Glory Glory Hallelujah!

A little over a year ago, I was baptized at what is now my home church and shared my testimony with my brothers and sisters. My baptism was right before finals week so my testimony was a little rushed and I wasn't properly prepared to go up to the pulpit, but it was a tremendous blessing for me to see where God had brought me.

So fast forward to today. The weird thing about testimonies is that they are constantly growing. This is because God is constantly working in our lives. So I wanted to make a little annual tradition for myself to reflect and build upon my living testimony before a living God.

I remember that when I was first trying to write my testimony, I couldn't pinpoint the single event that brought me to Christ. I didn't see the flashing lights that Saul saw, and I took this as a sign that my own testimony was "nothing special". But one day, after men's discipleship, I was in James Chung's STI (r.i.p.) and talking to him about my testimony and I shared the same concern with him, that I couldn't pinpoint what brought me to Christ. His response was just to laugh a little bit and say "it was God!"

"It was God"

I was looking for some amazing story of a life/death situation to validate that my knowing Christ is a miracle. I wanted some moving story about how I beat smallpox and saved people from a burning building. But I failed to see the true miracle, that Christ took an incredibly hardened heart and an immature mind and broke them apart with His glory. It was ALL God.

What I realized is missing from my previous testimony is repentance. God showed me His glory. He showed me the good news. He showed me grace. But I never brought my sins before Him to be judged. I never brought my pride before Him to be crushed. I never asked Him to completely wipe my slate clean so that I could be reformed in the image of His perfect son.

Which brings me to where I am today. I've heard that God has to be the #1 priority in our lives over and over again. That everything has to be for building His Kingdom on earth. But today, I broke down in prayer and admitted that I have no idea what that means. I've seen examples through Christ, the disciples, Paul, etc. but I can't see how that fits into my life. I need Him to change my heart once and for all so that I can pick up my cross and follow Him.

I never imagined how hard it is to be a Christian. I stumble constantly and I am positive that I make others stumble as well. But what I do know is that our God, the one who brought me to hear His voice, can change my heart because "He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ". LORD, help me trust in You.

Let's all praise God together.

In closing...

1:27:58 AM me: that always helps me set things straight
1:28:07 AM me: "Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus"
-Phillipians 3:13-14
1:28:24 AM highs0cieties: sick verse

sick indeed

No, You Are Wrong

Here's something I hear a lot. 

"Dude I'm going to get an iPhone because I need it."

Now I don't have any problem with people that say they got a crackberry or iPhone simply because they want one. That's totally fine. If there's a toy out there you want, save up some money and go out there and get it (or ask mom and dad to get it for you). But there's this strange way people like to justify their purchases by turning something they want into something they need.

Especially for people in school, where does the need for an iPhone come in? Are you taking 4 classes so your schedule is going to be CRAZY??? Do you need to make sure you can respond to your facebook wall posts while walking to class? Do you need to update your twitter so everyone knows "how stoked you are to go out with the gurlz tonite?" 

And for the young professionals out there, you sit in front or in the vicinity of the computer for a good chunk of the day yet you need a separate device for e-mail? I can understand if you are in a field where you must be on call 24 hrs a day, then it is necessary to have access to e-mail at all times of the day. But if your day ends when you leave the office,  then your attachment to e-mail should end too. And besides, how often do you use those things for something work related? (FYI: Going on BBM != work related)

Smart phones are fun, convenient,  etc. but do not try to justify spending ~70-100/month by saying you need one because chances are you don't . The people who need them will get the plan subsidized by their employer and everyone else can enjoy using it to download the lightsaber app. pew pew.

If you want one, just say you want one because the moment the word need passes through your lips, you make yourself look a little bit douchier. 

With that said, I want an iPhone for no damn reason.