN Secretariat to enter into North Korea

The Commission - Day 38

2010-08-05T22:04:00.004-04:00

Internet Freedom Organizations

Global Network Initiative
http://www.globalnetworkinitiative.org/

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Global Internet Freedom Consortium – Freegate Project (Circumvention Tool)
Website: http://www.internetfreedom.org/
Email: info@globalnetworkinitiative.org

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TOR Project (Circumvention Tool)
The Tor Project
969 Main Street, Suite 206
Walpole, MA 02081 USA
Website: http://www.torproject.org/index.html.en
Email: execdir@torproject.org

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Rights & Democracy: International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development
1001 de Maisonneuve Blvd. East, Suite 1100,
Montreal (Quebec) Canada H2L 4P9
Website: http://www.dd-rd.ca/site/home/index.php?lang=en
Email: dd-rd@dd-rd.ca

Annual Report:
“From Word to Action 2008-2009”

Publication:
“Religion and Human Rights”
2008

Publication:
“Review of China’s Internet Regulations and Domestic Legislation”

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Human Rights Watch
1630 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Suite 500
Washington, DC 20009 USA
Email: hrwdc@hrw.org

Publication:
“An Alleyway in Hell”; China’s Abusive “Black Jails”
November 12, 2009

Publication:
“We are Afraid to Even Look for Them”; Enforced Disappearances in the Wake of Xinjiang’s Protests
October 20, 2009

Publication:
“China: Nipped in the Bud”; The Suppression of the China Democratic Party
January 7, 2009

Publication:
“China’s Forbidden Zone”; Shutting the Media out of Tibet and Other “Sensitive” Stories
July 6, 2008

Publication:
“Walking on Thin Ice”; Control, Intimidation and Harassment of Lawyers in China
April 28, 2008

Publication:
Freedom of Expression and the Internet in China
August 1, 2001

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Reporters Without Borders
Clothilde Le Coz
Washington Director, Reporters Without Borders
Southern Railway Building
1500 K Street, NW, Suite 600
Washington DC, 20005
E-mail : clc@rsf.org

Publication:
Internet Enemies: China
March 2010

Publication:
China: Journey to the heart of Internet Censorship
October 2007

Publication:
Xinhua; The World’s Biggest Propaganda Agency
October 2005

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Internet Governance Forum
http://www.intgovforum.org/cms/

Publication:
“Internet for All” (2008)

The Commission - Day 37

2010-08-04T19:41:00.004-04:00

Internet Freedom Experts

Rebecca MacKinnon
Schwartz Senior Fellow, New America Foundation
Co-founder, GlobalVoicesOnline.org
E-mail: rebecca.mackinnon@gmail.com, rebecca@globalvoicesonline.org
Blog: http://RConversation.blogs.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/rmack
Friendfeed: http://friendfeed.com/rebeccamack

Testimony to:
“Global Internet Freedom and the Rule of Law, Part II”, Senate Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law
March 2, 2010

Testimony to:
“The Google Predicament: Transforming U.S. Cyberspace Policy to Advance Democracy, Security, and Trade”, Committee on Foreign Affairs, United States House of Representatives
March 10, 2010

Testimony to:
“Google and Internet Control in China”, Congressional-Executive Commission on China
March 24, 2010

Testimony to:
“China’s Information Control Practices and the Implications for the United States”, U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission
June 30, 2010

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Daniel Calingaert
Deputy Director of Programs, Freedom House
1301 Connecticut Ave. NW Floor 6
Washington, District of Columbia 20036
Email: Calingaert@freedomhouse.org

Freedom House report:
Freedom on the Internet: A Global Assessment of Internet and Digital Media
April 1, 2009

Testimony to:
“Current Threats to Internet Freedom”, the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission
June 18, 2009

Briefing:
“Twitter against Tyrants: New Media in Authoritarian Regimes”, Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe
October 22, 2009

Article:
“Authoritarianism vs. the Internet: The race between freedom and repression”, Policy Review No. 160, Hoover Institute, Stanford University
April 1, 2010

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Dr. Steven J. Murdoch
University of Cambridge
Computer Laboratory
15 JJ Thomson Avenue
Cambridge
CB3 0FD
United Kingdom
Email: Steven.Murdoch@cl.cam.ac.uk

Article:
“Shifting Borders”, Index on Censorship, Volume 36, Issue 4

Book Chapter:
“Tools and Technology of Internet Filtering”, Steven J. Murdoch and Ross Anderson

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Sharon Hom
Executive Director, Human Rights in China
HRIC Head Office
350 Fifth Avenue, Suite 3311
New York, NY 10118 USA
Email: hrichina@hrichina.org

Testimony to:
“Google and Internet Control in China: A Nexus Between Human Rights and Trade?”, Congressional-Executive Commission on China
March 24, 2010

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Nicole Wong
Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, Google Inc.
1600 Amphitheatre Parkway
Mountain View, CA 94043

Testimony to:
“Global Internet Freedom and the Rule of Law, Part II”, U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law
March 2, 2010

Testimony to:
“The Google Predicament: Transforming U.S. Cyberspace Policy to Advance Democracy, Security, and Trade”, U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs
March 10, 2010

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Ed Black
President & CEO, Computer & Communications Industry Association
CCIA Head Office
900 17th Street, NW, Suite 1100
Washington, DC 20006

Testimony to:
“Global Internet Freedom: Corporate Responsibility and the Rule of Law, Part II”, Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law
March 2, 2010

Testimony to:
“Google, the Internet and China: A Nexus Between Human Rights and Trade?”, Congressional Executive Committee on China
March 24, 2010

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Thomas Lum
Specialist in Asian Affairs, Congressional Research Service
The Library of Congress
101 Independence Avenue, SE,
Washington, DC 20540-7500
Email: tlum@crs.loc.gov

CRS Report for Congress:
U.S. Initiatives to Promote Global Internet Freedom: Issues, Policy, and Technology
April 5, 2010

CRS Report for Congress:
U.S.-China Relations: Policy Issues
March 12, 2010

CRS Report for Congress:
Internet Development and Information Control in the People’s Republic of China
February 10, 2006

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Robert Faris
Research Director for the Berkman Center for Internet & Society, Harvard University
Staff of OpenNet Initiative
Email: rfaris@cyber.law.harvard.edu
Website: http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/

Publication:
“Media Re:Public”
2008

Project:
OpenNet Initiative

The Commission - Day 36

2010-08-03T18:46:00.006-04:00

Question to consider for Christian college students and leaders:

Reflection
1. Where was my heart this past semester? Was I focused on myself or on God?
2. What were the stressors and motivators during the past semester?
3. Did I bury my talent or invest it fully: am I fully satisfied/do I have any regrets in my serving?
4. Despite everything, have you seen God doing incredible things around you?
5. Who was there for me and encouraging me? If there are none, have you been one?

Expectation
1. Is there specific things that I am looking forward to this next semester? If so, what?
2. Am I looking forward to finishing my term as a leader? If so, why?
3. Knowing my regrets & wanting to honor God, what are few convictions I need accountability in?
4. Is there anything I need to confess or address to my brothers or sisters? If so, what?
5. Are there things from these questions are impacting my expectations for the Fall? If so, what?

Heart Condition
1. What are the things that keep me from completely relying on God?
2. What are the "giants" I am facing as I start the semester? What are my struggles?
3. Before I leave this place, is there anything I must confess?
4. Am I leaving here fully trusting, fully surrendered?
5. What kind of covenants have you made to the Lord during this time?

Philippians 3:7 - 4:1

"But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. Only let us hold true to what we have attained.

Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself. Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved."

The Commission - Day 35

2010-08-02T19:31:00.002-04:00

Reflections and thoughts for our New York Korea Campus Crusade for Christ Regional Leadership Teams.

Blessings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ!

Before anything else, I would like to personally thank each of you for the level of commitment and sacrifice you have shown me and the members of our communities since the very first day you took office. We've learned a lot last semester and although some directives may now seem routine and boring to you, I would like to remind you of the weight of glory we are entrusted with and the goals we set back in January of 2010.

At the winter regional leadership training, we, as the Regional Student Representatives of 2010, had agreed upon a vision and mission that we would be committed to raising up Christ-centered laborers in view of the current times by connecting, mobilizing, resourcing, directing, and strengthening our Regional Student Leadership of 2010 so that God's movement could be further advanced on the campuses and in student's lives.

We've followed up on this commitment by incorporating leadership seminars and intercampus leadership discussions at our monthly regional DPD meetings. We've made a few strides on procedures and event programming. We've successfully hosted projects in support of campus ministries.

We've fallen short however on a number of key issues, namely our interpersonal relationship development between us Regional Student Representatives and raising the level of organization and record for the future leadership.

We've yet to accomplish probably our final act of campus strategy, which is "exploding fall semester." We had hoped in January that as we leaders started in the Spring, we would be more prepared for the Fall. As I analyze our situation going into the Fall, I consider our hopes to be slightly overestimated. Although our campuses are more ready in many ways to begin the Fall semester's freshman campaigns, it doesn't seem to be a substantial one that would make it much of an improvement from the previous years.

Coming into the 2010 term as leaders, we all knew that there would be sacrifices, which I hope we've been gladly giving to the Lord. However, I'm not saying what we've accomplished and what we haven't defines our worth or our success. I look to the Christian leaders of the past and the heart of God in His Word and I do not see simply what people had done and did not do. I see people of perseverance. A people of commitment. A people of faithfulness.

I am deeply moved by the ones who shook their times, changed the course of history, opened the door for great awakenings. These were men and women of devotion who persevered and laid down even their lives for the work they were entrusted to by the Lord. Many did not receive the promise. But they saw it. These were the men of faith.

I do not write in any judgment on any of us leaders for things such as lacking in sacrifice or commitment. I praise our leaders, and I praise each of you for the heart that you have continued to show your Father in Heaven who sees through into your hearts, who sees you in secret. We all stand only by Jesus Christ, who is our only righteousness and justification. If I were to judge, I would be judging myself since I have been entrusted with the responsibility of being the head of our fellowship. It is an overwhelming responsibility. One that keeps me to grip more tightly on God's grace.

However, I am writing to you of an invitation from God. Doubts on our ability or capacity to do the work of God are shattered by the words of a very good disciple maker who once said, "What are you worrying about? You're not going to be doing anything. God is going to do His work. You just have to follow His lead."

And the words of a pastor echo in my mind saying, "Is your 'giant' (obstacle, problem, enemy) too gargantuan for you to kill? Is your circumstances beyond your control? GOOD! Bless you! Then it's only something God can do! Amen brother! Go for it!"

And it is truly the promise of Christ that He "will be with you to the end of the age" and He "will give you the words to speak" and He "will fill you with all knowledge and discernment" and He "will fill you with the Holy Spirit" and He "will do it."

And so I invite you to take hold of God's invitation.

This August, we have much to do to see to it that our Fall 2010 freshmen campaigns start with a big bang and we have yet to make key steps in preparing for our Fall 2010 Sports Day. This Fall, we will focus once again on the objectives we have placed before us and focus on raising up our regional leadership, developing relationships, and raising the level of organization and record for future leaders.

God's going to do it. I believe it. As Christians, we are blessed with or without our commitment to this work as leaders in Korea Campus Crusade for Christ. But I must say, it is a holy burden and heavy words that not everyone can receive. It's definitely a special blessing.

I end with saying that I am truly privileged and honored to be serving amongst men and women like yourselves. I remember the prayer that I prayed at Vision 2010, where I introduced our leadership by saying, "We have taken up a tremendous calling to serve you and not that we are any more qualified than you but it is by the grace of God we have been appointed as leaders."

We begin this upcoming Fall semester with humble hearts gathered in prayer and thanksgiving. May your hearts stir with anticipation and excitement as we continue to impact the eternity of souls, the eternity of mankind. I bless you earnestly as your good brother in Christ.

Christ with us,
Joseph Ryu

The Commission - Day 34

2010-07-30T09:30:00.008-04:00

This is where I work everyday in Washington D.C.

Photo Credit: Ayma R., fellow intern and food blogger. (Blog Link)

It's a nice building on North Capitol Street. On the photo, its the pinkish building that has the sun shining on it. Very new compared to the Government Printing Office Building right next to it. That one looks like it was built in the 1950s.

Photo Credit: Ayma R., fellow intern and food blogger. (Blog Link)

These are most of the interns at the Commission. I wish I had a camera but since I don't, my friend's photos will have to do. In the picture from left to right is Chris F., Ayma R., Joseph Ryu, Elizabeth J., Kristina O., and Yusra B. They all work in different departments of the Commission and very fun people to hang out with. For most of them, today is their last day of work.

But for me, starting today, I officially have 6 more days of internship left! There's so much that I've learned here at the Commission these past 7 weeks. I'm going to really miss it. Washington D.C. is a great place to be. I envy those who live around here and especially those who work here. I'll be praying for our government more specifically now since I've experienced first hand a couple of new aspects of politics and international affairs.

Well, I'm already preparing to leave this place anyway. This upcoming semester is jam-packed and preparation is a necessity! But before anything, I definitely need a break as well. Going to be on vacation with my parents for a week after I get back next Saturday. Can't wait! I won't be completely relaxing, which I don't like doing anyway, since I'll probably bring KCCC preparations along with me. Exciting regional leadership retreat coming up in three weeks!

The Commission - Day 33

2010-07-29T09:14:00.000-04:00

August 8, 2008

Words Part 3 of 3, by Joseph Ryu

James 3 says that out of the same mouth come praise and cursing and that this should not be. We should always be mindful of such matters and I believe we are to an extent but it is my confession that it is something very hard to do since we're not thinking about the words we say sometimes. However, the spirit of God has been burdening me of my words and I write about this holy burden to you to encourage you and build you up. Thinking it's okay to speak freely without care, and thinking it's okay to speak with words that degrade and curse because it's only a joke, justifying yourself by saying it is the culture of the society we live in, all of these things are the same as asking "how far can I go?" concerning sin.

Then and there, the attitude of our hearts are revealed.

This is why humility is so important and humility can be seen as the objective given to man from our Creator God because it reveals where our hearts are in our purposes of seeking God. I pray that you may stand with me and in examining Jesus Christ, to live a life that follows after Him. Let us speak for God, let us humble ourselves the same way He humbled Himself for us. He did everything possible to shine the light of God. Let our words and conversations always allow and invite God to come, be revealed, be glorified, and work in our midst. To speak words that honor the Father, however light and jovial they may be. To always be found without fault, without blemish. That we who are no longer slaves to sin but slaves to righteousness, born anew by the grace of God through faith in the blood of Christ would live a life that is above reproach.

And so I urge you:

James 4:5-10 "Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you."

Jesus says repeatedly that His words are not His own. In John 14:10, Jesus says, "The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works."

A little further on Jesus says in John 14:23-24, "If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me."

And then again further on, Jesus says in John 15:5, "I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing."

1. Jesus' words are from the Father because the Father dwells in Him
2. The people who love Jesus will be loved by the Father and the Father will dwell in them also.
3. The only time we can bear fruit is when the Father dwells in us and we in Him.

This is the point.

Our hearts are wretched and wicked. Our tongues cannot be tamed. So what is in our hearts comes out from our lips. No matter how funny something may be, if it's derogatory and condescending on someone else, it reveals the wickedness in our hearts. A white lie is a lie no matter how much you try to twist it. God knows our hearts. But for us who have put our faith in Christ, we die to ourselves. We throw away our old ways and we are born again by a new Spirit. The Holy Spirit who dwells in us. By Christ's power alone can we bear any holy fruit that is pleasing to the Father.

Jesus Christ abides in us and therein is the greatest importance for humility. For if we say we want to follow Christ and grow in our faith and confess that we are truly His ambassadors, the words of Christ in John 14 should be our own words. This is an act of our will. To turn to God from self (which is repentance) and palce our dependence on Him (which is humility) and lay down the throne of our lives. May our words be that of Christ and edify the body. I cannot begin to address other topics such as thoughts and deeds and the fellowship with the body of Christ and the relationship we have with this world. I cannot begin to address the rudeness of how we physically relate to one another. Not just between men but also with the women.

Look to Jesus Christ and you will begin to see His example. Hopefully, these words of mine will not pass by you lightly. I write all these things for all of our benefit of persevering in our growing faith.

As I look upon Christ's life and the way he conducted his speech, I am able to see the glory of God. I pray that as we grow in our faith, we would do the same in following after His example. That in everything that we say and do, we may see the glory of God. Amen.

Christ with us,
Joseph Ryu

The Commission - Day 32

2010-07-28T16:00:00.001-04:00

August 8, 2008

Words Part 2 of 3, by Joseph Ryu

On our words

James 3:8-10 "...but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so."

Words are important. No doubt about it. Think of the effects of the greatest influencers of the world. Their words, written works by them and of them literally and totally changed and even continues to change to this day the course of history, society, civilization, culture, ideologies, and lives, for good or for evil.

At the same time, I look into my life and I look at the words that I speak and the conversations that I have or hear around me. I realize right away that there is a very profound degradation in our words. We, for our comfort and pride, are quick to defend, quick to joke, quick to judge, quick to curse. The tongue is a restless evil. Let me explain.

Matthew 12:34-37 "You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

I believe that our seemingly innocent and non-ill willed jokes and our meaningless, "careless" and trifling words show what is in our hearts. Jesus warns us rightly that we will be judged for every careless word we speak and by our words be justified or condemned. We are accountable for the things we say. I'm not saying that we should always be serious, meditative and philosophical every time we speak because that's not what Jesus is saying. Even when we study the words of Christ, we know that the Gospels do not account for every single word He said. Christ definitely taught many more times than what's written and He definitely spoke many other words than what's written. Jesus probably had small talk with his disciples and probably even said a few jokes or two. I'd think Jesus could be a very smart, funny, and witty person. However, in Him we see a life of words and conversations that always allowed and invited God to come, be revealed, be glorified, and work in their midst.

The issues I see around me are the crass joking. The condescending tones. The harassment of a person's dignity. The gossip. I see much of it in the men but I also see it in the women. The way young men treat their female friends. They say it's all for fun and no harm intended but I say those words were careless and stems from the heart of those men. Women gossiping and judging behind other's backs. Men and women do all of these things very naturally. At some point in our Christian faith, it had infiltrated the underlying culture of our faith. I believe this is an area of great need for repentance. A turning away from crude joking.

John 7:17-18 "If anyone's will is to do God's will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority. The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood."

Jesus came and did not speak for his own but spoke for God. You can see humility here again. What does this lead to? It leads to living a life that is in Truth and that has no falsehood beccause you are speaking on behalf of God who sends us out into the darkness as a beacon of light. When we speak on His behalf, we do it for the honor of God and not for our own honor. This is humility. And when we speak on His behalf, we are essentially confessing our desire to be a man of Truth.

The Commission - Day 31

2010-07-27T22:19:00.001-04:00

August 8, 2008

Words Part 1 of 3, by Joseph Ryu

I pray that through this letter, you may be stretched and challenged to continue to grow to maturity with me as I continue to grow to maturity and that these words of mine would be that of love and not of knowledge so that I may build up the Church and not just puff it up.

Deuteronomy 8:1-3 “The whole commandment that I command you today you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land that the LORD swore to give to your fathers. And you shall remember the whole way that the LORD your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD."

What is humility? The LORD leads us in the deserts of life to humble us and test us in order to know what was in our hearts, whether or not we would keep his commands.

Humility is "the place of entire dependence upon God" (Humility, Andrew Murray). Through Jesus Christ, we have been saved and it is by His blood alone that we can place our entire dependence upon God without the consequences of sin and so it is by His blood alone that we can truly be humble before the Lord.

So then, as we are striving to become more like Jesus Christ, I would like to turn my attention on the topic of words. As I spent my time with my missions team and having meditated on past relationships with friends, God has been leading me to dwell upon the importance of His words, our words, and deeper still - what is in our hearts and the effects of it upon our and other's relationships with God and what our desired actions should be in view of all of this.

On God's Words

There is a lot to be said about God's Word and I'm not going to go too deep into theology since I'm no theologian. Nor am I going to go too deep into the philosophy or academia of the topic. What I write, I write to help make a sort of foundation or connecting point.

In Deuteronomy 8, we see the magnitude of the power of God's word. It's to be obeyed and the consequences of doing so or not is life or death. God's word also breathed all things into existence. God's word is also described as God himself in Jesus Christ. The profound implications of God's word can't be described in these short paragraphs. God's word is the way to have and keep holiness and righteousness and in turn be with God.

Psalm 119:9-11 "How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you."

Psalm 119:105 "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."

God's word directs us towards Him. Humility is required in this path to find Him because in essence, keeping his commands is to worship Him, which means all glory, and exaltation must be directed on God. Humility brings out the evidences of our hearts on whether or not we would keep his commands or in other words, if we would place our entire dependence upon God. The desire to seek Him with all our hearts is crucial to our choice of being humble. God may want to humble us in situations but if we do not have the desire to seek Him with all our hearts, we may very well respond with bitterness, confusion, and anger that produces pride, arrogance, self-reliance, and self-glory -- all of which is sin and separates us from God. These in turn causes the obedience of His words to have no genuineness in our hearts and causes us to live without power, authority, and victory over our sins and the spiritual forces of this world.

The Commission - Day 30

2010-07-26T21:23:00.004-04:00

My dear brothers in Christ,

One of my personal convictions is the raising up of a generation of biblical men who will carry the cross into the twisted and perverted culture of our times and bring reconciliation and redemption to Christ for the glory of God. For this reason I write this entry on dating and marriage.

In the topic of dating, the question is not "How do I date biblically?"
Rather, the question is, "What does it mean to be a biblical man?" and further on, "What does it mean to lead a biblical relationship?"

Biblical comes first. In this case, the Bible is not meant to give a step by step process but a series of principles that guide the thoughts, planning, and actions of a man. It's always a process of growth since nobody can fully prepare themselves for anything, let alone a relationship. But to learn much from other biblical men will save men from much of the mistakes that are very commonly made.

Preparations are never for the purpose of relationships. Rather, preparations are a natural response for the Christian who is seeking God and desires to be perfected and mature in faith. To be preparing for marriage there are 2 aspects to focus on. First, what is a biblical man? Second, what is a biblical marriage/relationship?

The sermons of men that have influenced me a lot are: Paul Washer's Dating Sermon, Dr. John Piper's Staying Married Is Not About Staying in Love, Mark Driscoll's Marriage and Men, and Dr. John Piper's Men at War. I advise you listen to those first, probably in that order. And then you can listen to the sermons that catch your fancy.

For further personal studies, I advise you continue with seminar materials and then if you want to study more into each topic, the books I've written down are very good.

The world says, "How do I know she is the one.. for ME?" but biblical men should say, "How can I be the one for HER?"

Build your character in Christ and pursue Him with a burning passion.

I pray that we may continue to be refined in God's holy fire and mature into a mighty men of righteousness by faith.

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1. What is a biblical man?

Seminar materials
Core Seminar on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, from Capitol Hill Baptist Church (Link)

Books
Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (Link)

Messages
Men at War: Pursuing an Undistracted Passion for God part 1 and 2, by Dr. John Piper (Part 1 Link, Part 2 Link)

What it takes to be a man, by Paul Washer (Link)

Where are the men?, by Paul Washer (Link)

Desiring God ministries compiled resources on the topic of biblical manhood and womanhood (Link)

2. What is a biblical marriage/relationship?

Seminar materials
Core Seminar on Dating, from Capitol Hill Baptist Church (Link)

Books
This Momentary Marriage, By Dr. John Piper (Link)

God, Marriage, and Family, By Andreas Kostenberger (Link)

Boy meets Girl, By Joshua Harris Link)

Messages
Single in Christ: A Name Better Than Sons and Daughters, By Dr. John Piper (Link)

Dating Sermon, By Paul Washer (Link)

Marriage and Men, By Mark Driscoll (Link)

Staying Married is Not about Staying in Love part 1 and 2, by Dr. John Piper (Part 1 Link, Part 2 Link)

Desiring God ministries compiled resources on the topic of marriage (Link)

The Commission - Day 29

2010-07-23T07:01:00.005-04:00

A list of some of the things that have been on my mind as of late, and so, equally in my prayers:

- "Am I my brother's keeper?" YES.

- The "Back to Jerusalem" movement. Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and the Middle East.

- Revival through renewing of China-Japan-Korea relations.

- North Korea! Hear the wailing of the blood-covered streets of the innocent!

- Israel's remnant.

- Will God show favor on my family and meet with my parents?

- How can the regional leadership of NY KCCC be instrumental for enough momentum to spur revival in New York?

- How can the regional leadership of NY KCCC support and encourage the campuses in New York?

- Live simply, give lavishly.

- Mature, biblical, righteous men of faith rise up!

- True repentance.

- What is deep intimacy with the Lord? Go deeper, there is no end.

- Marriage is for the glory of God, by the glory of God, and reflects the glory of God.

- For our generation, there is a modern day slavery to the standards of culture and entertainment.

- Men growing up in this generation who seek godliness and holiness are up against a culture that is extremely liberal towards sexual abominations, twisted perversions, pornography, sexual slavery, and depraved minds.

- Church must rise up not in political or social action but root itself in biblical doctrine and theology and then penetrate all of society, culture, and policies. America is a democracy.

- Forgive us for the shedding of innocent blood. End abortion.

- United States will either be instrumental to the return of Christ or it will be instrumental to the return of Christ. Nobody is outside of God's will and domain.

The Commission - Day 28

2010-07-22T19:13:00.002-04:00

At the Commission, I do a variety of things as an intern for the Director of East Asia Policy Affairs. Some times, I accompany him to press conferences and panel discussions, some of which he sits as a panelist himself. Many other times, I'm researching online and assisting him with his daily projects and doing administrative work like running errands, drinking coffee, and eating lunch. No, really. That's part of administrative work too! Most of the time however, I'm in front of my computer researching on projects that he's given me to work on for the benefit of the organization.

Recently, I've been working on the Internet freedom issue around the world and particularly in China. I'm working on basically a project paper for the next two weeks and have been compiling research for the past two weeks. Posted under here is not the project paper but a brief introduction to the issues at hand with expert recommendations. I had to write this up for the past two days because my supervisor needed it to hand into the Commission. Hope its educational and informative for the rest of you.

Internet Freedom Issue/Policy

I. Background

Although today’s life in most developed countries, like the United States, is intricately connected to the Internet, the Internet is quite a modern invention and its commodity, potential and networks are yet to be fully realized globally. Because of this, the boundaries of governments, institutions, and people’s governance and rights over the services of the Internet are also in the process of being fully established and implemented globally.

In an effort to advance humanity and promote equality and peace, the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948 . The bill consisted of a number of articles that detailed and represented a global expression of rights to which all human beings are entitled. The rights described in the universal declaration are also echoed in the Bill of Rights of the United States. Policies based on the fundamental rights of all human beings has allows this country to be a leader in advocating and protecting the same freedoms over the medium of the Internet.

On January 21, 2010, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton gave a historic and possibly the most important speech on the issue of Internet freedom ever delivered by a top U.S. official . In her address, Secretary Clinton recognized the positive impact and social benefits of interconnectivity as well as the negatives of rights being exploited and threatened through the Internet by organizations and nations.

The problem is that many countries censor and control the free flow of information because they feel their sovereignty is threatened by it. A prime example is the way that China has dealt with the emergence of the Internet and its capabilities. Although it boasts the largest population of Internet users (253 Million according to the recent publication of a white paper on Chinese government’s policies towards the Internet on June 8, 2010) and an assurance of the freedoms guaranteed by their own commitment to uphold them in being a member of the General Assembly, their tactics of censorship clearly says otherwise. Many other countries also use these tactics to censor the influx and outflow of information.
Some of these tactics they use are :
• Filtering by keywords such as “Falun Gong, Tibet, Dali Lama, democracy, human rights, Tiananmen”
• Enforcing a list of topics to censor to media outlets
• Deletion of published materials
• Manipulation of public opinion by hiring pro government web commentators
• Restriction of foreign IP addresses possibly linked to accounts of circumvention tools such as Freegate and TOR.
• Regionally shutting down Internet services
• Dismissals and demotions of media personnel
• Libel
• Fines
• Imprisonment

As the Internet becomes more fully integrated into all aspects of life, its tools for disseminating information as well as gathering people all over the world are tremendously powerful technologies. At the same time, in the name of state security, many governments have denied the freedoms that it guarantees its citizens- the right to the freedom of opinion and expression, freedom of thought, conscience and religion, and even the freedom of peaceful assembly and association. (Articles 18, 19, and 20 of the UDHR) China boasts not only the largest population usage of the Internet but also the largest number of imprisonment due to the usage of the Internet. According to a China report published on March 12, 2010 by Reporters Without Borders , China currently boasts “thirty journalists and seventy-two netizens… behind bars for freely expressing their views. The charges brought against them are “subversion” and “dissemination of state secrets.” It has been widely accounted that China regularly censors online websites and issues related to the Falun Gong, Tibet, Uyghur Xinjiang, Tiananmen, democracy, and human rights. In the end, all “subversions” deemed harmful to the political party, whether it be the rights of human rights lawyers in exercising rule of law or the voices and opinions on politics and religion online, is being restricted and punished not in repression of thought, conscience, or religion but because of violations attributed to Chinese criminal penal codes. In this way, China bypasses the human rights issues and creates its violations of basic universal human rights as a matter of national security and harmony.

II. Scope of Research and Analysis

The address made by Secretary Clinton and Google’s recent incident with China did cause more attention to be made on U.S. foreign policy on the global issue of internet freedom. It has definitely helped gather many policy analysts and academics who have been researching and analyzing the development of the Internet, security and technologies, and its relation to people and governments around the world.

A notable contribution to the discussion of Internet censorship came from the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life when they released their first study on the “Global Restrictions on Religion” in December of 2009. In it, they give informative graphs, charts, and indexes of levels of restrictions. They note that although a minority of only “64 nations – about one-third of the countries in the world – have high or very high restrictions on religion,” these countries contain most of the world’s population. China is ranked Very High in the Government Restrictions Index, which accounts for the top 5% of scores. The study noted however that China ranks Low on the Social Hostilities Index, which accounts for bottom 60% of scores. This merely proves that China, with all its economic development and political leverage, has been successful in quenching even the smallest hints of hostility in its censorship that the country simply accepts the boastings the government has given in its white paper for funding the expansion of the Internet in China and creating the largest medium that promotes freedom of speech, thought, conscience, and religion on the Internet in the world.

In respect to human rights organizations, the Freedom House has recently begun on a new Internet Freedom Initiative in order to support freedom and democracy through their methods of analysis, advocacy, and action. In order to accomplish this, they began an annual Internet Freedom Survey, the first one being “Freedom on the Net: A Global Assessment of Internet and Digital Media,” released in April 1 of 2009. They claim it to be “the world’s most comprehensive standard for measuring and tracking internet freedom.” Another valuable resource is Reporters Without Borders’ annual Press Freedom Index .

In respect to academic organizations, the OpenNet Initiative (ONI) stands out the most from an already understudied topic. The OpenNet Initiative is a collaborative partnership of three institutions: the Citizen Lab at the Munk Centre for International Studies, University of Toronto; the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University; and the SecDev Group (Ottawa). Its aim is to investigate, expose and analyze Internet filtering and surveillance practices in a credible and non-partisan fashion. They intend to uncover the potential pitfalls and unintended consequences of these practices, and thus help to inform better public policy and advocacy work in this area. To achieve these aims, the ONI employs a unique multi-disciplinary approach that includes:
A. Development and deployment of a suite of technical enumeration tools and core methodologies for the study of Internet filtering and surveillance;
B. Capacity-building among networks of local advocates and researchers;
C. Advanced studies exploring the consequences of current and future trends and trajectories in filtering and surveillance practices, and their implications for domestic and international law and governance regimes.

One of its collaborative partners, the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard Law School, found 1,763 religious websites included in the search engine Yahoo!’s “Religion and Spirituality” category or its sub categories to have been blocked in China in November of 2002 compared to 923 foreign news sites. No in depth study on the scope of religious content being censored online around the world have been made at this institution or at the OpenNet Initiative to date.

The censorship of the Internet is not only an issue for the public sector and human rights advocates. The private sector is also affected by the consequences of censoring and surveillance of customers of Internet service providers. Censorship of the Internet as a trade barrier came up in the testimonies of representatives of Google during recent hearings on the issue of Internet Freedom . In 2008, the Global Network Initiative was created in view of the looming issue of censorship and restrictions causing companies to act in conflict to universal human rights of their consumers. From their website, they write, “All over the world – from the Americas to Europe to the Middle East to Africa and Asia – companies in the Information & Communications Technology (ICT) sector face increasing government pressure to comply with domestic laws and policies in ways that may conflict with the internationally recognized human rights of freedom of expression and privacy. In response, a multi-stakeholder group of companies, civil society organizations (including [Google, Microsoft, Yahoo!, and] human rights and press freedom groups), investors and academics spent two years negotiating and creating a collaborative approach to protect and advance freedom of expression and privacy in the ICT sector, and have formed an Initiative to take this work forward.”

The United Nations has also not been silent in the issue of the Internet. The UN General Assembly Resolution 56/183 , established in 2001, endorsed the holding of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in two phases. The first phase took place in Geneva in 2003 and the second phase took place in Tunis in 2005. The objective of the first phase was to develop and foster a clear statement of political will and take concrete steps to establish the foundations for an Information Society for all, reflecting all the different interests at stake. The objective of the second phase was to put Geneva's Plan of Action into motion as well as to find solutions and reach agreements in the fields of Internet governance, financing mechanisms, and follow-up and implementation of the Geneva and Tunis documents. Through the World Summit on the Information Society in 2005, the U.N. adopted a mandate to create a new forum for multi-stakeholder policy dialogue through the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) . The IGF is committed to the following points as mandated through the WSIS in 2005:
• Discuss public policy issues related to key elements of Internet governance in order to foster the sustainability, robustness, security, stability and development of the Internet;
• Facilitate discourse between bodies dealing with different cross-cutting international public policies regarding the Internet and discuss issues that do not fall within the scope of any existing body;
• Interface with appropriate inter-governmental organizations and other institutions on matters under their purview;
• Facilitate the exchange of information and best practices, and in this regard make full use of the expertise of the academic, scientific and technical communities;
• Advise all stakeholders in proposing ways and means to accelerate the availability and affordability of the Internet in the developing world;
• Strengthen and enhance the engagement of stakeholders in existing and/or future Internet governance mechanisms, particularly those from developing countries;
• Identify emerging issues, bring them to the attention of the relevant bodies and the general public, and, where appropriate, make recommendations;
• Contribute to capacity building for Internet governance in developing countries, drawing fully on local sources of knowledge and expertise;
• Promote and assess, on an ongoing basis, the embodiment of WSIS principles in Internet governance processes;
• Discuss, inter alia, issues relating to critical Internet resources;
• Help to find solutions to the issues arising from the use and misuse of the Internet, of particular concern to everyday users;
• Publish its proceedings

The Secretary-General is assisted by an advisory group called the Multi-stakeholder Advisory Group (MAG) in convening the Internet Governance Forums and is comprise of 56 members from governments, the private sector and civil society, including representatives from the academic and technical communities.

III. Recent Policy Recommendations

1. The issue of freedom of religion should be included as a major priority of concern when discussing and advocating Internet freedom because it is repressed by oppressive regimes through the Internet who are in fear of its influence on society.
2. A lot more money is needed for funding and investment if Internet freedom is a priority of the U.S. to protect and expand it.
3. If securing and advocating a free open Internet is a priority in U.S. foreign policy, U.S. should fund universities and think tanks to research the scope of Internet censorship of religious websites in CPC and Watch List countries.
4. U.S. government should fund the software development of Anti-censorship tools as well as anonymity and security tools that are linguistically and culturally relevant to users accompanied by support for education and implementation of such tools by these users and support for more uncensored media platforms in repressive countries.
5. U.S. should implement a voluntary or legal way of keeping companies responsible and accountable for complying with orders or regulations that violate universal human rights.
6. U.S. international relations should constantly pressure and involve Internet freedom issues in foreign policy, trade, development and human rights engagements.
7. U.S. domestic policies should comply with its foreign policy standards and lead the world by example.
8. U.S. should work with other democratic countries to spread Internet freedom.

The Commission - Day 27

2010-07-21T22:35:00.003-04:00

Press Release
July, 20, 2010

To the members of "I know Joseph D. Ryu":

This group began as a group for friends and family who supported me with prayers and financed my missions trip to East Asia back in 2008. I went with Campus Crusade for Christ on their Stint program, which is a one year full time cultural immersion program focused on evangelism and discipleship of college students. I came back in the summer of 2009 with a clear vision to pray for the kings and dignitaries of this world and be a light in the sphere of politics.

I pray that you may join me in continuing to support my vision. As different opportunities arise, this group will be an avenue of discussion and invitation from me to you.

Thank you for your constant friendship and support. Although I may not have spoken to you for a long time, know that we are united in Christ and His blood binds us more closely than any earthly ties.

As another way of saying thank you and keeping in touch with you, I will be sending out newsletters periodically through the messaging system. Don't worry, it will simply be a link to the newsletter which you may or may not choose to open.

I may not know what's been going on in your life but know that I am always free to give an ear as well as a prayer so don't be shy and give me a call or an email some time. May God bless you and keep you, my friend.

Christ with us,
Joseph Ryu

---

It is my passion and purpose to follow the road less travelled, the narrow road that leads to life where few find it and to beckon you to join me as God's power is revealed.

It is my personal mission statement that I always be a person who directs hearts to humility and honesty in seeking a more real and intimate relationship with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ and always be devoted to developing in people the passions and abilities that God has given us to glorify Christ to our fullest potentials.

Facebook Group "I know Joseph D. Ryu": http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=35475855537

The Commission - Day 26

2010-07-20T17:26:00.005-04:00

As we are repenting, our hearts desires are not just to be made holy but also to meet with the Holy of Holies.

Colossians 3:1-4 “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”

As we confess and repent of our sins, it’s easy to become shortsighted because sin is very nearsighted. We get entangled in the thoughts of sin and thoughts of self. However, once we get a good look at the whole picture, that’s when true freedom and joy can be found. For example, for those of you who went on summer missions, you have seen a bigger God. And though some times relationships strained or you failed, were you not filled with joy? As you’ve come back home and settled back into American life and you look back and reflect on the things your heart was revealed to during the trip, doesn’t it feel more free back then? When your eyes see, your ears hear, and your heart receives of the greater things of God, the taste of true joy and freedom becomes that much more sweeter.

God is beyond our imagination. God is a Holy God and all of life is to know Christ. He is utterly set apart from all things. Picture this in your mind. In the Old Testament, God instructed the building of the Tabernacle of the Lord, a large tent, and in there was an inner chamber, separated by a veil, where even the High Priest could only enter once a year. In that inner chamber was the Ark of the Covenant, all overlaid with gold that had within it the two tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments. On top of the golden ark was the mercy seat, with the two cherubim cast by the same gold on each side with their wings outstretched over the mercy seat with faces that looked downward in reverent awe. It was here, from between the cherubim that God spoke to Moses, and where the GLORY of the Lord rested. They called it the Shekinah Glory, when the Glory of the LORD filled the Holy of Holies and the cloud came over the Tabernacle and even Moses could not enter the Tabernacle when the cloud came over it. In Christ, that veil was torn and He invites you into that Holy of Holies, the Throne of God – where seraphim in the form of humans with six wings, two to cover their face, two to fly, and two to cover their feet cry unceasingly day and night “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God Almighty. The whole earth is full of His glory” and the train of His robe fills the temple.

Whenever we pray, we must seek to come into His presence. We must ask God to draw us into His inner courts. We always say, “Come Lord, come and meet with me,” but don’t you know that we are the temple of God? That God resides in us and is among us? He is always with us. The fullness of God’s glory that I described is always with us. God just needs to open our spiritual eyes and we’d instantly prostrate before the Lord in fear and trembling.

We want to be in the presence of God every single day. Even if it's a short time or your on a relaxed schedule because its the summer. I pray that your mind would be determined to spend time today to search the deep things of God and to be filled with His Spirit as we live this life in faithfulness to Him.

The Commission - Day 25

2010-07-19T18:17:00.003-04:00

I don't know but I think I'm on a theme of repentance.

I know that we always are repenting and in light of the Gospel and in light of our sinful flesh, we must always continue to repent because faith and repentance are just two sides of the same coin. However, I am convicted not to approach the Holy of Holies so nonchalantly each time I come before Him. I am convicted not to be comfortable.

In Hosea 6:1-6, we read the Prophet Hosea calling to the people of Israel to repent saying, “Come, let us return to the LORD; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him. Le us know; let us press on to know the LORD; his going out is sure as the dawn; he will come to us as the showers, as the spring rains that water the earth.”

-- But God interjects at this very moment saying, “What shall I do with you Ephraim? What shall I do with you Judah? Your love is like a morning cloud, like the dew that goes early away. Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of my mouth, and my judgment goes forth as the light. For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”

God interrupts Hosea to critically look at the hearts of the people who for many hundreds of years kept repeating the cycle of prostituting themselves to other gods. Rightly so God says that our love is like a morning cloud, like the dew that goes early away because we turn from him very quickly soon after being purified in His blood.

Essentially, God is reminding us of the last time we confessed to the Lord, the last time we promised to Him, the last time we made a covenant with the Lord not to turn from Him.

I pray that when we come before God, we would come with the fear of the Lord. For we are utterly unworthy of His grace and mercy.

The Commission - Day 24

2010-07-16T20:15:00.005-04:00

I'd like us to reflect on our relationships with God.

Maybe you feel close to God or maybe you’re don't. Maybe you don’t feel ready to come and pray to God. Maybe you’ve been going through some dry deserts spiritually. Maybe there’s hidden sin, maybe there are sins you don’t want to expose.

If you’re going to just cruise through this summer until you find some spiritually enlightening thought or some moment of awe-inspiring encouragement to resuscitate your feelings of passion and joy and feelings of fulfillment, and you’re going to cruise through this blog as well, I’d rather not have you sit idly to pass the time while essentially just dipping your toes in the water, waiting to get into a kind of spiritual “groove.” Please don’t do that while we’re here. Do you know how rotten of a stench that will be to God? You know that apart from worshipping idols, I cannot think of a greater disrespect towards the God Almighty than empty worship- than “going through the motions.”

If you’re in that position, don’t be ashamed and don’t feel guilty. One thing’s for sure, when you’re in that place, you shouldn’t be sitting idly or waiting for the groove to come back. Rather, you should be seeking God desperately to show you mercy. And I think it’s safe to say, we’ve all been there and especially at this time which God has graciously orchestrated for you to read this, we can’t just cruise by. I’d like to invite everyone who doesn’t want to just pass by this moment to come with hearts kneeled towards God to show in our spirits a manner before God that you do not intend to just come before God nonchalantly.

Remove yourself from the pedestal. Being a Christian is not about appearing as if you have it all together. Come honestly.

I invite you to pray. Let’s seek God desperately in our honesty. God invites us and wants us to. Lets repent of any sins that have made you feel like you have to do something holy first to even it out and then do some holy repenting. Praise the Lord because He triumphs over our sins by taking up our unrighteousness on the cross and resurrecting from the grave. Let’s come before God raw in our sins, raw in our emotions. If we are to continue in this holy journey, we must be holy and confess all unrighteousness and claim the righteousness of Christ over us. So let’s cry out to the Lord!

The Commission - Day 23

2010-07-15T21:54:00.004-04:00

Heroman!
(Heroman Official Website)

Created by Marvel Comic's Stan Lee and the awesome studio of Bones, this new anime series is currently being aired in Japan and in the works to bring it over to American television!

Bones Studio is responsible for the production of the Full Metal Alchemist Series as well as Soul Eater and Wolf's Rain.
(Bones Studio Website)

At a glance:
Orphaned American boy Joey lives with his grandmother, working at a restaurant in the West Coast city of Center City (センターシティ Sentā Shiti, based on Los Angeles), while going to school. Upon hearing of a new toy robot called the Heybo, Joey believes that getting one will make his life better, turning him into a hero to protect his friends and family. However, he cannot afford to buy it on his meager salary. His luck changes when he picks up a broken down Heybo abandoned by a school bully. He tries to fix it, naming it Heroman, but does not have any luck in getting it to work. However, when it gets struck by a bolt of lightning, it transforms into a giant robot, just in time to save his friend Lina from impending danger. Now, Joey and Heroman are Earth's only defense against the evil insectoid Skrugg (スクラッグ Sukuraggu) aliens, unknowingly summoned to Earth by Joey's science teacher. (From Wikipedia)

My opinion:
It's intended for a younger audience but will be refreshing to see some new cartoons with the high level of artistry of japanese animation in the United States! I've watching the first 16 episodes already and although the storyline is predictable and sometimes too simple, it holds together well and is fun to watch the action and sympathize with the pure heart of the main character. It's definitely an awesome series for young children as there isn't any profanity or promiscuity typical of most modern japanese animations. There is also a cleanliness in violence as well since most animations these days depict gruesome scenes of blood and gore. I like it a lot!

The Commission - Day 22

2010-07-14T17:22:00.006-04:00

Recent Capitol Hill Baptist Church notes: (http://www.capitolhillbaptist.org/)

- "Rooting all life around a local church. What kind of challenge is that to you?"

- "The call to follow Jesus holds no non-negotiables. Are you ready to let go of everything? Financial freedom? Security? Career? Loved ones?"

- "Sustainability is not merely a steady income. It is the freedom to surrender the temporal in light of the eternal."

- "True sustainability is found only in Christ for all other things have an end."

Single Men's Seminar on Biblical Relationships:

- "For Christian singles, emotional intimacy intensifying does not follow with physical intimacy intensifying."

- "Protect that holiness and you will protect that relationship."

- "The World asks, 'How do you know if she is the one... FOR ME?' while Christians say, 'How do I become the one FOR HER?'"

For more information about Biblical Relationships, CHBC offers great resources in their core seminar on "Friendship, Courtship, and Marriage" found here: http://www.capitolhillbaptist.org/we-equip/adults/core-seminars/courtship-dating/

The Commission - Day 21

2010-07-13T17:51:00.001-04:00

Today and tomorrow, the Korean Church Coalition is in Washington D.C. holding events to speak on behalf of the voiceless ones in North Korea.

For more information: Korean Church Coalition for North Korea Freedom Website

I was privileged to attend the press conference in the afternoon as my supervisor who is the Director of East Asia Policy gave a brief talk on his view of the situation of bringing about freedom for the victims of the most repressive state in the world as well as key recommendations for the Korean Church Coalition in terms of how to further their influence in the policies and changes that need to take place.

Speeches were given by:
-- Reverend Rhee Kwang Sun, who is the Chairman of the Christian Council of Korea
-- Congressman Ed Royce (40th District of California), who is deeply involved in the political affairs of North Korea and authored Resolution 234 which called on the Government of the People’s Republic of China to respect the human rights of refugees from North Korea and passed into legislation.
-- Congresswoman Diane E. Watson's representative (33rd District of California)
-- Reverend Sohn Peter, who is the president of the Korean Church Coalition
-- Mr. Michael J. Horowitz, who is director of Hudson Institute's Project for Civil Justice Reform and Project for International Religious Liberty and a prolific speaker on these issues.
-- Dr. Richard D. Land, who is President of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission as well as a Commissioner of the commission that I am working at.
-- Dr. Scott Flipse, who is Director of East Asia Policy Affairs here at the commission.

During the press conference, I was stirred up by the inspirational speeches of these men as they quoted Wilberforce on how we are only able to ignore the issue and not say "I don't know" and how history will give an account to how we reacted to the otrocities of the dictator regime of North Korea. There was also critical remarks towards the Korean American society in that we have not recognized the great power and influence within our community and must take courage and boldness in truly being a "voice for the voiceless." Just as the African Americans, Jews, and Cubans did during the periods of great distress upon the respective people groups, America as a nation of immigrants stands behind all who rise up against injustice, tyranny, and suffering.

I was also deeply moved by the 70 young 2nd generation Korean Americans who are interning for the Korean Church Coalition's events in Washington D.C., as I saw in them a vision of young men and women rising up in our generation changing the very history of mankind.

We do truly live at the hinge of history. The edge of great change! The world is about to see a mighty move not of simply political and social revolution and restoration, but a great spiritual revival has in many ways arrived in our midst.

It gives me the chills and causes me to have great reverence to know that we are the very instruments of change for our nation, culture, society, and world. I am deeply honored and privileged to be alive at this very moment in history and been given the opportunity to be an American, enjoy the freedoms and liberties of America, and it leads all of us to a great responsibility that we must not take lightly.

Because His Story will give an account to the decisions we make and what we make of this one life given by Him. For if we know the wrongs and the evils of this world, we are then accountable for them and then the words of an evil tyrant, Adolf Hitler ring true that "it is better to make a mistake than to do nothing."

For to do nothing is like the last man of the Parable of the Talents, to whom Jesus will surely say, "You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest. 'Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

That although it is not an aptitude or literally a financial stewardship, it is the stewardship of humanity and the very heart of Christ for life and justice. And in recieving the knowledge of the massive plight of our world (human trafficking, child slavery, political turmoil, abuse of authority, war profitering, repression of human rights, repression of beliefs, racism, sexism, domestic violence, de-sensitization of a generation, extended adolesence, addictions, global warming, nuclear threats, terrorism, religious extremism, homelessness, poverty, world hunger, etc.) we receive a responsibility to act upon that which we have come to know.

Do something with your life for the good of this world and in larger context, for God's Kingdom. Dream big and dream beyond this life. God's given us too much not to multiply His blessings.

This is my prayer for you.

And I pray that you were inspired by these words as I had been as I meditated on them.

The Commission - Day 20

2010-07-12T08:55:00.007-04:00

Posted by Jin, July 5, 2010
"Yes, I may have been living in Hong Kong for the last two years but that doesn’t change the facts.

Fact is, I was born and raised in the US of A.

Fact is, there are flaws in the system at times and injustices may occur but this country is still a place that upholds it’s human rights.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

On that note, I wish all my fellow Americans a Happy Independence Day.

In the end, isn’t that all we want as people? Happiness.

Where can happiness come from? Money? Fame? Power? I guess it all depends on who you ask..

Here’s my testimony. I’ve never wanted less.. and never have I been more blessed. God, You are truly a loving Father. Thank You for showing me The Way.

“All I hear is ‘Jin, what happened to the old you?’…see I could explain, but I would rather show you.”

I’d like to say a special thanks to director extraordinaire Hosanna Wong, Kiki and the rest of the production team for helping with this project.

I present to you the official “Angels” music video."

Jin's blog post link

The Official Music Video for Jin's new track "Angels", from the new mix tape "Say Something." Shot on location in Hong Kong, 2010.

Directed by: Hosanna Wong
Executive Produced by: Carl Choi
Presented by: Catch Adventures

Jin's Official Website

The Commission - Day 19

2010-07-09T19:23:00.013-04:00

Below is a re-post of two press releases by TheCall's founder Lou Engle.
And under those is a re-post of a recent July 2010 Press Release by the State Department.
These are but a few things that have prompted me to write about this.

I know that the re-posts may seem simply political and humanitarian focused but I pray that you may not simply take things for what they are and I call upon the Church to wield the Truth instead of relying on ourselves.

Homosexuality.
Isn't this a very controversial topic for the Church? I know of a few people struggling with homosexual desires in their lives but none are close friends. I have met CCC staff who had struggled with these desires and I know a few friends who do have close friends who declare themselves to "be" homosexuals. I know of a few denominations that allow homosexuality in the church. In every sense, it isn't simply a "repent and turn to Christ" issue. Although, in the simplest sense, it really is a call to repentance.

I would like to say up front that homosexuals are NOT below "normal" people. We are all one humanity. And what I write, I write with love. Yet I am afraid these words may mean little to some. I am deeply concerned with the words that I use because of this highly politicized subject. I wish I did not have to struggle so hard to find the right words but as I do not have all the answers and do not personally understand the discrimination, hatred, and pain of the homosexual community, I cannot help it. However I do understand partially through other aspects of life. And I believe that through the Holy Spirit who has awakened me to the depths of my sin and shame, I know more fully the burden of those struggling with homosexual desires.

I would like to also say up front that homosexuality is a sin.

Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper. - Romans 1:24-28 is but one of many many passages in the Bible concerning the sin of homosexuality.

In understanding the sin of homosexuality, those who are struggling with this sin can believe that it is their human nature. That it is the very essence of who they are. But that isn't much of a defensive claim for tolerance or acceptance because if we all had the freedom to live to our own devices, that would be the end of humanity itself. For the human nature is fallen and fall short of the glory of God - which is His holiness. His perfection is His glory, and we fall far short of it. The passions and pleasures that we seek in this world, in others, in ourselves are menstrual rags compared to the richness of joy in Christ. The pleasures and joys of this world are a pile of dung and a false teacher. And for those who know the Truth of our sin and the reality of Jesus Christ know this very well while the rest of the world is blinded by it's disease. But I know deep in every single person's soul, there is an inclining towards this reality because any hope or trust in the world or in ourselves leads to failure and disappointment. Nothing lasts in this world, everything dies.

But how can something so beautiful, so good, so natural be bad you say? This goes for everything in the world.

I cannot persuade anyone with mere words and I will not try to. But the one thing I do pray is for God to reveal His holiness. And in Him, by His grace, you will see the incomparable purity and perfection.. and in this, also see the wretchedness of our sin.

The only answer that I wish to give to those struggling with homosexuality is the Gospel. Not doctrine or my own ideas. That while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. That we were objects of wrath, enemies of God, walking in death, but Christ, in His great love for us, died on the cross to take onto Himself the penalty of the sin of us all. He takes our sins away, gives us new life, calls us friends, and gives us a new spirit and a new desire for the things of God. That in Christ, there is a tangible way to freedom from the shackles of our addictions. That it's not just a new state of mind. That salvation is available for the body as well and that it is a totally new mind. That it is by grace we are saved, through faith. That there isn't anything in and of ourselves that pleased Him, but He extends forgiveness and acceptance to us despite our rejection of Him. Grace is receiving something we don't deserve. Mercy is not receiving what we do deserve.

This Truth is hard to bear for some for it is foolishness to man. But for those who have ears to hear, let them hear the voice of the tender and compassionate Father and taste and see that Christ is better than the flesh of man.

This world is not the end of us. There is a judgement that awaits all all will be resurrected on That Day to receive eternal life or eternal death, the spiritual communion with God or the spiritual separation from God.

I pray for mercy on our world. For we are reaching a deeper and deeper degradation of our debased minds. The common grace of God that restrains us from total destruction will not be ever present.

Oh how my heart aches for Maranatha!

---

April 28, 2010

When TheCall was invited to come to Uganda our intent was to join with the leaders and the people of the great Ugandan Church in a gathering of fasting and prayer to confess our personal and national sins, to pray for God’s blessing on the nation, and for a great spiritual awakening among her youth. Personal and national repentance among Christians and prayer for spiritual awakening has been the core focus of TheCall since her inception.

TheCall had no knowledge at the time, of the Uganda homosexual bill and the controversy surrounding it. TheCall was unaware that our genuine intent to encourage the Ugandan church in prayer would thrust us into an international controversy.

TheCall, in 2008, mobilized thousands to pray and fast in California that marriage would be upheld between a man and a woman, believing this to be God’s design for the good of society, family, and children. TheCall belief and intent has never been about promoting hatred toward the homosexual community as a whole or towards individuals who identify as LGBT. We have always sought to offer a message of love and redemption to those with same-sex attractions, though at times our communication could have been expressed more effectively and graciously. In this aspect, we humbly seek your forgiveness if we had not communicated God’s righteousness and mercy adequately.

Now recently, TheCall has been wrongfully marked and vilified as an organization promoting hatred and violence against homosexuals and as one that supports the Uganda bill as currently written. To the contrary, we have never made a private or a public statement of support for that bill. Though we honor the courage and stand with the stated purpose of the many Church leaders in Uganda who are seeking to protect the traditional and biblical family foundations of the nation, we have serious concerns with the bill as presently written, especially in terms of some of the harsh penalties for certain homosexual behaviors or offenses.

Sadly, many around the world are identifying TheCall with these aspects of the bill. Our concern is not to avoid the controversy the bill is stirring up, but to give an accurate representation of biblical values and the heart of Christ for all humanity. Though TheCall is not afraid to take a clear stand on biblical truth on matters of sexuality, we are deeply concerned that TheCall ministry would not wrongfully reflect the character of Christ, and we do not see the character of Christ reflected in some key aspects of the language of the current bill.

Therefore TheCall, though continuing to be held in Uganda, will not promote this bill. In fact, we challenge the Church of Uganda to join with Christians around the world, to first examine our own moral failures, confess our own lack of love, and from that heart seek to establish true biblical standards, reflecting compassion for those struggling with same-sex attraction and equal justice for criminal offenses committed by heterosexuals or homosexuals. We believe this also reflects the heart and intent of the Christian leaders of Uganda.

In releasing this statement, we want to take this opportunity to reiterate our deep love for the homosexual community and, as followers of Jesus, our commitment to oppose all hatred and violence directed towards that community.

For TheCall,

Lou Engle

---

June 2010

Three weeks ago I returned from Uganda where I participated in TheCall Uganda. Prior to going I released a statement declaring the intent and purposes of my going there and holding TheCall. In that statement I clearly declared that TheCall was not going to Uganda to promote the Anti-Homosexuality Bill (”Bill”). Instead, the purpose of the event was to pray and fast for this nation in crisis.

I was actually asked to release a petition at TheCall for the people to sign in support of the Bill. I did not allow that to happen because the purpose of the gathering was not a political gathering; it was a prayer gathering. However, I had to leave the prayer meeting early to catch our flight back home. After returning home, I was told that the Bill had been clearly promoted after I left the meeting. I apologize that this took place and that my stated purpose of not promoting the Bill was compromised. I take responsibility for what was done on the stage of TheCall, even in my absence.

That being said, I am grateful that I had the privilege of going to Uganda and meeting Christian leaders who explained their heart concerning the Bill. Not one was carrying even an ounce of hatred for homosexuals. They actually desired to influence the lawmakers in Uganda to lessen the penalties. However, they were committed to raise up a principled stand to protect their people and their children from an unwelcome intrusion of homosexual ideology into an 83% Christian nation, an intrusion that is being pressed upon them by the UN, UNICEF, and other NGOs and Western colonialist powers.

These powers are threatening to withdraw funding from Uganda if they do not open their doors to these ideologies. They shared with me with broken hearts some of the painful stories of the effect of this worldwide pressure, as it is being pushed and promoted into their educational system. I appealed to them that in all their labor and their stand they express the mercy of Christ to broken people, but I also stood with them in their desire to not succumb to the political ideological pressures of the West and many of the voices of the Western Church that have come strongly against them.

These brothers in Uganda will give an account to the Lord on how sternly they stood as a prophetic community in their nation and we, the Church of the West, will give an account for our response when homosexual ideology swept into our nations.

For TheCall,

Lou Engle

---

Ugandan Human Rights Activist Focuses on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Advocacy in the United States, Visits Washington, D.C., Louisville, and Salt Lake City

Office of the Spokesman
Washington, DC
Ugandan Human Rights Activist Focuses on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Advocacy in the United States, Visits Washington, D.C., Louisville, and Salt Lake City

"One of Uganda’s most outspoken and prominent human rights activists, Ms. Valentine (Val) Kalende, is visiting the United States under the auspices of the U.S. Department of State's International Visitor Leadership Program to focus on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) advocacy. Ms. Kalende will have discussions with members of government agencies, nongovernmental organizations, faith groups, and the media, as well as with local and federal government officials. In turn, she will talk with U.S. interlocutors and broader audiences about the Ugandan human rights situation and challenges faced by members of the LGBT community.

As a human rights-LGBT rights advocate and Programs and Communications Manager of Freedom and Roam Uganda, Ms. Kalende has been deeply involved in opposition to a proposed “anti-homosexuality” law introduced in 2009 in the Ugandan parliament. The controversial law would sentence some LGBT people to life in prison or even death. A former journalist, Ms. Kalende has written a full accounting of the anti-homosexuality movement in her country. She has also raised awareness of how this legislation would impact all of Ugandan society. Ms. Kalende has been harassed, beaten, and arrested because of her advocacy work. She has been featured by U.S. and international news organizations as one of the most courageous human rights activists in Uganda.

Ms. Kalende’s program includes visits in Salt Lake City, Utah (July 7-10) and Louisville, Kentucky (July 10-13) before concluding in Washington, D.C. (June 13 – 15). This exchange experience is designed to provide her with an in-depth understanding of U.S. government systems and political organization at all levels; civil rights protections and equal opportunity laws in the United States; advocacy strategies adopted by organizations to influence policy and effect positive change; organizing strategies across sectors, from building a movement to peaceful protests; challenges and work of the American LGBT movement; faith communities and LGBT issues; media coverage of human rights issues and use of media to advance organization’s message; and, the work of international human rights organizations focused on Uganda and gender issues.

Availability: Ms. Kalende is available to speak with the media.
Media Contact: Catherine Stearns, (202) 632-6437 and StearnsCL@state.gov

The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs fosters mutual understanding between the United States and other countries through international educational, cultural, and professional exchanges. The Bureau’s International Visitor Leadership Program manages professional visits to the United States for current and emerging foreign leaders, who represent government, politics, business, the media, education, non-governmental organizations, the arts, public health, international security, business, and many other fields. Annually over 4,500 participants around the world are selected by U.S. embassies to meet and confer with their professional counterparts and to gain a firsthand understanding of U.S. society and culture.

The Commission - Day 18

2010-07-08T23:58:00.004-04:00

A list of recent or upcoming conferences on Human Rights and Religious Freedom issues in South/East Asia.

UNITED STATES

The 17th Annual International Law and Religion Symposium
"Religion in Contemporary Legal Systems"
Provo, Utah
October 3-6, 2010
Event Website: ICLRS.org
Brigham Young University announces the Seventeenth Annual International Law and Religion Symposium to be held October 3-6, 2010, at BYU in Provo, Utah. Participants include leading experts and government officials from Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, the Pacific, and North and South America.
Subthemes include the following:
• Regulating Religious Speech and Symbols
• Islamic Practice: Differing Experiences
• The Religion Jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights
For more information regarding the conference, hotel information, participants and program details, contact the International Center for Law and Religion Studies at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. Past participants list is very extensive! (List of past Participants)

Interfaith Summit on Happiness
"Understanding and Promoting Happiness in Today's Society"
Emory University
October 17, 2010
Event Website: Emory Univeristy
His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama will lead a public conversation on “The Pursuit of Happiness” with other world religious leaders October 17, 2010, 1:30-3:30 p.m., on the Emory University Campus. CSLR is hosting the event as the capstone of its multi-year research project on the Pursuit of Happiness. It is one of several events featuring His Holiness during his October 17-19, 2010 visit to Emory.

(Past) Asia Policy Assembly 2010
“Asia’s Global Influence: How Is It Exercised? What Does It Mean?”
Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, D.C.
June 17–18, 2010
Event Overview: NARP Asia Policy Assembly 2010
The Asia Policy Assembly will bring together experts from the academic, philanthropic, and policymaking communities to address issues of strategic importance to U.S. interests in Asia.
As Asia integrates with the rest of the world, we have to understand the full extent and limitations of Asia’s global influence, and learn how Asian states define their global responsibilities. The combination of Asia’s openness, dynamic growth, relative stability, and huge population means that no major global problem can be solved without Asian cooperation and support.
The Asia Policy Assembly is the forum for Asia Studies scholars and policymakers to discuss important Asia policy issues. The Assembly will feature keynote addresses by senior policy officials and leading figures in international affairs.

CHINA

The 7th Annual Conference of the Social Scientific Study of Religion in China
Theme “The Present and Future of Religion in China”
Renmin University of China, Beijing
July 26-27, 2010
Event Website: Purdue.edu
We invite proposals for presentation (abstract) in the social scientific study of religion, such as
1. Empirical studies of religion in Chinese societies or among the Chinese diasporas;
2. Religious regulations and the rule of law in Chinese societies and/or other societies;
3. New developments in academic research on religion;
4. Other topics of your choice in the social scientific study of religion.

The Sixth Annual Meeting of the Chinese Hayek Society
Hong Kong, China
August 6-7, 2010
Event Website: HKSYU.edu
The Chinese Hayek Society and the Department of Economics and Finance, Hong Kong Shue Yan University will hold a two-day international conference on August 6-7, 2010 at Shue Yan University, North Point, Hong Kong. The main theme of the conference this year is “The Relevance of F.A. Hayek on China’s Economy and Society”.
Relevant topics for USCIRF that people can present papers on include:
F.A. Hayek on economics, law, politics, psychology and social philosophy
China and the international community
Social problems and cultural issues in China
Psychology of Chinese people
Urban and rural disparity in China
Minority issues in China
China’s laws and politics

CFP: Beijing International Conference on Human Rights
October 16-17, 2010
Beijing, China
Event Website: Ethics-etc.com
The Conference will focus on the concepts, theories, principles and values of human rights and their application in Chinese or in other contexts. The Conference will also discuss proposals for improving the implementation of human rights in China or other countries. During the Conference free exchange of opinions and viewpoints and mutual understanding between participants from different cultures and countries on human rights will be promoted.
The conference will include invited participants and selected participants responding to this call for papers. Invited participants will be speakers at plenary sessions. Other participants, after their abstract is accepted and registration fee is paid, will speak at plenary or concurrent sessions. We welcome philosophers, lawyers, social scientists and other scholars to come to Beijing to participate in our Conference.

(Past) China: The Paradox of Stability
Hong Kong, China
June 10, 2010
Event Website: Asiasociety.org
A Luncheon Presentation by PEI MINXIN, Professor of Government & Director of the Keck Center for International and Strategic Studies, Claremont McKenna College.
Chinese leaders have repeatedly stressed that safeguarding social harmony and stability is one of the top priorities for China. On a macro level, China is relatively stable evident by the lack of organized opposition or external threat faced by the government. Yet on the micro level, it is a different story. Riots, social disturbances, abuse of power by local officials and other forms of instability occur daily. Why does this paradox of stability exist? Is there a connection between Beijing’s all-out focus on social stability and this paradox? How should the government—both central and local—handle these sensitive issues?

(Past) Social Work and Social Development
Hong Kong, China
June 10-14, 2010
http://www.swsd2010.org/en/index.html
The International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW), the International Council on Social Welfare (ICSW), and the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) share a common heritage. We all see growing social problems and human injustices worldwide. We know we must work together to ensure that the voice of social development and social work is heard in this crisis. Our conferences provide a focus for our campaigns. We have decided to hold joint biennial conferences and the first will be in Hong Kong from 10th to 14th June 2010. The title of the conference is: ‘2010 Joint World Conference on Social Work and Social Development: the Agenda’. We plan to orchestrate a global consultation process involving social workers and social development advocates at all levels and from all countries, to identify key issues for our cause, to develop our agenda, to enhance social protection, and to set our priorities for the second decade of the 21st century as we face up to the social crises of the 21st century.

MALAYSIA

Seminar Kebangssan ”One Malaysia”
Universiti Malaysia Sabah
November 1-3, 2010
Event Website: UMS.edu
The main idea of "One Malaysia" is to strengthen the level of race relations in this country, in addition to forming a strong unity among the people of Malaysia which consists of various ethnic and religious groups. However, many who are supportive of this idea are also critical and there is still some confusion and doubt on the idea of "One Malaysia." Therefore, the national seminar "One Malaysia" is to be held for the solution to the crisis so that it can be realized as an idea to be accepted by all peoples of Malaysian society.
Themes:
1. Evaluating the concept of a “One Malaysia.”
2. Overcome the crisis and distrust of "One Malaysia.”
3. Identify problems and challenges in implementing the idea of "One Malaysia.”
4. Evaluation on how to apply the idea of "One Malaysia.”

INDIA

FOCUS ASIA 2011: World Congress of Asian Studies
Kolkata, India
February 2-6, 2011
Event Website: FocusAsia2011.com
The multi-faced multi- dimensional diversity of Asia’s language, society, religion and culture invariably attracts almost every scholar all over the world. The timeless heritage, the age old civilizations along with the modern challenges of development, the strategic roles played by the Asian countries in the arena of international politics, the diverse culture of various ethnic groups, the emerging socio-economic problems arriving out of day to day changing values- all of them are opening new vistas for the scholars studying over history & archaeology, sociology and anthropology, economics, internationals political affairs etc.
With the objective of providing a platform for the scholars, so that they may exchange their views with each other, the Society for Indian Culture & Heritage jointly with Pandit Solanki Institute for Oriental Studies & Institute of Civilization Studies has convened a large conference – ‘ FOCUS ASIA 2011’ the World Congress of Asian Studies.
The topics of the Congress are broadly divided into the following categories:
History and Archaeology
Language and literature
Society and Sociological Studies
Anthropology and Ethnology
Economics, Economic challengers & development
Religion and Philosophy
Environment and ecological matters
Cultural Studies including music drama & other performing arts and Visual arts.
Law, justice & Public Administration
Political Affairs & relation of Asian Countries
The broad categories mentioned above will be subdivided into smaller categories.
Panels and individual abstracts are both welcome.
Please visit our submission page for online submission of abstracts.

International Association for Religious Freedom: 33rd World Congress
Kochi (Cochin), Kerala State, India
September 4-7, 2010
Event Website: IARF.net
This year’s inaugural address is made by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. IARF is a UK-based charity working for freedom of religion & belief at a global level. We have a century-plus history of encouraging interfaith dialogue & tolerance, with member groups in 25 countries, from faith traditions including Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Shinto & Zoroastrianism.

International Conference on Promoting Inter-Faith Discourse in Multi-Religious Communities
Lucknow, India
July 18-20, 2010
Event Website: CMSEducation.org
The goals of this conference are both academic and practical. We seek to identify successful strategies, learn from mistakes, and find ways to replicate positive results of interfaith dialogue in other contexts. On the academic side, we intend to make a contribution by publishing the findings and the plan of future action from the conference in a volume. Our contribution is expected to integrate theoretical and practical approaches to interfaith dialogue in a single anthology.

INDONESIA

International Conference on Progressive development of International Law
University of Indonesia
October 4-5, 2010
Event Outline: CILS Conference 2010
This conference then is expected to take place every year to mark any international law development. Within this broad conference theme of “Progressive Development of International Law”, there are five parallel sessions which will focus on the following sub-themes: (1) Law of the Sea; (2) International Economic Law; (3) Air and Space Law; (4)International Environmental Law; (5) International Human Rights and (6) General Topic.

SOUTH KOREA

Law Research Institute International Conference:
"Interface btw. Korean Law and Chinese Law"
Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea
June 11-12, 2010
Event Website: USeoul.edu
The Law Research Institute will be hosting an international conference on “The Interface between Korean Law and Chinese Law” as follows. Renowned Chinese scholars as well as experts on Chinese law will be invited to present and lead discussions on diverse topics; relationships between Korea and China, such as Chinese law and society, civil law, commercial law, private international law, Korea-China FTA, real estate policies, bankruptcy procedures and so on. We await the participation of all those who are interested.

(Past) North Korea Freedom Week
Seoul, Korea
April 25– May 1, 2010
Event Schedule: NK Freedom

THAILAND

The First International Conference on Human Rights in Southeast Asia
Bangkok, Thailand
October 14-15, 2010
Event Website: SEAHRN.org
The First International Conference on Human Rights in Southeast Asia will bring together members of the academia, civil society, national and international agencies and the media who work to promote greater understanding and better protection of human rights in the region. It will provide valuable space for dialogue and exchange of knowledge and experience among diverse groups of participants from within and outside Southeast Asia.

The Commission - Day 17

2010-07-07T23:24:00.005-04:00

Nazirite DNA - Booklet
by Lou Engle

No other message that I have preached has been more endorsed prophetically and supernaturally than “the call of the Nazirite.” It has been foundational to TheCall and to the prayer and fasting movement and has erupted among young people in the last ten years.

I believe that a return to Nazirite consecration is the only hope for a return to God in America. And it will be the ground preparation, even the forerunner, for the greatest spiritual awakening she has ever seen. It is with this faith and this fire in my heart that I write this booklet. It is my confident hope that many young men and women will light their candles to its small flame and will make the vow of the Nazirite leading to the same heavenly attestation on a generation that Jesus gave to John the Baptist – “He was a burning and shining lamp.”

Click Here to buy now for $5

The Commission - Day 16

2010-07-06T16:56:00.005-04:00

Stay awake my brothers and sisters.

As many of you may or may not have known, on the day of my departure from Seoul, July 3, there was a bus crash on the highway on the road from Incheon Airport. I was en route to the airport that afternoon when the news of the crash first came in. At that time, I did not know of the people injured in the crash but I did hear that many died and many others were seriously injured and in critical conditions.

Returning home, I heard from Pastor Kim Nam Soo from Full Gospel in Flushing that there was a pastor who had lost his life in the crash. Then yesterday, I heard from Kevin DeYoung's blog from Gospel Coalition that among the people in the bus was Pastor Gary Parrett of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. I also found out that the two were not talking about the same pastors.

If you do not remember Pastor Gary Parrett, he was an invited speaker to one of our Vision Conferences "Moving Forward." He has sustained critical injuries yet there is much to thank God for. Though his brain had hemorrhaged, the bleeding has subsided. Though he broke many bones around his neck, there has not been any perceivable nerve damage. Though his lung was partially punctured and many ribs were broken or fractured, the doctors are working on him right now and can now breath more comfortably.

To learn more about his condition and situation, please visit this website created by his daughter Alisa. (Visit Gary Parrett)
Pastor Gary Parrett's academic profile. (Gordon-Conwell)

I must confess that when I saw the news in the bus en route to the airport, my first reaction was to pray not for the victims but for myself in that a bus crash would not happen to the bus I was on. And I am deeply regretful for that prayer. The morning of that day, I woke up around noon and rushed to leave the hotel. I had planned to wake up a little earlier and spend time with the Lord but in my lateness, I rushed past Him and went out to the airport bus stop. In fact, I was very numb to His Spirit that morning as I began to think about what I had to do now that I finished my "duty" at the conference. Looking back, I did not do very much but stand in awe of God and be encouraged by my brothers and sisters who went on short term missions.

I did however wonder if I knew anyone who was in the bus that crashed. If I were paying slightly more attention to the Spirit, would I have prayed for those who were hurt in the crash rather than fear death and fear this world? I feared death to pray for myself that the same would not happen to me. I feared this world to be preoccupied with all that awaited me back here in D.C. and in the midst of it all, God hits me like a brick as I learn of the people who died and were critically injured in the crash.

The most shameful of it all is that I had prayed so fervently during the conference to God that He would do anything and everything necessary to bring me closer to Him. That I would forgo my comfort and safety and dive into pain and suffering if I would only get nearer to Him still. And my spirit still resounds with that prayer but no one should ever forget that we are prone to numbness and the veil easily clouds our spirits. Brothers and sisters, please wake up and lets keep each other awake.

Please pray for Pastor Parrett and his family and please visit the website to be updated! Thank God for his mercy and patience during this crash that He would keep Pastor Parrett in this world a little bit longer so that His light would shine all the more through the pastor. That God would be so patient not to enjoy the beautiful union in heaven with his beloved servant. God is good to us, may we listen for His voice and keep attentive in these dark and confusing times.

The Commission - Day 15

2010-07-05T19:09:00.011-04:00

I've returned from Korea!

On the last week of July, I attended a conference at the Phoenix Park in Kang Won Province, Republic of Korea. It was held by Korea Campus Crusade for Christ and gathered over ten thousand students from all over the nation. Its theme was "Be a Fireseed," and the place was truly a burning furnace of the Holy Spirit. All our lives were definitely impacted by God during the conference. (Conference Website - Korean Language)

Now I have returned to Washington D.C. and with only 25 more days of my internship left, I feel rather anxious for all the things I must do in the coming months. I will be preparing to take the GRE this November as well as visit a few masters programs that I'm interested in being a part of. This has been a conviction more amplified by the conference as I prayed for this generation and the redemption of the world.

God convicted me for over a span of a year during my time on STINT to East Asia that I devote myself to pray for the nations specifically in the political realm. In fact, I was never keen on the happenings around the globe until that point in my life as I began to actually pay attention to the news and pray for America. I began to study people in the Bible like Daniel, Nehemiah, Mordecai, Joseph, and other prophets and advisors to kings. I have not started my journey with the intentions of becoming as one of these men and my ambition is not rooted in positioning myself to a level of influence. I believe it goes for any other topic in seeking the will of God that our hearts should not be fixed upon the tangible titles, positions, and deeds but rather on the intangible, spiritual, and heavenly things for all things are under God's mighty hand and His will be done.

So I came back to America last summer with a kindled flame of compassion for the world's leaders and in the beginning of June of last year, I had determined that in following God's will, though I do not fully know what He will do with this life of mine, I would give myself completely to Him. I began to pray with a fiery passion for the rise of uncompromising, godly, and wise men in the field of politics. I remember one regional prayer meeting with KCCC where we split off into different future professions and there was a corner for missionaries, artists, entrepreneurs, doctors, and also one for politics. I went over to the corner for politics.

I was alone.

It was one of those "ah-ha" moments. Not of excitement but of recognizing the situation of the members of KCCC. None were planning to go into the field of politics. It made me uneasy at first being the only one but it led me to prayer even more fervently for government and politics. One of the staff members came over to the corner and encouraged me and blessed me and prayed with me - strengthening me even more with the urgency and importance of the area for which I was praying for.

I took a course last semester on the Arab-Israeli conflict because of my convictions and continued to connect the dots on the happenings in the world in our generation as I listened to people like Dr. Steve Douglass and Mark Anderson speak on the Great Commission being fulfilled in our lifetime. With all my heart I believe that Jesus is coming real soon. If I really believe this, I knew I had to make quick strides to be prepared to move when God calls me. I do not find it coincidence that I had been accepted to this particular internship this summer. It is probably the best environment in government for me to test the waters of international policy because of its focus on the freedom of religion.

I was also vey blessed by the conference in Korea as I heard past Minister of Unification and past Korean Ambassador to China, Kim Ha Joong speak about his faith and his message of setting our sights not on the things of the earth but on things of heaven and living as God's ambassador. He reaffirmed us again and again that his successes were not out of his own doing but was in fact the fruit of prayer. How gloriously God shines through this man! God is truly raising up a consecrated generation and shining mightily in the dark places!

Find your calling by meditating on the person of Christ. Open your heart and keep it pure by living a life empowered by the Holy Spirit. It is not always an obvious road. Do not end your sights upon what you will be doing but keep it high above on Christ. I am excited to follow Christ on this narrow road and I am excited for all the things that are developing in me, through me, and around me. God is moving and He is calling to himself a remnant who will proclaim His glory. May we be found faithful when He returns. Amen.

What is my calling? Be a Fireseed!

The Commission - Day 14

2010-06-18T23:05:00.002-04:00

Freedom!

This next week, I am spending time with the family as both my parent's birthdays are on the same week. I'm really glad for this break too. I was so homesick and I missed eating Korean food. I took a $20 bus back to NYC and met with my parents to eat at a Korean restaurant before driving back down home. I was so happy to see them!

So on my way up, I read "This Momentary Marriage" in it's entirety. Yes, that is how long the bus ride took. No, I am not a fast reader. It's actually a very thin book. The book was so helpful and a treasure for not only couples but singles as well. I remember Pastor John Piper's sermon series on marriage and remembered a lot of what he said while reading the book but now I have a reference for things! The book is great because it beings by laying out a solid foundation, a Christ-centered, Biblical perspective on marriage and moves onto areas that need the most clarity:
1. The role of a Christian husband in marriage
2. The role of a Christian wife in marriage
3. The role of being a single
4. The role of sex in marriage
5. The role of children in marriage
6. The role of divorce in marriage

I particularly loved the first couple of chapters focusing on changing our perspective on marriage from our own point of view to the perspective of God. I'd encourage everyone to read it, not only married couples or couples in general but singles as well!

You can purchase your own copy here: (Buy "This Momentary Marriage" for $6.49)
Or you can download the PDF file here: (Download the PDF version of "This Momentary Marriage")

"Foreword: Pendulums and Pictures
By: Noël Piper

I know some couples who think and feel so much alike that they can work together, minister together, live together, and raise children together with hardly any conflict. Well, there might be a couple like that. But it’s not us.

On personality analyses we two chart out as almost exactly opposite. According to Ruth Bell Graham, that’s good. She’s famous for saying that if two people agree on everything, one of them is unnecessary. But there are times I think we’d be more than willing to experiment with that kind of not being necessary.

In our real life, I swing somewhere between two extremes. At one end of the pendulum’s arc, I’m in wonder: “How in the world did I get such an amazing husband? What did I ever do that he should have paid me a bit of notice, never mind that he asked me to marry him?” We took a marriage assessment during one of my blissful periods. The results placed me high on the idealism scale, recognizing few problem areas in our marriage—in other words, according to the “experts,” fairly unreliable.
Somewhere on that upswing is where I wish we could stay, where there’s nothing hindering our enjoyment of each other—like during one vacation in the Blue Ridge Mountains:

"Away"
Reading in rocking chair,
Butterflies and black bear,
Moss and mushrooms,
Pictures and poems,
Songs and swing,
Woodpeckers on wing,
Worship and walking,
Time for talking,
Scrabble and sleep . . .
A quiet to keep.
With you.

By contrast, when inertia and resistance are dragging us downward, I’m asking myself, “How in the world did we get into such a mess? What happened to make us feel this kind of disagreement and unhappiness?” We observed our silver anniversary during such a season:

"Going for Gold"
What a way to prepare for our party—
was it you who hurt me or I you?
But our smiles were constrained to seem hearty—
a veneer we were all too used to.
“May the next twenty-five be as great as
the first!” they said with their hugs and smiles,
while I tried to dream up an alias
I’d adopt after bolting for miles.
But I knew I would stay. How could I flee
the one who knew me, yet loved me still?
Then Beryl, whose years with Arnold were sixty,
matter-of-factly thawed my heart’s chill.
“The years that are coming will be the best;
the first twenty-five are the hardest.”

Since I apparently can’t see much beyond the emotions of the moment, if we were to ask for a counselor’s evaluation during those hard times, it probably would seem to reveal a marriage in trouble, a judgment just as misleading as that of idealism during days of “all’s well with the world.”

The pendulum of our marriage oscillates and sometimes wobbles, but it is suspended from above and is firmly attached. By God’s grace, it will not crash to the ground. This year we celebrate our fortieth anniversary, and thanks to God, we feel like celebrating as we press toward the gold of our fiftieth, if God should be gracious to give us so many years.

We know it is the weight of our sin that accelerates us into the seasons at the bottom. But here’s the amazing, unbelievable thing—a profound mystery, as Paul says: “‘A man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ . . . and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church” (Eph. 5:31–32). Marriage refers to Christ and the church—every marriage, no matter how pendulum-like because of our sin; every marriage, even if the couple doesn’t care a bit about Jesus.

To change metaphors, God designed marriage to be a picture. That makes me ask myself, how clear and well-focused is the portrait of Jesus that our marriage is displaying?

I love using my tiny digital camera. But the larger and more complex a subject, the more nearly impossible it is to represent it well and completely. No single photograph can show someone how magnificent the Grand Canyon is. It’s true that my shortcomings as a photographer do nothing to change the majesty of that natural wonder. Still, some snapshots do give a better idea than others of the grandeur. I want to take that clearer kind of picture of the Grand Canyon. And that’s the kind of image of Jesus I want our marriage to portray.

I pray that this book (by my favorite preacher) will focus the lenses of many marriages so that the portrait of Christ and his bride is sharp and clear."

The Commission - Day 13

2010-06-17T21:22:00.004-04:00

Below is the whole Foreword to the book, "Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood: A response to Evangelical Feminism" by John Piper and Wayne Grudem.

Piper, John, and Wayne A. Grudem. Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood: A Response to Evangelical Feminism. Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway, 1991. Print.

For the full pdf book: (Download PDF book)
To purchase the book: (Purchase the Book for $16.25)

"Foreword.

A controversy of major proportions has spread through the church.

It began over 20 years ago in society at large. Since then an avalanche of feminist literature has argued that there need be no difference between men’s and women’s roles- indeed, that to support gender-based role differences is unjust discrimination. Within evangelical Christianity, the counterpart to this movement has been the increasing tendency to oppose any unique leadership role for men in the family and in the church. “Manhood” and “womanhood” as such are now often seen as irrelevant factors in determining fitness for leadership.

Many evangelical Christians have defended this position in writing. They include Letha Scanzoni and Nancy Hardesty (1974), Paul Jewett of Fuller Seminary (1975), Richard and Joyce Boldrey of North Park College (1976), Patricia Gundry (1977), Berkeley and Alvera Mickelsen of Bethel College and Seminary (1979), Catherine Clark Kroeger (1979), E. Margaret Howe of Western Kentucky University (1982), Gilbert Bilezikian of Wheaton College (1985), Aida Spencer of Gordon-Conwell Seminary (1985), Gretchen Gaebelein Hull (1987), and many others, in articles, lectures, and classroom teaching. Although they have disagreed on details, their common theme has been the rejection of a unique leadership role for men in marriage and in the church.
Yet these authors differ from secular feminists because they do not reject the Bible’s authority or truthfulness, but rather give new interpretations of the Bible to support their claims. We may call them “evangelical feminists” because by personal commitment to Jesus Christ and by profession of belief in the total truthfulness of Scripture they still identify themselves very clearly with evangelicalism. Their arguments have been detailed, earnest, and persuasive to many Christians.

What has been the result? Great uncertainty among evangelicals. Men and women simply are not sure what their roles should be. Traditional positions have not been totally satisfactory, because they have not fully answered the recent evangelical feminist arguments. Moreover, most Christians will admit that selfishness, irresponsibility, passivity, and abuse have often contaminated “traditional” patterns of how men and women relate to each other.

But the vast majority of evangelicals have not endorsed the evangelical feminist position, sensing that it does not really reflect the pattern of Biblical truth. Within our churches, we have had long discussions and debates, and still the controversy shows signs of intensifying, not subsiding. Before the struggle ends, probably no Christian family and no evangelical church will remain untouched.

We have edited this book in the hope that it might lead to a constructive solution to this controversy. Our secondary purpose is to respond to evangelical feminist writings like those mentioned above-hence the subtitle, A Response to Evangelical Feminism. We consider these authors to be brothers and sisters in Christ, and we have endeavored to respond to them in sincerity and love. Yet we also consider their essential position to be wrong in the light of Scripture, and ultimately harmful to the family and the church. Therefore we have tried to respond to them in detail and with clarity, and we have in many cases attempted to show that their interpretations of Scripture are simply not persuasive, and should not be accepted by Christians.

But our primary purpose is broader than that: We want to help Christians recover a noble vision of manhood and womanhood as God created them to be -hence the main title, Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. Our vision is not entirely the same as “a traditional view.” We affirm that the evangelical feminist movement has pointed out many selfish and hurtful practices that have previously gone unquestioned. But we hope that this new vision-a vision of Biblical “complementarity”-will both correct the previous mistakes and avoid the opposite mistakes that come from the feminist blurring of God- given sexual distinctions.

We hope that thousands of Christian women who read this book will come away feeling affirmed and encouraged to participate much more actively in many ministries, and to contribute their wisdom and insight to the family and the church. We hope they will feel fully equal to men in status before God, and in importance to the family and the church. We pray that, at the same time, this vision of equality and complementarity will enable Christian women to give wholehearted affirmation to Biblically balanced male leadership in the home and in the church.

Similarly, we desire that every Christian man who reads this book will come away feeling in his heart that women are indeed fully equal to men in personhood, in importance, and in status before God, and, moreover, that he can eagerly endorse countless women’s ministries and can freely encourage the contribution of wisdom and insight from women in the home and church, without feeling that this will jeopardize his own unique leadership role as given by God.

On an even deeper level, we hope that every woman reading this book will come away saying, “I understand much more fully what it means to be a woman, and I am thankful that God made me a woman, remarkably different from a man, yet immeasurably valuable in God’s sight and in His plan for the world.” And we hope that every man reading this book will come away saying, “I understand much more fully what it means to be a man, and I am thankful that God made me to be a man, remarkably different from a woman, yet immeasurably valuable in God’s sight and in His plan for the world.”

If that happens, then perhaps the path will be opened for clearing away much confusion, for diffusing much frustration over male-female relationships, and for healing many of the heartaches that smolder deep within millions of men and women who have been the victims of a society without direction on how to understand our wonderful gift of sexual complementarity.

A brief note about terms: If one word must be used to describe our position, we prefer the term complementarian, since it suggests both equality and beneficial differences between men and women. We are uncomfortable with the term “traditionalist” because it implies an unwillingness to let Scripture challenge traditional patterns of behavior, and we certainly reject the term “hierarchicalist” because it overemphasizes structured authority while giving no suggestion of equality or the beauty of mutual interdependence.

Twenty-two authors from many denominational backgrounds contributed to this book, and it is inevitable that not every author would agree with every detail in the chapters written by the other authors or by the editors. Where there are occasional differences in details, we have attempted to call attention to that fact in the notes, and we must say here that the positions advocated in the chapters are those of the individual authors. Yet the authors share a common commitment to the overall viewpoint represented in the book, and in every case the editors felt that the chapters were consistent with the position endorsed by the Danvers Statement published by the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood in 1988 (see Appendix 2). It is commitment to that position that has guided the inclusion of articles in the book.

Many people have helped in correspondence, typing and editing, and compiling the indexes and we wish especially to thank Debbie Rumpel, Carol Steinbach, Mary Morris, Tammy Thomas, Noël Piper, John O. Stevenson, Eric Hoehn, Caren Hoehn, and E. Calvin Beisner for their accurate and tireless help. Lane Dennis of Crossway Books has been an eager supporter of this project from the start, and Fieldstead and Company provided an early and generous grant that enabled the project to get off the ground. We also acknowledge with appreciation the responsible, solidly Biblical work of several evangelical scholars whose earlier books defended a view compatible with the one represented here, especially George W. Knight III (1977, 1985), Susan T. Foh (1979), Stephen B. Clark (1980), and James Hurley (1982).

The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood has sponsored and endorsed this as its first book project, and we are grateful for the support of the Council in this work. (A list of Council members appears in Appendix 2.)

Most of all, we want to thank our wives, Noël Piper and Margaret Grudem, who have faithfully supported us in this work and in their prayers, and who have for many years of marriage (22 and 21 years, respectively) been partners with us in the exciting task of discovering more and more the true nature of Biblical manhood and womanhood, in all its fullness and joy. For this we thank God, the giver of every perfect gift, to whom alone be glory.

John Piper and Wayne Grudem
January, 1991"

The Commission - Day 12

2010-06-16T20:16:00.010-04:00

Behind every great speech is a great staff.

Tomorrow is the awaited match! If you're not Korean, I apologize. Football (Soccer) is definitely a national treasure in Korea. So to fill you in, the World Cup is going on (the biggest Football competition) and the national teams are currently in competition to be in the "Round of 16," which is basically the start of when only the winners can advance to the next round. Right now, every team still has a chance to advance even if they don't win or end with a tie in their games. They just need to accumulate enough points and be first or second in their group. There are 8 groups, Group A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and H, and South Korea is in Group B.
If you'd like more information: visit the Fifa World Cup Official Website.

Republic of Korea celebrating in a huddle of thankfulness after their victory over Greece.

South Korea defeated Greece, 2:0 last Saturday. Tomorrow, we are versing Argentina. If we win tomorrow, we will have a much greater chance of qualifying for the "Round of 16." If we lose, our chances go down quite a bit. In any case, I'm cheering for my country with a strong conviction that we will go on to the finals! Who will win? ;)

By the way, anyone watch the Brazil vs North Korea game? North Korea was actually pretty good!

Today is super cloudy. I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow. Or else I might have to just buy the B&N umbrella that I've been eyeing at the bookstore.

As I'm left alone in Washington D.C., and have nobody here that I know, I find myself wanting to buy everything that I see. I confess, I've bought $25 worth of apps this past week as well as "rented" a movie on iTunes! (The Blind Side, Great movie by the way if you haven't seen it.) But yes. I rented it. Why do you ask? I don't know. I just wanted to. I guess if I'm left alone, I lose all self control. I need my friends and family! I miss being with everyone. Hope to see a lot of the NY KCCC brothers and sisters at the Korea Conference full of exciting as well as funny stories! :)

The Commission - Day 11

2010-06-15T19:36:00.004-04:00

Try me and test me that I may come forth as gold. As pure gold.

The days pass by like the lull of the afternoon sunset. And yet, in me, there is a reviving of the soul. I come before God today and humble myself for I am indeed in need of His varied graces. In my pursuit of Him, He has never failed me. Yet, I have failed Him much. Indeed, my eyes set on the things of man and care not of the One who has set all things.
It is grace that enlightens your heart to the weight of God.

A tempest of conviction enflames my soul in my brokenness. We, God's own children, must desire the purity of heart. We must forsake the things of this world, the false securities, the vain glories. In saying this, I do not mean cut yourself from society and live recluse. For those who are thinking in that track of mind and have written me off as one of those hyper spiritual crazy people, do not misunderstand my heart.

In John 17:15-16, Jesus prayed: "I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world."

There is a clear distinction between not being taken "out of the world" and not being "of the world, just as [Christ is] not of the world."

Salvation did not mean to me a given freedom to live my life the way I wanted with a spread of goodness and love over everything I do. Far from it. Salvation to me meant that I am no longer my own but have sold myself to Christ and given my old self to death that I might have life in Christ. Because the two are not even worth comparing. Christ is infinitely better than anything that has been or will be created. Because created things have a date of expiration and spoil and rot. But the Creator of all things does not have a beginning or end. I hope all you brothers and sisters who have found this new life in Christ can relate to my thoughts. If not, I urge you to re-read God's Word. Especially in the 1st Epistle of John, Apostle John gives great comparisons of those who are "born of God" and the false believers who are fooling themselves.

To become like Christ means to be "not of the world, just as [He is] not of the world."

One thing is clear. In coming to faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior, the reasons for doing so means naught because what you receive in faith surpasses infinitely of the reasons you put your faith in Jesus Christ. I may have been seeking treasure for personal gain or I may have tripped on a hike and mistakenly fallen onto such treasure. None the less, the treasure has become mine and this treasure of God indefinitely changes me. And in the change, perspective changes. Completely. Previously, we were of the created. So our minds could only contain the extent of all that is created. Though we could imagine gods and things of eternity and things of eternal mystery, we could never take hold of them, nor hope in them. In association to time, we could think of where we wanted to be in our death, or where we'd like our life savings to go, or to the extent of seeing our grand-grand children. In association to things, we could think of how precious it has been all throughout your life or how much you've multiplied it. In association to reputation, we could think of all the people we've affected and the lives that were benefited by our presence and influence. And so on and so forth. However, in a thousand years, all will be without, if not one hundred years. However, in Christ, our hope becomes external to the world, external to reality itself, external to time, space, and matter. Indeed we have obtained the unobtainable. We have reached the unreachable. We have found the unsearchable. We have met the unapproachable.

And life therefore should not be lived bound by or even for the vanity of time, space, matter, or energy. For everything the Christian pours out or does is of eternal weight and significance. We live no longer in the grips of the momentary but in view of all eternity.

Colossians 3: 1-4 says, "If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory."

However, I do warn you. Do not get lost in all these thoughts. May it be far from any of us who believe in Christ to limit the Limitless.

In light of all these things, God is truly more worthy of my praise and my meditation. His wonders never end!

The Commission - Day 10

2010-06-14T20:52:00.005-04:00

Getting ready for Korea Conference 2010.

This summer, about 95 students from New York Korea Campus Crusade for Christ (Website - KCCC) have gone to countries like Mongolia, Thailand, Turkey, Switzerland, Japan and more to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In two weeks, we will all convene in South Korea for a national conference, gathering over 6,000 Korean college students with the purpose of becoming a "fireseed" of the Gospel to the nations. It's this conference that I will be attending, not as a recipient, (although I do receive much from being there) but more than that, as someone who will serve our 95 students who have gone or will be going to the nations to faithfully proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.

I am restless to attend this conference and knowing that I only have two weeks left before I leave has led to sudden bursts of excitement during my days at work.

It's raining outside right now.
The world goes on. What looks to be, as I fathom, an infinite number of events and calculations happening in the blink of an eye. Is it any wonder that the world does not fall into chaos and crumble underneath the unfathomable? I am amazed by it. I am in awe of the One who holds it all together. Gosh my mind is just blown away! And my heart, it stops for a moment to beat again. I can't contain the unknown, the unknowable, the One who is God. And to merely pass Him by because we cannot fathom seems to me to be the fruit of pride and foolishness. For if God is true, then what is implied is that His divine nature, his unobtainable and unchangeable attributes have implications on our lives. I see many holy people putting up a facade of well-togetherness but woe to anyone who exudes an air of "I've made it"-ness, or "I've achieved"-ness. This doesn't always have to be pride. This can very well be a very innocent thing. Indeed, it can most definitely encourage and build others up! But I see the scheming of the mind, of the sub-conscience, that brush up for only a moment that it would be blown back to the unseen places by the slightest inclination of a thought.

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." - Matthew 5:8

"Purify my heart, Oh God! Regenerate me in the Spirit. God, restore to me the glory that had been mine in creation. Give me the heart prior to the eating of the forbidden fruit. Make it enamored with the personhood of You. Father, I desire to see you God." - A prayer.

I tell you the truth, if you seek a purity and holiness, you will find yourself illuminated and no longer ignorant yet still prone to ignore the rottenness of our souls. Oh how humble is the Christian! For the Christian, every single thing... every single thing, faith, love, hope, is by His grace alone. In the midst of all the infinite of and beyond this universe, God himself knows my name. He knows my heart and cares for me. This is true for God himself confirms it in the incarnation of His Son Jesus Christ.

Meditating on Christ tonight. I will not pass Him by.

The Commission - Day 9

2010-06-11T22:49:00.007-04:00

"The fear of man exists because our fear of man is greater than our fear of God."

If you follow my blog, you'd notice that I did not write yesterday. And trust me, I had planned to but I could not bring myself to do it. Because I had to address the issues of my heart and oh how great is the grace of God.

I think it is a testimony in itself that I am convicted every day by one thing or another. It is a testimony of the living God and all glory and praise and thanks to Him that He would touch my heart each day.

I'm worried that some of you who read this may think of me as some super holy person. And I'd like to let you know that I am so very far from holy. I stand by grace alone. But there is one thing I am super about. I am super captivated by the person of Jesus Christ. Because He is the Only Hope that I have. Not the only hope left, but the only hope. period. Because everything we put our hopes in that is of this world will fail and fade away. The only hope that will last is God himself.

God's been convicting me so much these days. It's incredible. I can't keep it in! Every moment, I'm thinking of Him. Im enthralled by Him.

And on top of it all, work has been awesome! I love what I'm doing here. I'm basically researching and finding out the tangible plans and actions that are being worked out towards freedom of religion in the world in general but to make it a little more personal to me, I see the Gospel being promulgated to the darkest corners of the earth!

Today, I went to the Justice House of Prayer again. (www.jhopdc.com)
That place is on fire! I really love coming into God's presence with these brothers and sisters. And in the midst of praying, I cried aloud to the Lord for the NY KCCC ministries and brothers and sisters on summer missions. I can't wait to share with all the leaders what God has been placing on my heart these past two weeks in D.C.
It's incredibly convicting!!

Here are some topics I'll be focused on this semester and even at our leadership gathering. In the order of:
1. Repentance
2. Steadfastness
3. Tears
4. Commitment
5. Boldness

If you're a leader, I hope your excited for this. I am totally excited right now. And we still have a little under 2 months left till we meet!

Update on the happenings in D.C. and Planned Parenthood.

For full blog posting, go to: http://bound4life.com/blog/2010/06/09/out-of-jail-interview

New News

For full blog posting, go to: http://bound4life.com/blog/2010/06/11/40-feet-to-fight-for-video

The Commission - Day 7

2010-06-09T18:41:00.006-04:00

To my brothers and sisters in leadership,
And all those who took heed of my encouragement to "Seek your burning bush"
(See previous blog post: http://josephryu.blogspot.com/2010/05/beginning-summer.html)

I have been thinking about what kind of ways I could encourage you to accomplish the set objectives of our summers. It has probably been made known to you if you had sought to look for your “burning bush,” that most likely, God did not speak to you in audible words saying, “You shall go to India!”

What I would like to stress is that even the great Apostle Paul, who experienced the “burning bush” along the Damascus road when the Lord Jesus met him, recalls not this incredible experience as His calling to preach to the Gentiles but quotes a simple Bible verse from Isaiah 52:15, “Those who have never been told of him will see, and those who have never heard will understand.” (Romans 15:14-21)

You see, after Apostle Paul’s conversion experience, he did not simply take that supernatural experience by itself but went to Arabia for three years and immersed himself in the Word. He had to re-read his Bible and it was during his meditations on the Scriptures, the verse from Isaiah 52:15 struck his heart.

In the same way, I pray that since we only have a little over a month left, you would take heed to my advice of edification and immerse yourself in God’s Word daily and meditate on the things you read moment by moment.

This is a word that was preached by Pastor John Piper a while ago which has stayed with me as I engaged in pursuit of God's will and God's call in my life. If you'd like to listen to it, please do so. I encourage you, listen to words that faith comes through. (For the sermon, click here)

Seek the LORD while He may be found. Because the time is quickly drawing near when darkness will come and at which no man can work. Holy Spirit, stir us and shake us to the core of our being. Bring revelation of Your Love God!

The Commission - Day 6

2010-06-08T23:07:00.006-04:00

Another day at the office.

My supervisor came back today. Thank God that he's back because I really need him if I'm to make a productive day out of my internship. And with that being said, I think I don't have to let you know that it implies that I had a lot of things to do today. I can't say that the work is boring because actually, its very interesting. But I also can't seem to will myself to make others interested about it either. I don't know, I rather talk about how God has been moving in me! Well, thats no big secret.

But anyway, something very important has come to my attention!
It'll be hard to explain it myself so just watch this video to find out.
Please, my brothers and sisters - Keep watch and pray!

For the full blog post: http://bound4life.com/blog/2010/06/08/prayer-made-illegal-in-washington-dc

Something has been stirring in our nation in this generation, and not just our nation but the nations of this world. Don't be found asleep my friends.

We are receiving a desperate calling with need for a desperate consecration to the Lord.

The Commission - Day 5

2010-06-07T20:19:00.002-04:00

"the Office"
Art by: Joseph Ryu

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My supervisor called in sick today.

For most of the morning, I was going about my own responsibilities to contact the Berkman Center for Internet & Society for statistics on Internet censorship in China and other countries. (Berkman Center Website) And by lunch time, I had absolutely nothing to do. This was because my supervisor called in sick today. Today however, yet again, was not a "regular" day.

But before I get into it, I'd just like to interject with some thoughts on Capitol Hill Baptist Church. (CHBC Website)
Last Wednesday, I had praised CHBC for it's hospitality, welcome, and Gospel-centeredness. Yesterday, I attended their morning service and actually spent the whole day from 9:30am to 9:30pm, in service, in teaching, and fellowship. Since I am staying here for such a short time, I'm basically going to every meeting CHBC has. On Sundays, before the 10:30am morning service, there is a 9:30am "core seminar" session that happens in the basement. You are able to choose from six different seminars at any given Sunday that ranges from parenting, to Church history. Service was awesome. I know that Southern Baptist churches are quite conservative but I had never sung such old hymns with such conviction and sincere worship. The whole congregation lifted their voices in singing and the whole church became a choir befitting our most worthy God. It was incredible. And I realized at that moment, this Southern Baptist Church was as "charismatic" as gatherings such as the International House of Prayer. (IHOP Website)

This is because where the Gospel is preached and where the Holy Spirit regenerates and dwells, true worship happens in Spirit and in Truth. I've been able to taste the joy of salvation and the intimate knowledge of my Savior when I recognized that my worship was not bound by age old hymns or eclectic spontaneous singing or the way service is run. Oh how wonderful is Christ! In whom I have freedom, and in whom all things are made new!

After the morning service, I decided to stick around till 6pm which is their more intimate evening service. I read a whole book while waiting four hours till the service time began. A really good book, Francis Chan's "Crazy Love." (Crazy Love Book Website)
If you haven't read it before, I recommend you check the website and if you can, read the book!

Now, another highlight of the day was going out to dinner with some of the CHBC church members after the evening service. I got a chance to listen into people's lives as well as just fellowship with fellow Christians. But wow, how the all blew me away. Not to say they were perfect Christians, which we all aren't, but they were so encouraging in their normal sharing. It's not like we were having a Bible study discussion during dinner. We were just conversing about life in general. Their demeanor and perspective in life was Christ-centered and super missional. That was just so encouraging to find in a group of mid 20's. The whole day, I spent in honor of our Lord's day in a way in which I haven't done for a long time. If you are planning to live in the D.C. area, I highly recommend you to become a member of this church and serve God with these awesome brothers and sisters in Christ!

Back to today's also not a "regular" day
For lunch, I had planned to meet up with one of the pastoral interns from CHBC named Brady. We had an awesome lunch at Union Station. We were able to share our testimonies and passions to each other and be extremely blessed and encouraged by one another. But that's not all. A homeless guy named Mike came and asked us for some money because he was so hungry. Brady asked him what he wanted to eat and that he'd buy him lunch. So in the midst of the busyness of the terminal, we were eating lunch with our new friend Mike and Brady shared the Gospel to him. His heart was closed to Christ but when we prayed for him when he was about to leave, I was so convicted to let Mike know that today was a special day through which God had purposefully led him to us and God had given him the invitation of Christ. Please pray for Mike. He's confessed that he's a sinner in need of a savior. He's wrapped up in his earthly sufferings, which I know are tremendous compared to mine or yours. Please pray that the light of Christ would pour out in grace for this brother.

But how awesome to be able to share the Gospel with a total stranger while eating lunch with someone who I'm also eating lunch with for the first time!

Till tomorrow then!

The Commission - Day 4

2010-06-04T23:09:00.005-04:00

I'm getting the hang of things in the office!

Today was intense for me.
I couldn't wake up early like I used to before but none the less got to the office on time. But thats not why it was intense for me. I think today, I did a lot of research without resting. I took intermittent coffee breaks and bathroom breaks but the whole day, I was focused on doing the task at hand. It was like I was running on autopilot but aware of all the moves I was making.

I learned a lot today since I was mostly organizing articles and creating strings of articles that related to each other on issues of the Uyghur Muslims in the Xinjiang Province. I read all day. I wrote all day. It might sound like it was boring to you from reading what I've written about today and since I haven't elaborated on it but actually, I had a wonderful day! It was actually really satisfying to research on the Uyghur people and organize everything for my supervisor.

From what I got out of everything, it seemed to me that the Chinese government used the excuse of raising security for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games to take the strong foot forward against "terrorism, separatism, and religious extremism." It helped them that they had major protests, uprisings, and demonstrations by the Uyghur Muslims and Tibetan Buddhists at the wake of the summer of 2008 as well as in 2009. Not to say that all the protests were peaceful but most of them were. And in response to these protests as well as in light of preparing for the Olympics in 2008, the Chinese government began cracking down on "social order" and "national security." Not to mention that there has been discrimination against Tibetans and Uyghurs before these things happened.

What I see the Chinese government doing is:
1. Restricting living conditions for Uyghurs - displacing thousands of migrant workers for illegal housing which the government attributed to the riots and resettling thousands in the name of rebuilding cities which it seems to me that the government is doing to take away the culture of the Uyghurs and assimilate them into the majority culture.
2. Enforcing "Ethnic Unity" programs and education - on Muslim adults to change the way they dress, refrain from teaching religion to children, and be kept watch by their peers and also programs and education on children starting from pre-school by creating "Bi-lingual" studies focused on Mandarin Chinese and thereby effectively taking away the development and significance of their minority languages.
3. Mistreatment of Uyghurs in court and Human Rights lawyers who are defending them in court - Although most of the protests were peaceful and instigations that led to physical harm was not in the fault of just the Uyghur protesters, they have given death sentences and life sentences without proper due process. In the subject of Human Rights lawyers, it doesn't just hold to Uyghur protesters. In almost all Human Rights defenses, whether it be a minority group related or religious related or freedom of speech related, the courts have been disruptive, inattentive, and rude during testimonies and have taken away practice licenses of a number of Human Rights lawyers.
4. Minorities, especially Uyghurs, are being targeted for population control - If you don't know what "Population Control" is, it's basically a nice way of saying quiet genocide. Under the guise of "overpopulation" issues, which seem to be valid, there are discrepancies on how these population controls are implemented. The rich could pay more to be able to get another child while Uyghur Muslims are being paid not to have another child. And many couples who, by their love for each other, conceive another child at the threshold of the restricted limit, are strongly urged and even forced to get an abortion.
5. Control of internet information - This doesn't just include the voices of Uyghurs online, but also the voices of other religious organizations, others with different political ideas, and those who dare to say something negative about the Communist Party. China boasts about an open-internet and the freedom of speech but under the guise of "national security" against "political extremists, religious extremists" and the like, they have opted to pay no heed to people's universal rights to voice their opinion on an "open-internet" and have gone to censor the internet and punish those that it finds as opposing to the views of the Party.

It seems I've written a lot already. If you'd like to read more on the Human Rights issues in China, the U.S. government has a wonderful commission for that. It's called the "Congressional-Executive Commission on China" (CECC - Website) You can check out their website and research for yourself. Theres a lot more I could write about but that was basically what I was researching on all day today. Everything I wrote about is my own interpretation and opinion at some points but they can be traced to a CECC news articles and analyses.

On another note, I attended the "Friday Night Rumble" at the Justice House of Prayer (http://jhopdc.com) and it was amazing!

The Holy Spirit was heavy in our gathering. I was moved by God during our prayer session and thrusted into the Holy of Holies as we interceded for the President, for our nation, for Israel, and the ending of abortion. My soul was shaken by God. I experienced the love of the Father and shared with all who came to the meeting an encounter with the deep Love of Christ as well as the Mighty King whose dominion lasts forever and kingdom extends to every generation. It was definitely heavy. I had consecrated myself at the beginning of this summer to the Lord as well as be in fasting and abstain from strong drink, and it was so interesting that I received a booklet on "the Nazarite D.N.A." by Lou Engle. The leader of JHOP also shared some timely words on "tears" which I am so excited to internalize and cultivate so that I may share with all the leaders and brothers and sisters in NY. God spoke to me in ways through which I believe He has given me confirmation for His purpose for sending me to Washington D.C. this summer and He has given me reason to believe that He is preparing me during this time to know the next steps for NY KCCC leadership and ministry as well as the next steps for my future!! These things are well worth more than precious silver or gold! God is leading me in my life this summer. I pray that you may also be seeking the Lord. Find the "holy ambition" and "holy discontent" that you have for the glory of God and aggressively, intentionally, and unrelentingly seek the LORD in His Word and in prayer. I guarantee you that God is just aching to meet you with an all-consuming fire! That's who He is!

Well then, that's all for tonight! Have a good weekend!!
Seeking: Truth. Humility. Purity. Intensity.

The Commission - Day 3

2010-06-03T19:29:00.007-04:00

Today, it rained while coming back from the internship.

For lunch, all the interns went to "The White Tiger," and Indian restaurant here on Capitol Hill. I had suggested to everyone that we should go out and eat lunch together to get to know each other and so we were able to plan to go this afternoon. Everyone's from different places with different stories and all of them are highly capable people who know how to do whats asked of them from the internship. So during our lunch, we got to know each other outside of the internship context and get more comfortable around each other. Everyone's so interesting and knew so much about so many things!

Today, I read a ton about North Korea again. There is a study on religious freedom in North Korea done by the "Database Center for North Korean Human Rights" (NKDB - Website) which is a South Korean database center dedicated to collect, document, and analyze available data and testimonies concerning the state of human rights in North Korea. And this study had a really comprehensive study on the history of religion in North Korea with names and organizations created by the North Korean regime as the purpose and definition of religion evolved in North Korea. And the study found through thousands of testimonies by North Korean refugees that over the past 10 years, the North Korean government has not changed its stance on:
1. Having religion, especially Protestantism, be a critical question asked to repatriated defectors.
2. Having religion, especially Protestantism, be a critical factor on what kind of prison the repatriated defector is sent.
3. It's level of physical brutality and torture against those found to be in contact with Protestant missionaries, churches, or South Koreans, or in possession of a Bible.

The reason its so specific to Protestantism and the reason why South Korea is associated as the same is because North Koreans believe that Protestantism is the avenue through which "American Imperialists" want to infiltrate and destroy the Party. Almost 99% of defectors who are repatriated who confess to coming in contact with a South Korean or church or caught with a Bible is sent to the Political Prison Camps, which are the harshest prison camps.

The fact of the matter is, Kim Jong Il tolerates Buddhism and Shamanism as cultural relics that doesn't "spread" like Christianity and in turn undermine the power of the Party. It's also the findings of this study as well as my internship's studies through interviews with refugees that underground, clandestine churches exist in North Korea. And although most people in North Korea don't know about it, it is still a source of great hope, a bright light in the darkest nation of our world.

If you'd like to read a little more on the state of North Korea on the issue of religious freedom: (English Version - Click Here, Korean Version- Click Here)

Praying for my brothers and sisters in North Korea. Those who are starving all the more since the high tensions North Korea is facing currently. Starving for more than just physical nourishment, but more than that - the nourishment of their souls.

Jesus said, "I came that they might have life, and have it to the full"
Jesus said, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."
Jesus said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls."
Jesus said, "I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness."

The Commission - Day 2

2010-06-02T23:38:00.001-04:00

Today was yet again an eventful day.

It's my second day at my internship and they have me doing an additional project on top of the ones I explained in my previous blog! Anyway, I won't go into too much detail since you might not be so interested in these things. I rather keep my blogs more focused on spiritual topics anyway.

Also, another cool opportunity came up!
So on July 13 & 14, 2010, Korean American Pastors from every major city and state in the US will march onto our nation's Capitol to speak on behalf of our North Korean brothers, sisters and orphans who have no voice of their own. It's held by the Korean Church Coalition (KCC), which is, I believe, the largest Korean Church entity in America! I will most likely be at that conference to report on it to my supervisor. I am really excited for this opportunity because when can you attend something like this, especially on the issue of North Korea? For more information on KCC, go to: (http://www.kccnk.org/)

Now, why do I bring this up?
Because I truly believe that the issues concerning North Korea is the responsibility of the Korean community! God has put in my heart a passion to see truth and justice break open the strongholds in North Korea. If you follow my twitter (@josephryu) you can read some things that North Korean refugees have said every day at 11:00am EST. I am praying earnestly with much weeping and crying out to the Lord for mercy over the innocent blood of my northern brethren. Im so glad that I am interning at the Commission and can research the very thing that enflames my heart. There is a wise saying by Pastor Bill Hybel in his book "Holy Discontent," to fuel your passions and God will prepare you to use you in mighty ways. Or something like that. If you've never heard of Pastor Bill Hybel or never got a chance to read "Holy Discontent," I highly recommend you to read it this summer!
Amazon link to the book: (Holy Discontent, by Bill Hybels)

Let me tell you, there is no other time in history like now for the reconciliation and redemption for North Korea. Soon the doors will open wide like in the days of the Pyongyang Revival of 1907-1910 when Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea was coined "Jerusalem of the East" because of the massive move of the Holy Spirit upon that land. Now is the wake of the dawn of freedom for this nation. How can I say this while tensions and relationships are growing further distant? It is because unless we are prepared that when the doors open into that nation, the enemy who is doing all he can to prevent the light of Christ shining forth into that land will impede the very things we have been praying over almost for the past hundred years!!

Brothers and sisters, I solemnly urge you to seek to find the "burning bush" that Moses encountered. That heavenly encounter with the LORD and consecrate yourselves so that you may be commissioned out equipped with the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit as you are positioned in strategic places as Korean/Asian Americans.

Continue to pray for the salvation of North Korea. Their plight has been continuous and unrelenting for over three generations. The mental and spiritual walls have been deteriorated that much! Even high officials turn to shamanism and fortune telling to quench the ache of their souls - and all this is a ploy of the devil, to bind them to evil spirits. However, do remember that where sin abounded, grace abounded all the more! And in the depths of all this darkness in the land of North Korea will arise all the more gloriously and triumphantly the victory of the LORD! Amen!

Guess here I went after my internship ended today?
You guessed it! I went to Capitol Hill Baptist Church! (Website) This is the church that is pastored by Pastor Mark Dever! They have weekly wednesday night Bible studies. This church is really doing some amazing things with its 9marks ministry as well as just it's Gospel-centeredness and missional culture. I was so blessed today to be there. They have specific programs for the summer that utilize resources to feed and teach the influx of interns who come to Capitol Hill during the summers. It's definitely a place that I am excited to grow at.

Anyway, its so late. I must get some sleep~! Till tomorrow again! Goodnight!

If you are in the area, feel free to call me since I'm free almost everyday after 5pm!

If you'd like to send me mail, send to:

Joseph Ryu
Gibbons 329
The Catholic University of America
620 Michigan Ave. NE, Box #19-068
Washington, DC 20064

The Commission - Day 1

2010-06-01T23:38:00.000-04:00

For those of you who do not know, I have travelled down to Capitol Hill to intern in the East Asia Policy Department of "the Commission."

Basic Introduction of the organization:
"The Commission was created by the government in 1998 to monitor the status of freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief abroad, as defined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and related international instruments, and to give independent policy recommendations to the President, Secretary of State, and Congress."

Yesterday was basically an orientation day where I was able to get accustomed to the ways of the office and actually began working on two projects that I will hopefully be able to complete with excellence!

The Commission's system basically works so that there are professional staff who have studied and are experts on different regional situations, policies, law, etc. who then have meetings with appointed commissioners who are basically the congress people to whom the professional staff present briefings and memos that are presented to the President, Secretary of State, and Congress through the appointed commissioners. But sometimes the experience on the field and the experience on the hill don't work well together and it takes a long time for briefings or memos to be finalized and executed.

All in all, its the job of the Commission to influence what kinds of things the President brings up in his visits to other countries. Especially on the issues of the freedom of religion.

The staff are just an incredible group of experts and leaders in their fields. To see for yourself, check out the short bios of the professional staff.

So what do I do?
I work under Scott who is a Senior Policy Analyst who has a wide spectrum of experience and education but specializes in American Foreign Policy, particularly in Southeast and East Asia.

I am currently on task for two projects simultaneously. The first project is on internet freedom, specifically in China and specifically on issues of religion. I'll be doing mostly research and probably by the end of this month, be able to write a memo to Scott on the task. The other project is a little more long term in that I will be in constant contact with a Korean organization that focuses on North Korea human rights and publishes a yearly "white paper." Last year, we were able to get it translated into English and they had sent it to us to get our opinion. I will be comparing their last year's white paper to our 2008 special report on North Korea. Also, as I am going to be in direct contact with them, we want to get a copy of the white paper translated in english before it publishes this summer and have prior input to the study and be a part of the published study. We also want to be able to publish something along side the publication of the study as well. So these are the projects that I am currently working on. Seems simple enough right?

Currently, its only Scott and I who are in the department working on the 2 billion people of East Asia on the issue of religious freedom. I'm contributing very little if you think about it. Scott was really busy yesterday getting a memo finalized with commissioners on Indonesia because the President is going there in two days! The whole thing is complete but the commissioners keep editing the memo in areas where obviously Scott knows better.

I was really anxious yesterday before the internship began but the staff were so welcoming and even the interns were so dedicated to their department work that I was energized and excited for the whole summer experience! I had also prayed the night before because I was so afraid of my inadequacy and feelings of ignorance and inexperience. God gave me peace that surpasses all understanding that really guarded my heart and mind in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:7)

God uses the weak things to confound the strong, the foolish things to confound the wise!!

Continue to pray for me as I am in D.C.
I will be attending Capitol Hill Baptist Church, home to Pastor Mark Dever! They have weekly Bible studies specifically for interns on Tuesday nights as well as a Church Bible study on Wednesday nights that I want to check out.

There is also a Justice House of Prayer right next to the Supreme Court that holds Friday night "rumbles" which I will go to intercede for our nation as well as NY KCCC student movement & summer missions! For those of you in NYC, please continue to keep the fire of prayer burning for our ministry by attending Gethsemane in the summer!! More information on Gethsemane during the summer can be found by contacting Sarah E. Lee at cd@kcccny.org

If you are in the area, feel free to call me since I'm free almost everyday after 5pm!

If you'd like to send me mail, send to:

Joseph Ryu
Gibbons 329
The Catholic University of America
620 Michigan Ave. NE, Box #19-068
Washington, DC 20064

Beginning Summer

2010-05-25T23:04:00.009-04:00

To my fellow soldiers in Christ,

I address this letter to leaders but in a sense, we are all leaders to some degree so do not count yourself out if you think you ought.

The semester has finally come to a close. However, please do not take this letter lightly for I warn you that the enemy is already at your doorstep the moment you do so. Shall I remind you that we who wait for our Lord's return must always be alert and awake? How much more so when we (who have nothing good in ourselves) have been entrusted with this ministry of reconciling the world? We must remain in the Spirit. It is direly crucial that we get that.

I am not talking about setting rules of conduct or agendas for serving. However, I would like to point out that we as leaders have a specific agenda for how we should use our summers - no matter where we are. Do not forgo the commitment you made to the Lord when you took up this role as leaders. Keep your role as leaders of ministries close to the forefront of your summers so that we may utilize this break to find greater focus in vision, in mission, and in purpose. I firmly expect God to bring us to another level in all aspects of life and service if we are to keep on task this one thing.

The way we are to keep our role as leaders close to the forefront of our summers is not by strategizing or planning or going through a certain training or curriculum. You can do that aside from what I am asking of you - if you wish.

Our summer agenda: Seek your "burning bush."

In other words, "seek the LORD." Trust me, you'll find Him if you do and you won't be disappointed.
I exhort you as a leader of my own team that you be adamant on being on this one task for this summer's agenda. Moses fled Egypt as a young man being rejected and lost, though he had much passion and compassion for his people, Israel. God met him by a burning bush and through that encounter, appointed him as His instrument for the freedom of the Jews. (Exodus 2-3) The "burning bush" is equated to God's calling - a supernatural, spiritual encounter with God that was experienced by the kings whom God appointed, the prophets, and Jesus' disciples. However, in saying "seek your 'burning bush'" I do not mean you can look for it by yourself. That is why I said it was in other words, "seek the LORD." Because in fact, when you meet the LORD in the revelation of His presence, you will find the sure footing to stand upon as well as the path to which you should walk. So do not think for a second that this is a human will effort. This is grace, this is a gift from God. Tread these waters carefully because the place you walk on is holy but boldly if you are an heir with Christ.

We will use this summer to seek God's calling and His vision for not just this upcoming semester, but for our eternal lives. I pray that by doing this together will keep you more accountable and bear greater fruit than you would have had you gone out alone.

Come back at the end of the summer to read about what God does through me this summer and I hope that you may share with me about your journey in seeking our personal calling as well as what God impressed upon your hearts concerning this upcoming semester.

Three Recommendations:

I recommend you to begin seeking your calling by making a covenant before the Lord that it would be your own heart's desire and not the forcing upon of me or anyone else.

I recommend you to have a lifestyle of fasting and prayer during your summer which will hopefully help foster disciplines that will carry on onto the rest of our lives.

I also recommend you to be saturated with the Word of God, not just by meditation but even reading the whole Bible or the New Testament during the summer.

Remember the LORD your God.

God has used this past semester to "humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD... So you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God by walking in his ways and by fearing him." (Deut. 8:2-6)

Remain in Christ and He will remain in you and you will bear much fruit. The issue is not about bearing much fruit. The issue is remaining in Christ. So I remind you to abide in Him and find your "burning bush" this summer.

Well then, whether your home, preparing for school, or going on missions -

May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make His face to shine upon us,
that Your way may be known on earth,
Your saving power among all nations.
Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise You!
(Psalm 67:1-3)

Amen!

NK's Foreign Relations Hasn't Changed Much

2010-04-13T16:34:00.004-04:00

If you wish to watch the documentaries, click on the links below:
KCTS - Welcome to North Korea (2000) via Google Video
VBS.TV - The Vice Guide to North Korea (2008) via VBS.TV

We Are A Movement

2010-04-08T21:15:00.003-04:00

Call2All and Table 71

2010-03-09T12:54:00.004-05:00

If you remember the message by Dr. Steve Douglass on the last evening at Vision Conference 2010 RE:GENERATION, you heard him talk about a "Table 71" and the effects of the conversations around that table. What has culminated out from it is Call2All, beginning two years ago. Here are some videos that will acquaint you to what God is doing through Call2All. It's reaching the ends of the world with the Gospel and this year, Call2All is now making initiatives in America. www.call2all.org

Call2All America Promotional

History of Table 71 Documentary

6 Points to be involved with Call2All by Dr. Steve Douglass

Message from Dr. Steve Douglass

2010-03-08T02:33:00.007-05:00

Repost from Dr. Steve Douglass
Titled: Change
Original Posted Date: 3/3/10

I assume you have heard that there are some changes in the wind for our ministry. It’s true, and I would like to invest this month’s article in sharing some with you about it.

Let me start from the beginning. Our ministry received a special calling from God to help fulfill the Great Commission. As Bill Bright elaborated on our part in that massive task, he clarified that our emphasis was spiritual multiplication – winning, building, and sending in the power of the Holy Spirit. Second Timothy 2:2 was our theme verse in that regard.

So our calling and mission are basically fulfilled at the local level. Whether on campus, in the executive board room or in a home in the inner city, we encourage teams of like-hearted, Christ-centered, multiplying disciples to “reach their worlds” for Christ.

In 2002 God gave the vision for movements everywhere so that everyone knows someone who truly follows Jesus. That just reconfirmed that our most critical point of success is “local.”

The reason I am reviewing these familiar facts is to say that our main reason for any changes is simply to do those even better.

Over a period of many years, we have begun to suffer from what happens to most Christian organizations:

- Some drifting of direction
- Slowing of growth
- Decreasing flexibility to respond to changes in the marketplace

There are a number of places in Campus Crusade for Christ where this isn’t true. But on the average these trends are present.

Now, we could ignore that we need to sharpen what we do and eventually decline severely. Or we can deal squarely with the issues and fully redeem the opportunities I believe God has prepared beforehand for us.

To the leaders of the ministry the choice was clear: Let’s prayerfully plan and take action to do even better. You have and will continue to hear more from your ministry’s leaders, but let me summarize a few broad strokes of what we sense God has led us to do:

1. Call us to renewed, extreme dependence on God. I have started to fast one meal a day to begin to prepare my own heart for what that might mean. If Bill Bright were here, I feel certain he would call us to be sure our hearts are filled with our “first love” for God.

2. Make certain we have an organizational culture in our ministry that features our values (faith, growth and fruitfulness), ownership of movement building at the local level and a learning environment (to help us keep creating improved or new strategies, training and materials as the marketplace shifts). There are a few other culture change elements as well. (For more information see the Call for Culture Change article at www.shapingourfuture.me/callforculturechange.)

3. Plan with boldness to take full advantage of the way God is providing opportunities today. We want to make the most of the next 10 years, in cooperation with others in the Body of Christ who are sensing that same urgency.

4. Change our structure as needed to maximize our focus on local success and to support these points above. We have always had that in mind, but we are working with area and country leadership to find ways to do that better.

As I mentioned earlier, from the beginning our desire was to motivate, train and support people around the world to help fulfill the Great Commission. We must develop more models of how to do that well. Those models will give vision and provide training for others. Our dream is self-sustaining, viral multiplication. (For more on the rationale for these changes and on the details of the structural change watch the video at www.mygcx.org/OrganizationalChange.)

What I have just shared with you is an overview. It was the result of many months of praying, seeking input and discussing. But, no doubt, more time will be needed to move in that direction.

So what can you do in light of all this? Pray. Pray for wisdom as ministry leaders work out how this applies in their situations. Pray that God will give supernatural wisdom. Pray that God will also give peace. Change is uncomfortable for most of us. There is therefore a normal process of adjustment.

Finally, pray for yourself and the team with which you work. Ask God to show you things in your own walk with him which need to improve. Ask Him if there is anything in your personal ministry that could benefit from the culture change we are seeking. For example, could your disciples “own” more of the ministry in their spheres of influence?

Pray for God to infuse in you and those around you even more faith and creativity, to take advantage of the unusual opportunities God is giving around the world today.

Know this: We are not seeking to change anything which does not need to change. However, we do think there are things we can do to greatly accelerate the accomplishment of what God has called us to do.

For Dr. Steve Douglass' full blog, go to: http://movementseverywhere.com/

Mark Driscoll and KCCC Leaders

2010-02-25T00:00:00.000-05:00

Sermon Description:
“Jesus gave his life for the glory of God and the good of others, and we should too.
1) Pour yourself out in ministry. Do something, anything, for Jesus.
2) Rest and recover in solitude.
3) Pursue your calling, not your potential. Those who don’t have a sense of calling exchange busyness for fruitfulness. Live your life intentionally by pursuing the things that God has gifted and called you to.
4) Train other leaders.
Here, Jesus calls his first disciples, Peter, James, and John, and they leave everything to follow him. For them (as it should be for all Christians and churches), it was all about evangelism—people meeting Jesus.”

Two important lessons I learned through Pastor Driscoll’s message:

1. We’re not taking up every opportunity possible. We need to have that specific vision and mission so that we don’t spread ourselves out so thin. We don’t do 10 things mediocre but rather do 2 important things very well. If we’re struggling with the important things, we don’t patch it up by doing all the other opportunities that are presented before us. We’re not to be busy bodies. We’re to fulfill the will of God and the mission He’s entrusted to us with.

2. It’s ALL about evangelism. It’s ALL about being a light on campus. Without it, it’s most likely that we’re pursuing our potential and not our calling. Statements such as “Well, there’s a lot of support for doing this and that and a lot of people are coming together for them” while evangelism is non-existent, then it’s most likely that we’re pursuing our potential and not our calling. And in doing so, we will fall! God’s movement that He started won’t continue with us. The two important lessons learned work together. If the events and initiatives that we’re doing aren’t fulfilling the vision of being the light on our campus, we have to re-evaluate as we take a step back and look at where we are. We have to change things, maybe even throw out some ministries to focus manpower and energy on building up a good overflow for evangelism. If you have many programs and ministries that people are involved in yet evangelism is a desert, reconsider your focus and know that we walk solely on evangelism and discipleship. Maybe we have to strip away some things and come back to our bare essentials. We’re not trying to set a standard across the campuses where every KCCC ministry needs the best band to play at large group or a nice hall to gather in. Pastor Driscoll talks about Wayne Cordeiro’s “Four Ways to Live Your Life”:

1. Reaction – You see a need and you just jump at it. You see many opportunities and you’re all over all of them. In that process, you get spread thin, burn out and you don’t fulfill your mission. Don't exchange fruitfulness for busyness!

2. Conformity – You try to cater to everyone’s needs. In that process, you get burnt out and maybe even bitter that you’ve sacrificed so much for people and yet things aren’t improving. It’s not sacrificing, its call compromising. It’s the compromising of your mission.

3. Independence – You know the mission and your basically doing it but nobody is following you because you’re not leading them. You are embittered that nobody is good enough and the problem is everyone. Partly true yes but because you’ve gone solo, you no longer have a movement and your mission as a leader gets killed.

4. Intentionality – This is the way Jesus did it. He didn’t react to every opportunity; He didn’t do what the people wanted Him to do. He didn’t forsake the people when they weren’t following. He brought them along slowly without diverting from His calling with intentions of revealing to them God’s perspective in little ways. He made disciples. He could have easily had 100 disciples. We learn from Christ to focus on a few people if you really wanted them to continue the ministry. (if you've read Master Plan for Evangelism you'd be familiar with this) In the same way, we don't try to do everything but what we do must be focused and intentional. Everything He did, He did with intention of slowly turning people’s hearts to God’s heart. He kept focused, He knew His limit, He knew His calling, and He kept faithful to it. If it meant to continue without losing focus that He had to rest a little bit without doing ministry, He did that. If it meant telling people some piercing Truth that would lead most of the people to turn away from Him, He didn’t shy away from that. He kept faithful, He did everything with the intention to glorify God and fulfill God’s will.

Tim Keller and KCCC Leaders

2010-02-23T12:12:00.004-05:00

Under here is a video about Redeemer’s new Ren3w campaign which talks about what a movement is and the dynamics of a movement. It’s very short and very insightful in terms of what we want to keep focused on our campus movements. Please watch before you continue!

Tim talks about the Renew Campaign from Redeemer Video on Vimeo.

“Movement means every single person in the organization is actually a provider, minister, not a customer. Everybody is reaching out, everybody is involved, everybody owns the vision, everybody is making sacrifices, and everybody is doing initiatives and they’re not waiting for orders from headquarters.” – Dr. Tim Keller

As things get more organized and ministry gets bigger, things become very program centered and staff driven. Even after we lose capacity due to the lack of the movement to sustain ministry. Dr. Keller says that to renew movement dynamics, we must train, send, and give responsibility to all people for the ministry. Their 10-year plan goal is to have everyone sent which is also what we desire to do so as well. Our newest CCC motto is “100% sent” meaning everyone who comes through our ministry leaves college as a Christ-centered laborer and ambassador for Christ.

Unlike Redeemer, we already have many different campuses that have campus leaders ministering for specific needs of each campus. Dr. Keller says that in having these campuses with separate leaders should produce spontaneously generated new ideas, new leaders, and new ministries, which we see in many ways. More in some and less on others. What is foundational to movement is the commitment and ownership of not only our leaders but also the soonjangs and soonwons.

I love my brothers and sisters

2010-02-02T15:19:00.004-05:00

1 Corinthians 5:9-13
I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge?
God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.”

This is the hard truth: If you call yourself a person who follows after Christ and you will not turn away from your sin, the Holy Bride of Christ cannot tolerate you and can do nothing but purge you out. This isn't talking about messing up here and there. This is talking about a lifestyle of sin that continues unconfessed or unrepentant or unwilling to change.

This is true love. To be confronted of your sin. We must not let any of ourselves let any brother or sister continue walking on the path to destruction.

1. Confront your brother or sister privately. If s/he repents, you have won them over. If not,
2. Bring a few brothers or sisters with you and confront your brother or sister privately. If s/he repents, you have won them over. If not,
3. Bring the church with you and confront your brother or sister openly. If s/he repents, you have won them over. If not,
let them leave you for they're hearts have thrown away the grace of God.

1 Corinthians 5:4-5
When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus, you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.

I cannot call you my brother or sister and love you if I let you continue to walk towards eternal destruction.

I counsel you to repent and receive the grace of God.

KCCCNY: A New Year

2010-01-11T08:56:00.004-05:00

Hello everybody,

My name is Joseph Ryu and I am a senior at Rutgers University.
And I will be serving this year as the New York Korea Campus Crusade for Christ Regional Student President and would like to lead us in a short time of prayer for our new leadership.

We have taken up a tremendous calling to serve you and not that we are any more qualified but it is by the grace of God we have been appointed as leaders.

1) Lets pray for the transition of the new leadership as it will be the first time for us to change leadership in the winter.

2) Lets pray for our leaders who have taken the initiative in their willingness to serve this year and who must continue to rely on the power of the Holy Spirit.

3) Let us pray for our campus ministries.

For those of you who do not have a ministry on your campuses that is purposeful and intentional in sharing the Gospel and bringing the Kingdom of God over the lives of your friends and classmates, I just want to say, do not be discouraged because you do have a campus ministry. You are the campus ministry. God Himself dwells in You in all His glory and power. It is because I know that God lives in me, that if I am obedient to His leading, He will do great and mighty deeds through me. And this is an encouragement for all of us.

4) And so, as we pray for our campuses, let us then pray for revival.

From time to time in history, God has poured out on young college students His presence of the Holy Spirit, leading to great awakenings and revivals all across the world and in doing so, raising a movement for missions, prayer, evangelism, purity, and holiness.

So as we are praying for this new leadership and for revival on our campuses, let us pray that as this New Year begins, may such a time in history happen once again where God would redeem this generation from its rebellious, lukewarm, static, and indifferent heart towards God and use us to bring the presence of God and His Kingdom upon our campuses. Let us pray.

VISION CONFERENCE CLOSING SERVICE PUBLIC PRAYER

Father God, You are worthy to be praised. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing. When we heard the word of Truth, the gospel of our salvation, and believed in You, we were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it. In Christ we are no longer considered of this world. We are no longer considered of the flesh but of the Spirit. When we repented and took hold of the redemption we have through Your blood, we were given a New Spirit. Your Spirit. You called us out of slavery, a slavery to torment and death, and brought us into a delight beyond comparison. So much so that we cannot help but be enslaved and obedient to You, for You are the eternal spring of True Life.

Lord Jesus, as this conference is coming to a close, help us not to let go of our longings for You, because You promised that if we abide in You, You would abide in us. Father God, we deem it true and real all that you have revealed and all that you have done during this conference. Lord, help us to understand that what we have experienced and learned here does not compare to the depth of intimacy that You desire to draw us into. I pray that we may be excited for You are doing a new thing in all of us! Now it springs up; do we not perceive it? You are making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland! May you give us perception and revelation of Your will and may we be ready to obey! Holy Spirit, you are moving upon this Earth like never before in Church history.

I pray Father that You would stir within our hearts and shake everything that can be shaken. Shake us Lord! Awaken this generation! You are the True and Living God. You are the Living Hope. May we not remain the same in view of your glorious grace O Lord, for we know we are undeserved of your affections for us. We turn away so quickly and defame and disrespect You, you who has all the heavenly hosts worshipping and bowing before You for all eternity, You who sits on the throne of Heaven and holds all things in Your hands. Father, help us to understand that the answer to our lack of joy, our lack of satisfaction in our lives, our indifference and our failures is not simply to try harder. That it’s not simply to pray a little louder and go to conferences or serve more in ministry. Father for if we succumb to this lie that can manipulate us ever so slightly, we will surely settle for a lesser joy. We will surely desire created things for our heart instinctively desires. And we will surely continue our cycles of frustration and defeat. But may we know that the answer is simply found in our lack of worship to Jesus, in our lack of love for Him!

To fall in love with Christ! To love the name of the Lord, to worship You. Open our eyes God to see how good you are. Open our eyes to see how much you love us God. But not only that, help us to see how incredible this love is. Help us to see your Glory God. Help us to recognize how unbelievable Your grace is towards us. Help us to see You God! That though you are High and Lofty, you are with the meek, you are with the humble and contrite. You are with the weak and the poor in spirit. May we not be foolish by simply feeling better about ourselves as we comfort ourselves with false truths. May we be firmly rooted in your great love for us and may You be our cornerstone to guide us and the rock of our salvation.

You promised O God that we would receive the Holy Spirit when we ask of You. And so we ask God, pour out the anointing of your Holy Spirit over us now. We know that the day that our Lord Jesus Christ will return is approaching fast. Though no man can know the exact time or condition, it is in Your Word that we are already living in eternity and we already have the victory in Christ. Our response is therefore to be awake and alert and wise so that we may be ready when You come and be received by You. If we remain complacent and uninformed or uninterested, we will surely fall when the winds and the waves of this world come crashing down on us. Test our faith Lord. Father, You are separating the wheat from the chaff, the sheep from the goats. And Lord, You said that Your sheep know Your voice and come to You and follow You. We want to know Your voice God! Lord, You are refining and purifying your Bride, the Church for Your return. Have mercy on us Lord that we may be found to have faith when You come down on That Day. It is in light of Your steadfast and unfailing love and faithfulness to us that You desire to reclaim us and renew us and revive us. It is in this Truth that we who have been called to be the salt and light of this world to simply be the salt and light of this world. To be sanctified, to be holy because God, You said, “be holy as I am holy.”

May we live out this Truth, that if we truly believe, we would not remain the same. God, regenerate our hearts to desire
You and be consecrated to You. We set ourselves apart from this world because we are not of this world yet as we are still in this world we will be Christ ambassadors, jars of clay holding within us the glory of Christ, vessels and instruments of His praise and worship, bearers of an unfailing hope and the ministry of reconciliation, waiting and ready for Your return.

Father, may we go out from here to be the shining star you made us to be. You desire obedience, not sacrifice. You desire that our hearts may be in obedience so that our sacrifices may be received. Draw us closer, draw us into Your inner courts O God! We want to live out this life in fruitfulness and abundance. May we grow in the knowledge of You and may we take hold of the opportunity that You present to us as college students. Father, so many of Your sons and daughters in college have turned away from You. Raise up in all who are here hearts of fire and passion that burn for You Lord. That though we are few, when we gather and pray and intentionally bring the Kingdom of God into the lives of others, we may see the revival of our generation! Pour out Your Spirit of boldness and power. May we be persistent and diligent in our longings for You.

We pray for all who have taken up this position of leadership in leading this movement on campuses across the nation. Although we are mere students, young and foolish, as we pray and serve, I pray that by Your Spirit, You would rain down your mercy and transform hearts of stone into hearts of flesh to receive the blood of Christ and the True Life. May we be molded in these few years in college to bring eternal change, and not just temporary solutions for a comfortable life on earth. Eternity is our home and we have obtained an all-surpassing glory! Bring fresh revelation and direction for our new leaders and may we seek You more desperately, more honestly, and more humbly. May we not be conformed to the passions of our hearts and our former ignorance but be prepared for action, being sober-minded, and setting our hopes fully on God’s grace.

Father God, I believe the time of revival is upon us. May no one miss the door of revival you are opening, and may you raise us up to be faithful to You even in the dry places because we know that it’s easy to be faithful in times of triumph and success. I believe that the toils and sufferings of Your sons and daughters do not go unaccounted for but in fact I believe that in our perseverance, You will answer our cries for You. Help us O God to live out a life of faith, that despite all circumstances and situations, we may be able to praise the name of the Lord and seek You with all heart, mind, strength, and soul. Lord, may You fulfill the Great Commission and come back quickly! We long for That Day Father! All glory and power and praise is to You Jesus. Come Lord, Jesus Come.

We pray all this in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
Amen.

Where do you stand in Christ?

2009-11-19T15:33:00.003-05:00

To my brothers and sisters in Christ,

Where do you stand in relation to Christ? This question is, I believe, the one question that answers all other questions. For if you know every moment, where you stand in relation to Christ, three main things can happen depending on your answer.

1. You are right with Christ. Therefore you are confident and have no reason to fear for His perfect love casts out fear. You can stand firm in your faith, knowing the Solid Rock on which you stand. You do not condemn, nor do you judge for you know fully the grace which has saved you. However, you do rebuke in love and compassion as one who knows what it means to be forgiven and knows who God is. God is your sole vindicator, you do as the Father wills, not for your own honor but the honor of the one who has bought you with the greatest price and who loves with a steadfast love, infinite in measure. You are also clear minded, not clouded by lies or the deceitfulness of your heart, however much you may be inflicted. Therefore continue to remain in Him and live a life glorifying and pleasing unto God.

2. You are wrong with Christ. You do not stand on the Solid Rock. You have chosen to find salvation from another god. In essence, you have created an idol. It can be anything: religion, even Christian religion, intellect, theology, money, power, fame, yourself, or another person. You vindicate yourself, you honor yourself, your dignity is foremost, and your pride consumes you. When you stand face to face with one who is righteous in Christ, you speak nothing but lies to save yourself. You shift the blame, you change the subject. For though many things may relate to the issue of your heart, you do not focus on the issue of your heart. Repent and pray so that you may be saved from the road to destruction. Remember the person of Christ who laid down His life for you while you were yet sinners.

3. Whatever your answer may be, you are deceived. Whether intentionally or unintentionally, there is the possibility that you are deceived. You may deceive yourself, or another may deceive you. For this reason, truth cannot be seen though it may be made plain to you. Your mind is clouded with doubts and deep inside you are uneasy. Christianity becomes full of contradictions and controversy. Doctrine is twisted to fit the qualifications you think are required. You are a contradiction, you are compromised. Do not hide but come forth for council. Talk to pastors and elders. If you confide in a few people around you who are of similar maturity, intellect and understanding, it is like children talking to children about astrophysics. Seek council and do not rest on simply one person’s opinion. You will have to confess sin and repent. Look forward to clarity of faith, assurance of salvation, and freedom.

LISTEN UP MEN!

2009-11-12T00:24:00.002-05:00

I LOVE THIS MESSAGE.

2009-11-08T00:06:00.002-05:00

THIS IS SO RICH.

His Great Love For Us

2009-10-06T17:19:00.007-04:00

Jesus said to me, “Joseph, do you love me more than these?”
I said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.”
And He said to me, “Feed my lambs.”

He said to me a second time, “Joseph, do you love me?”
I said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.”
He said to me, “Tend my sheep.”

He said to me the third time, “Joseph, do you love me?”
I was grieved because He said to me a the third time, “Do you love me?” and I said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.”

Jesus said to me, “Feed my sheep. Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.”

As I write this, I am weeping. I am weeping for I recognize His great love for me. I want you all to recognize that Christ paid much to high a cost for us to remain as we are. In confessing that Christ has died for us and believing that He has raised from the dead, He leaves no room at all, none at all, for us to be anything less that completely and utterly humbled, broken, contrite, repentant before Him. He leaves us no room to live our lives as we have been living before. He leaves us no room but to simply come in complete obedience and surrender.

The tears continue to flow in reverence and awe. By no means is His great love restricted to simply my emotions. My body, my heart, my mind, my soul, and my spirit, my whole being is engaged and being transformed by the Truth of the Gospel. But how gracious is He to not only give understanding in logic but also embrace us in our humanity, for He is the Living God.

I am blessed. We are all blessed. But when we see “good” things happening in our lives, we know even more clearly of certain blessings. However, my eyes are not veiled and I will not be led astray in believing I am blessed because of the “good” that I see. I know I will not be led astray for Christ is the Good Shepherd who leads us by green pastures and streams of water. His rod and His staff, they comfort me. For I know that my eyes are set on things above where Christ is seated. For I know my place is in eternity. Why I want to focus of His great love for us is because it is the crux of the Gospel, it is the center of it all. Him and His love for us is everything and everything else comes forth from this.

I urge you to meditate once again upon His great love for us. For we are utterly fallen and wretched and are objects of wrath, deserving of something worse than nothing, something far worse the eternal damnation in Hell’s fiery fires. We are deserving of being eternally separated from God. In this world, we see Him in creation and in daily life. Although we may not have a relationship with him, we can experience, we can foretaste His glories through this life that we have. However, when we perish, if Christ's atoning blood and Spirit does not dwell within our hearts, we will receive death but even far worse, we will eternally be separated from everything that is remotely good. There will be no foretaste, not even a shadow, nothing at all that is of God. And that is true Hell. How can there be an answer? What can reconcile our blatant rebellion?

But it was because of His great love for us, Christ died for us.
Philippians 2:6-8 says “… though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

Meditate with me on His love. Who would leave all the heavenly glories, the very throne of the universe, where ten thousand angels praise and worship you unceasingly, where tens of thousands more in perfect worship, adore, and revere you in perfect unity. Where is there is no spot or blemish, where all things are in perfection and blinding with glory. Where there is no restriction or confinement of time or space, where the very glory of God shines in fullness and without abandon.

But to leave such a place and to come down and become a mere man and to endure the cross, the torture, the rejection, the pain, the shame, the abandonment! Everyone deserted Him. Not one of his sheep stood by his side. Much more, the Father turned His face away for even He could not bear to behold his beloved Son rejected, scorned by the men created in His glorious image. For there was no other way, the price of atonement for our sins not only included our sins but also the great chasm that is between us and God. That great divide which no man could reconcile! And He endured for the joy that was set before Him, the glory of being united with us.

I do not want to leave you here with simply a cloud of nice feelings. For this very Gospel compels us for a response. It does not let us remain as we are. It does not allow us to dwell in our feelings but it transforms our heart, mind, and soul.

Christ is crying out for us to come to Him! Do you not see the tears from His eyes as He sees us prostitute ourselves for things that do not satisfy? He weeps at our hearts so divided, so lost. Simply come as you are. Go to a quiet place, shut the door and fall to your knees! Not only are all things that truly satisfy in Him, He desires to lavish it over us. He is the perfect Father. He is the good Shepherd. He gives every good gift and He gives the Holy Spirit! He lays His life down for His sheep. He wants to make your body His dwelling place! He wants to dwell within you! Wait upon the Lord, cry out for Him and He will answer. He paid much to high a cost for us to remain as we are. Seek Him.

Romans 12:1-2 “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

1 John 4:19 “We love because he first loved us.”

Ephesians 2:1-10 "Made Alive in Christ"
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

09/29/09 Dr. Joon-Gon Kim

2009-09-29T10:36:00.004-04:00

It’s been over a month since I’ve been able to just sit and write my thoughts out.
There’s A LOT that I want to write about and I’m not even sure where to start. A lot of things have been going on in my life. I’ll have to try and write about all of them one by one throughout the semester. Recently, I've been just been posting up some great resources because I don't want to leave this blog alone and empty and I hope you would stir yourself as well to constantly being feed instead of only relying on Sunday services or a spiritual mentor/teacher.

Today however, I'd like to dedicate this post to an amazing man of God.

(Re-post from EACCC.com)
"Dr. Joon-Gon Kim, founder of Korea Campus Crusade for Christ, has gone home to be with the Lord on the morning of 29th September 2009. He was 85 years of age.

Dr. Kim, a visionary and a faithful man of God, has been totally committed to reaching every person in Korea (and the world) for Christ. Many have come to know him as a person who loves God and had the capacity to think big for God, and have been deeply influened by his passion for the Great Commission of the Lord Jesust Christ."

I encourage you to read "Fireseeds From Korea the the World" by Nils Witmer Becker for Dr. Joon-Gon Kim's testimony and the founding of Korea Campus Crusade for Christ.

Excerpt from the book description at Campus Crusade Mass Media
"In this moving tribute to Dr. Joon Gon Kim, leader of Korea Campus Crusade for Christ, Nils Becker writes of an extraordinary testimony of faith amidst intense tribulations.

Dr. Kim is no stranger to tragedy, having been flogged by communists who also murdered his father and wife before his very eyes. However, Dr. Kim forgave the communists and even converted them to Christ.

Dr. Kim is the first person to have started a national Campus Crusade ministry outside of the USA. He led his ministry with unshakeable faith, spearheading Christianity’s growth in Korea. This faith was strengthened through constant hardship he faced during his youth, when God miraculously brought him part trial after trial. Today, 25 percent of Koreans profess to be Christian and Korea is the second largest missionary sending nation in the world.

In this book, Nils Becker explains that revival can take place by learning how God has used the Christians in Korea. Becker, who serves in Korea, Russia, the US and the Philippines, exhorts Christians to believe God will do in their countries what Dr. Kim believed God would do in his country. Becker elaborates how four ingredients (prayer, faith, a spirit-filled life and training in evangelism) will be catalysts for a spiritual explosion that will result in worldwide church growth."

This man has truly lived and died for Christ. Christ is magnified and glorified!
Praying for the revival of Korea and the world.

Affection-Based Obedience

2009-09-24T09:10:00.006-04:00

Affection-Based Obedience Seminar @ IHOP One Thing Conference 2007
Jaeson Ma

Song "The Weight and The Glory"
Justin Rizzo

They Don't Know!

2009-09-17T15:46:00.003-04:00

Romans 10
"Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in?
And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard?
And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
And how can they preach unless they are sent?
As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"

I'm not focusing on any single nation. I believe this video is a slice of the thoughts of the world. I pray your hearts may be convicted to even just speak of Christ a little bit more in your daily conversations.

We are the salt. If the salt looses it's saltiness, it is no longer fit for anything. It is thrown away.
A lamp is not hidden under a bowl. Instead it is placed to light the whole room.
A city upon a hill cannot be hidden.
The branches that bear no fruit, the Gardener will cut and throw into the fire.
The branches that do bear fruit, the Gardener prunes so that it may be more fruitful.

On Missions and Prayer

2009-09-07T16:51:00.005-04:00

Finishing the Great Commission in our Lifetime
Steve Douglass, President of CCCi

Prayer that Changes Nations
Allen Hood, Associate Director if IHOP-KC, President of IHOP-U

Personal Instructions from Colossians 1

2009-09-04T01:54:00.008-04:00

Found some instructions for us in Colossians 1

Colossians 1:6b “All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth.”

Amen!

Colossians 1:3-6a; 9-14 “We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints— the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel that has come to you.
… For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

Only through Christ, in whom we have redemption, can we receive the knowledge of His will that comes from spiritual wisdom and understanding. And only through Christ, who has qualified us to share in His inheritance, can we live a life worthy of the Lord.

A life worthy of the Lord pleases Him in every way.
And a life that pleases Him in every way is:
1. Bearing fruit in every good work.
2. Growing in the knowledge of God.
3. Being strengthened with all power by His power.

Not simply for the purpose of pleasing God but also so that you can have:
1. Great endurance in trials.
2. Great patience in sufferings.
3. The ability to joyfully give thanks to God as you experience Him giving you the fruit, the knowledge and the strength.
4. Greater understanding of salvation by grace through faith. Nothing of yourselves qualified you but God himself qualified you.

Colossians 1:21-23 “Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.”

There was a threat of false teaching in the church of Colossae that Apostle Paul became aware of and in view of this threat, he exhorts the church through this letter.

Basically, if we lose the gospel of God’s grace through Christ, we lose the reconciliation to Christ, the redemption and salvation. It’s no gospel at all. It becomes religion. Two things from the text above to know you’re living the gospel:
1. Continuing in your faith. Faith without obedience is not faith at all for faith and obedience go hand in hand. Jesus says that wherever He is, there His servant will be also.
2. Firm and unmoving in faith. Ultimately, God is testing our hearts to see if through this life on earth, we would begin to be imitators of Christ and come to know His good and perfect and pleasing will. We are being tested and tried, taken through the fire, purified, perfected, sanctified.

Colossians 1:24-29 “Now I rejoice in what was suffered for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ's afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church. I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness— the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me.”

Apostle Paul is not saying that Christ’s afflictions on the cross was lacking in any way. He is however revealing the truth of the sufferings we share in Christ that come after Christ's ultimate sacrifice. Paul is sharing in Christ suffering and yet it is a suffering that is not directly shared with the suffering of Christ on the cross since that time had passed but it is a sharing through the Spirit. This is a suffering that we must all share in. ESV Study Bible says, "What was “lacking” in Christ's afflictions was the future suffering of all who (like Paul) will experience great affliction for the sake of the gospel"

The end to which we must labor, in struggling with all His energy and the convictions and burdens of the Holy Spirit which so powerfully works in us is this:
1. Admonish and teach everyone. As in make disciples.
2. Mature and bring maturity in Christ to everyone. As in develop in myself and others to love the Lord with all heart, mind, strength, soul and live a life worthy of Him.

Colossians 1:6b “All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth.”

The Divided Heart

2009-08-19T11:20:00.006-04:00

This entry is for all you who have been struggling with an impassionate, burnt out, and defeated life for Christ. This entry is for all you who feel over-burdened and spread too thin in your service for Christ. This entry is for all you who are walking in the dry desert, fighting a losing battle, confused, anxious, and fearful. This entry is for all you who feel your faith are on a plateau of mediocrity and redundancy. I will tell you from the beginning that it strongly has to do with a divided heart. Then what is the answer to our struggling? It is the undivided heart to Christ. Do not simply let this pass you by lightly. Open the door of your heart and let the Holy Spirit minister to you today. I guess you don’t have to read the rest of this entry if you do that. But if you want to know my thoughts about the divided heart, feel free to continue.

I’ve recently started reading “The Cost of Discipleship,” by Dietrich Bonheoffer, and in his introduction, he says something very relevant to us today.

“When the Bible speaks of following Jesus, it is proclaiming a discipleship which will liberate mankind from all man-made dogmas, from every burden and oppression, from every anxiety and torture which afflicts the conscience. If they follow Jesus, men escape from the hard yoke of their own laws, and submit to the kindly yoke of Jesus Christ. But does this mean that we ignore the seriousness of his commands? Far from it. We can only achieve perfect liberty and enjoy fellowship with Jesus when his command, his call to absolute discipleship, is appreciated in its entirety. Only the man who follows the command of Jesus single-mindedly, and unresistingly lets his yoke rest upon him, finds his burden easy, and under its gentle pressure receives the power to persevere in the right way.” – (Dietrich Bonheoffer, The Cost of Discipleship, emphasis mine)

This is his introduction to the “costly grace” of believing in Christ, “costly” because it costs nothing less than everything of your self to death and “grace” because it is only then that we experience the true life, the full joy of salvation, the full weight of His grace, the easy yoke and light burden of Christ.

We’ve been there before. The times when we simply lose the “fire.” Maybe you’ve fallen into the cycle of simply disappearing for a few days and wait for that emotional or spiritual experience to lift you back up again and simply have accepted the “rollercoaster faith” people talk about concerning the gaining and losing of the “spiritual high” of retreats and conferences. Maybe it’s occurred to you that logically, a faith based on saving grace should be more consistent but because of continuing disappointments in yourself and in others, you are struggling with the validity of your salvation and even the validity of this faith. I’m here to tell it straight that our faith should be consistent. I'm here to tell you that it can be consistent! Not withholding God’s testing and trials. I’m not saying the road is easy. I’m saying the road is straight!

It’s not simply being good at prioritizing your life or being good at managing your time well. Those kinds of self-help tips are not the answer to your busy life, or your unproductive life. They do help you, but they are not the solutions.

Matthew 12:25 “Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand…”

Jesus said this in response to people accusing him of being of the devil. His argument was that it would have been foolish and unlikely for the devil to undermine his own self. In fact, if the devil were to do that, it would be to the devil’s own ruin. It’s the same for us. When our hearts are divided against its self, it will be ruined. We will not be able to stand. When we made Christ Lord of our lives, the Holy Spirit began to dwell in our hearts. Our bodies became the temple of God. God began to reside in you. Therefore, how holy and incredible of a presence he must be in our lives! And we also know that as the Apostle Paul writes, that the flesh wages war against the spirit because everything of the flesh is contrary to the spirit and vice versa. And that is why we must sow to the spirit because we are no longer slaves to our flesh. It does not mean that we fall prey to it’s bullying. We have been made into new creations but if we continue in defeat, we are forsaking the saving grace that came from the sufferings of Christ on the cross. We are cheapening his grace.

The answer does not lie in more service, in more contribution to the Church, in more discipline, in more reading of the Bible, in any act or works. It is simply receiving God’s grace. The test of faith is receiving God’s grace. The fruit of faith is obedience. Does not Christ say himself, “Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well”? (Matthew 6:33)

We are not looking for rest in the right places. When Christ offers his comfort and rest, do you not see that he is giving us a yoke and a burden? Some Christian servants and leaders think they deserve some rest and vacation like that of the worldly sense. Do they not know that kind of rest is no rest at all? It simply stirs up the flesh and it greatens the burdens and opens an invitation to footholds for the enemy. I say this simply because we are not the stoic, super disciplined people who can remain holy and wholly focused on God. Even then, I must say is not a good case to disavow the grace that sustains us always. No, the rest Christ is giving is of a different and exceedingly better kind.

A yoke is a brace that unites two animals to pull a heavy load. When Christ says to lay down our yoke and take up his, essentially, he is joining us in pulling His burden. His burden was to die and resurrect so that we may share in death and resurrection. This resurrection was eternal which far outweighs this momentary life. The yoke that we had been pulling, firstly, we were pulling alone. Secondly, we were pulling our self-imposed laws that lead to death for no one can fulfill the law. It simply reveals our sins and righteously condemns us to death.

When Christ saved us, he did not call us to drift around lazily. He called us to take up his yoke. That's another reason to think of why Apostle Paul describes salvation as becoming "slaves" of righteousness. But the eternal resurrection of saving grace is truly a lighter burden than the law that condemns. True rest is the thing unseen, the hope for which we live. And this hope does not disappoint. True rest is not what you had thought it to be. But once realized, we see our momentary afflictions preparing us for the eternal weight of glory that is beyond all comparison. True rest comes and enables us to confess as Apostle Paul had that to live is Christ and to die is gain, and to consider all else rubbish in view of knowing Christ. This rest enables us to endure pain and suffering, sharing in Christ’s suffering as we share in his resurrection.

And then you see what happens? We can let go of many good things to take hold of the better and needed things. Our stewardship of our time and money become exemplary. When we are disciplined by the good Father, we actually benefit from it. We can live a life of passion, purpose, vision, excitement, confidence, freedom, and boldness. We become mature in Christ! Our character develops, our skills and gifts that God has given us are utilized, developed, and maximized. Our relationship with Christ blossoms and we become a light that cannot be denied. We suddenly bear many fruits of the Spirit. Because we know the grace of God so intimately, we freely give grace as well. And also in our intimacy, we are quicker to follow God's guidance and leading. Our moment by moment lives are not wasted. We experience the life of faith as did the prophets and kings of the Old Testament. We begin to dive deep into the knowledge of the Holy One. He begins to reveal the high and holy things of the Spirit and we are able to understand the gravity of the current times, the gravity of man's need for salvation. Our passions for the weak and oppressed are magnified. See as God sees, go as God goes, do as God does.

In this world, there are no super Christians. There is no elite. We are all super in Christ. We are all eligible to drink from the everlasting stream. What we've had before as a person matters not in view of the exceeding worth of his eternal salvation. No status, no gifts or talents, nothing matters when we come before the Lamb. He is worthy.

So what must we do? We must come back to the Lord, remove the idols of our hearts, repent and God will give us an undivided heart. God will give us an undivided heart. We cannot possibly gain this undivided heart by our own strength. Remember the greatest commandment, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37) Nobody can confess to uphold the law completely. This is why God’s grace is so necessary and so incredible in worth and glory.

God will give you an undivided heart as you come in metinoia, as you come in repentance. This is God’s promise as he says through Ezekiel.

Ezekiel 11:18-21 "They will return to it and remove all its vile images and detestable idols. I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God. But as for those whose hearts are devoted to their vile images and detestable idols, I will bring down on their own heads what they have done, declares the Sovereign LORD."
(Another reading to see this heart in action is the prayer of David in Psalm 86. I encourage you to go and spend some time to meditate on it.)

1 Timothy 1:5 “The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.”

I pray that God’s thoughts were revealed through my thoughts. The undivided heart allows us to love in true love. The love that comes from a pure heart, not filled with sinful desires, a good conscience, not laden with guilt, and a sincere faith, not pretentious and hypocritical. And through this love that comes from the undivided heart, you will experience the full extent of God’s love for us; his exceedingly wide and long and high and deep love for us. The abundant life that He desires to give us.

No more twists and turns, highs and lows, anxious, stressed, confused, defeated, stagnant, pretentious, hypocritical life and faith of the divided heart.