the mysteries and beauties of faith

Here is my conversation with a dear brother Andrew Lamuda concering Philippians 4:15 during Christians On Campus bible study from yesterday:

I am able to do all things in Him who empowers me. -Philippians 4:15


Andrew Lamuda: "Hey, Richard! What does verse 15 mean?"

Me: "It means I am able to do all things in God who empowers me."

Andrew Lamuda: "What does "all things" mean? What if you don't study and take the final, can you still get a A?"

Me: "Yes, if you have faith."

Andrew Lamuda: "How can I have faith? You can't just go around and tell everybody to have faith. The question is how. What should I do to have faith?"

Me: ...


Here is my late response:

Faith is He is, I am not; He have, I have not; He can, I cannot. Faith is mysterious. There is no textbook to teach you how to have faith in God. This is not a chem lab. It's not like step 1, step 2, ..., step n, yah, then we have the result. Our God is more mysterious than that.

Reading and praying over the Scriptures is a good start. That alone can't make you have more faith. You need to experience the Triune God by faith.

As it's written, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart; lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him; and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6

I can testify that above verse is my experience.

The first beauty of the faith is that there is always uncertainties. When I offer my prayers, even though I "know" God heard my prayers and He is interceding for me, I sometimes "feel" like there is still chance that it's not gonna be done. More and more I realized that when I pray, I need to consider it already done. That saves me lot of trouble.

The second beauty of of the faith is that God will answer my prayers better than what I asked. The result is ALWAYS better than what I wanted in the first place. God's way is much much higher than my own foolish way. Faith is knowing that God will always give you something better than what you pray for. It may not be what you asked but it will help you in the way you most need it.

Luke 18 records an amazing story. A widow asked an unrighteous judge again and again to avenge of her opponent. In the beginning the unrighteous judge didn't want to, but he eventually helped the widow.

Brother and sisters, even an unrighteous judge helped the widow, WHAT ABOUT OUR RIGHTEOUS GOD? "And will not God by all means carry out the avenging of His chosen ones, who cry to Him day and night, though He is long-suffering over them?"

O Lord Jesus. Thank you this is my experience for the last three years. I ask, then I receive; I seek, then I find; I knock, then it's opened. I have faith in my God.

Let's say you have a son. He asks you for a piece of bread. Will you give him a stone? He asks you for a fish. Will you give him a serpent?

As it's written, "If you then being the evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in the heavens give good things to those who ask Him!"

If we pray day and night and ask our Father, how much more will the Father give us? The Lord covers me for saying this. If you pray and you don't have faith, and you are still doubting, are you practically saying our God is less righteous than the unrighteous judge? This is a very serious issue. Hope we can all see this. May the Lord have mercy on us.

Praise the Lord and You gave me faith. I can boast this in Your sacred name. Amen.

A classic question: what does a engineer do?

This is "Dilbert" from last Sunday Paper Comic Section :

Title: Career Day
Place: high school classroom

Teacher: "Class, today Dilbert will tell us what a career in engineering is all about."

Dilbert: "My job involves explaining things to idiots. Then the idiots make decisions based on misinterpreting what I said. Then it is my job to try to fix the massive problems caused by the bad decisions. Eventually, rumors overwhelm facts, and I give up. In the final phase, I assign blame to an unpopular coworker. So whatever you do if life, don't be unpopular."

Teacher: "Don't listen to him!"

Dilbert: "Said the unpopular teacher."



Witty comic. Whatever. This morning, I walked out in the middle of EE20 lab. Tedious material. Nerdy students. I couldn't take that anymore.

I then went to Doe Library Main Stack. I sat there, took out my iPod and started listening to my favor hymns. All the depressions were gone. It's a bright new day again. Praise the Lord.

the seed and the dirt

My spirit was regenerated with THE SPIRIT. My divine life was born when I was saved. Christ is like a small mustard seed sown into my heart. :)

Sometimes when I am in some situations, it seems that God's presence is so small in comparison to what I am facing. I can easily let that overwhelms me. Like "Man, this is never gonna get any better. This is never gonna change." But when I stay in faith, keep believing, something amazing always happens. That little seed is going to take root in my heart and it begins to grow.

Think about an ordinary seed. When you plants it on the ground, the dirt on the top of it is 100 times more strong and more powerful than that little seed. It seems like the seed has no way to push the dirt out of the way.

God Himself and the His promise are like the seed. All the situations and trials are like the dirt.

I can imagine that the dirt says to the little seed. "I am gonna never let you go. You are just tiny little nothing compare to me and you are never gonna get out. "

I also can see the seed smiles and says "listen, Mr. Dirt, no matter what you said, I have the life of Almighty God in me. One day, I am coming out."

That infuriates Mr. Dirt. He says "what are you talking about? You don't have a chance. I am 100 times more powerful than you."

The seed just ignores him, goes around saying "I am coming up! I am coming up! I am coming up!"

Sure enough, one day the seed bursts open. The life of Almighty God empowers the seed to push the dirt right out of the way. Eventually the seeds breaks through the surface of the earth. It looks back and says "I told you I was coming out. God breathes His life into me." :)

As it's written in Act 19:20, "Thus, the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed." Amen.

In nothing be anxious

In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. - Philippians 4:6

In how many things should I be anxious?
couple things?
three things?
two things?
Oh, come on. At least one thing, right?
NO.
In ZERO thing. In nothings. I should be anxious in nothing.

Oh, the Scriptures is profound. It may take my whole life to comprehend this. How can I be anxious in nothing?

I finally got the hang of this verse from my several dramatic experiences.

Even though I have seen God's miracles and His mighty powers, I am still always anxious over something I shouldn't be anxious about.

Anyway, our emotions are unstable, but God's promises are eternal. Christ is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. He fed people in the wilderness the first time. Then He fed people in the wilderness the second time. While people were still doubting, He was always feeding. His mercy never changes.

O Lord. Have mercy on me and may this verse be my experience. :]

problem with US education

One problem with US education is that it tends to prepare the student to be a employee rather than a employer, a job taker rather than a job creator, a manager rather than an entrepreneur.

To be a job creator you have to be a leader. You have to be able to defy conventions and pursue new ideas aggressively.

Sadly, the education system today produces too many employees. Fortunately, more and more people realize that they need to have some exposure to management, finance, and other business field.

Remember, in the business world, people will ask for your financial statements, not your college GPA.

Thanksgiving day

Thanksgiving is most important holiday for me. It's always good to take one day off and be thankful for what the Lord has done.

I am thankful for Lord's sovereign care for in my works, my studies, and my family.

I am thankful that the Lord pays me college tuition, puts food on my table, and arranges a place for me to live.

Most importantly, I am thankful for an event that happened sometimes in 1997. A brother named Luke Ku knocked on my parents' door in San Diego and preached the gospel to my parents. As the result, my parents received the Lord and brother Ku shepherded my parents into church life. Right before thanksgiving in 2001, the Lord sovereignly brought me to United States. Oh, yeah, it's exactly six years ago. The Lord's mercy touched me and I got saved shortly after.

Praise the Lord! I once was blind but now I see. I once was starved but now I eat. I once was your enemy but now I am your child. You saved my parents and you saved me.

Would I still be saved if brother Ku didn't knock my parents' door in 1997? It is a good question to consider. I don't know. I don't want to imagine where would I be without the Lord. What if brother Ku is shy to knock people's door? What if Brother Ku has something else to do on that night? What if...? The fact is that the Lord arranged every detail so that He would gain His chosen people. If Brother Ku did not knocked the door in 1997, I may not be here at the Church in Berkeley. I may not enjoy all the riches the Lord has for me. I am thankful for Lord's sovereign arrangement in every detail of my life.

In 1950, Watchman Nee was going to return to mainland China to suffer with the saints. Witness Lee wanted to go with him, ready to be martyred. However, Watchman Nee directed Witness Lee to leave the mainland and go to Taiwan to continue the work of Lord's recovery. Watchman Nee's decision of sending Witness Lee to Taiwan preserved Lord's recovery. Had Watchman Nee allowed Witness Lee to return to mainland, the Lord's recovery work on the earth would be seriously delayed. There will be no local churches in United States. There would be no Church in Berkeley. The saints would probably never meet each other in their whole lives.

I am thankful for Your churches.

O Lord. Thank You for Your sovereign arrangements. The next year is always the best year of my life. The best has yet to come. Your will be done.

character

Yesterday I finished reading one of the pre-training books named "Character" by Witness Lee. He convinced me the importance of the character. Without a proper character, I cannot be useful to the Lord.

I realize that the sufferings I went through three years ago were absolutely necessary. The most important reason is that the Lord wants to gain me through the trials. The other reason is for the development of my character. The Lord wants to make me humble, accommodating, enduring, patient, senstive, and considerate. So I can be useful for his purpose in a very special way.

Lord, your thoughts are higher than our thoughts and your ways are better than our ways.

email scam

Everyday I opened my email there are always one or two scam emails. One email says that I won a internet lottery of one million dollars. One say that he is dying and he need some one to give his money to. He choses me. This is great.

They always ask me to pay some money first. Hey, remember, I have one million dollors over there at your place. Why don't you take 100 grands and pay all the fees for me? Keep the change as tip.

For those professional con artists out there: Get a life. Come up with something creative. Oh, I forgot, please donate my 1 million dollor to Red Cross, okay?

a desperate need of recovery

Tonight was only night in this semester that I had nothing to do. No homework due and no midtern to study for. So I was reading the latest Time magazine at the student center. I came cross the cover story "One Day in America". The following is the excerpt:

The vast majority of Americans believe in God, and more than 90% own a Bible, but only half can name a single Gospel, and 10% think Joan of Arc was Noah's wife. So what's the average state of our eternal souls?

Joan of Arc is Noah's wife? You gotta be kidding me. It was so ridiculous that I showed to Paul Daubemmire, who was sitting right next to me. O Lord Jesus. There is a desperate need of recovery. A recovery back to the words of God.


This aftertoon as I was walking out of Evans Hall, a girl approched me and asked me if I want to join a bible study. I inquired about the details of the bible study. She told me that they are studying Romans and they are on Chapter 6. She was there also.

I asked her to share something that impressed her or something she enjoyed from Romans 1 to 6. She hesitated and had no reponse. I pulled out my bible and turned to Romans and handed it to her, hoping she would rememeber something. To my suprise that she wouldn't explain any of the verse. At the end, I shared something I enjoy in Romans to her.

After all, she is a genuine believer. I appreciate her coming out and recruiting strangers to her bible study. I prayed for her. My concern is that so many Christians today are deprived of the basic knowledge of the truth. They are deprived from the enjoyment of the words of God. Bible is the best gift from God to man. There is a desperate need to get in the bible, the word of life.

I am so happy that I am with a group of brothers and sisters that desire one thing only, Christ Himself. We have the same mind. We pursue the Lord together as a body. We run the race together. This is so glorious.

I was so fortunate to see this heavenly vision. I thank the Lord for his mercy on me.

Classes from Haas Business School

In Telebears phase I, as I browsed all the classes offered by Haas, I found out that there are four of the special topics classes:

UGBA 137 "Investment Management"
UGBA 167 "Sales, Persuasion, and Influence"
UGBA 167 "Hispanic Marketing"
UGBA 196 "Entrepreneurship to Address Global Poverty"

"Investment Management" and "Sales, Persuasion, and Influence" are full. Their waiting lists are full also. I was thinking "Wow, the business classes really fill up quickly."

However, there are only one or two enrollments at "Hispanic Marketing" and "Entrepreneurship to Address Global Poverty".

It's very obvious why people don't want to take the last two classes. I just feel sorry for those people. I also feel sorry for myself.

If I were the Haas dean, I would make some small changes to the course titles. I would change "Hispanic Marketing" to "Multi-Perspective Marketing for the Growing Population". I would also change "Entrepreneurship to Address Global Poverty" to "Entrepreneurship to Participate in Global Economy".

The contents stay exactly the same. Only the titles are changed. Ha, then I bet the cal students will sign up the last two classes enthusiastically.

P.S. I am on the waiting list of UGBA 137 "Investment Management". There are still a lot of spots in UGBA 167 "Multi-Perspective Marketing for the Growing Population" if you intereted in business. lol...

the emotion, the mind, and the miracles

In Larry & Sophia's reception today, brother Gary shared that it's difficult for the Lord to open the emotions of the sisters. That's true. Sisters are relatively more emotional. However, the brothers are not better, especially with the mind. In the last couple weeks I was so anxious over something that's totally unreasonable and hypothetical. Sometimes the only way to get rid of one hypothetical problem is until another hypothetical problem comes up. In the same time, I know that the Lord will take care of me in whatever situations(and He always did), but it seems like the hypothetical problems can never get off my mind.

Sometimes the Lord gives me something good. I always have a tendency to figure out how can I maintain this good thing without the Lord. Like I will plan that if this happens, I will do this this this. If this happens, I will do this this this. Actually this is the foolishness of me. I don't have plan out every solution to every POTENTIAL problems. The Lord is always with me and I KNOW it.

Three years ago I was in the toughest situation because of something I have little control. I was totally hopeless. I was mad at God and I questioned my faith. However, I never cease to pray and praise the Almighty God. I prayed to the Lord that if you can save me out of this I will consecrate myself to you completely. The Lord is faithful. Here I am, everything turns out to be alright.

In the last three years I experienced two amazing miracles in my life. Please do ask me what they are. If I am telling you right now you are not going to believe me. For now, the miracles are just between me and the Lord. I want to testify these two miracles to the saints but the Lord told me that this is not the good time. He wants me to wait couple years. Nevertheless, one thing is sure. The Lord works in a mysterious ways that surpasses my understanding. All I can do is marvel at His glory and wonders.

Like the old Testament fellow brother Job, the Lord struck me down. Only when the situation is completely hopeless, the Lord had the chance to show His power and restored He took from me. Even my mom told me that "This has to be the hand of God." Hallelujah!

Honestly speaking, Lord, the part where you struck me down, is not a pleasant experience. It's the most horrible experience I ever felt. All You are trying to do is to show me one lesson. "Have faithful in Me and trust Me. Know that I am the Lord." It's TRUE. I have faith in you and everything turns out to be fine.

Lord, I learned the lesson. I really learned the lesson now. Amen. Amen. Amen. I wish I will never experience those kind of trials again. Please have mercy on me. Do not lead me into temptation and deliver me from the evil, Lord. I will follow You the rest of my life. My cal education, my career, my family, and my future, I trust them all to You. You are Wonderful, Lord.

first post

Hi! This is my first blog post. The last time I wrote a diary is little less than six years ago. Back then I kept my habit of writing dairies everyday diligently. I did it about one year. For some reason I dropped this habit and never wrote a dairy again in six years. It contains the my deepest thoughts regarding the world around me.

As I go throught my old diaries, it revives my memory. I laugh about the silly stuffs that happend to me. Most inportantly, I am ashamed to find out that I spent that period of time in envy, critisizing everything and everybody around me.

I changed. I thank the Lord for transforming me in the last six years. Thank you Lord Jesus to capture me completely. Because of Him, I have peace in the time of chaos, hope in the time of despair, joy in the time of suffering, and confidence in the time of doubt. I journey with Him. I talk to Him and trust in Him. I don't know what awaits me ahead, but I know the best part of my life is yet to come. The Lord told me that "Tomorrow is always your best day." Amen.

By the way, today is Larry and Sophia's wedding reception at Berkeley. They are so cute. May God richly bless this new couple. He never forsakes His people.