school starts today

School starts today, yah!

In this incredible chilly morning, we are passing out gospel tracks from 7:30 am. Honestly, it's not a pleasant experience for the flesh. lol. "The flesh profits nothing..."(John 6:63).

I did promise the Lord to pass out gospel tracks every semester. I need Lord to help me to keep the promise. May the Lord call out His chosen ones through the gospel.

San Diego Wild Animal Park

Today we went to San Diego Wild Animal Park. I saw a lot of giraffes playing and resting. =) cute.

In particular, one of the giraffes has a hard time sitting down. Her legs are too long. She tried it couple times and she gave up. Poor giraffes. lol.

I will be back to Berkeley in 7 days. I need to be productive now. I trust everything to the Lord. He knows the plan He has for me, the plan to prosper me and not to harm me, the plan to give me hope and future. He knows and He wills.

universal studio tour

My family and I went to Universal Studios today. It was pouring. :(

It was a fun day at LA, nevertheless.

In the four hours drive back and forth, I listened to Romans Chapter 9 on my ipod again and again. I don't know why. The Lord is speaking to me.

As it's written, "For Jacob have I loved, for Esau have I hated." What can I say? Nothing. All i can do is just to praise the Lord for making me a "Jacob".

I did not look for God, yet He finds me. I did not love Him, yet He loves me.

God is God. Who I am, a mere human being, to talk back to God? Who am I to say "Oh No. You can't do that. That's not FAIR?" If God wills something to happen, who can resist His will?

Praise the Lord for showing me mercy. Prause the Lord who wills.

two questions for the new year 2008

Today, the Holy Spirit asks me two questions regarding the upcoming 2008:

Are you willing to whatever God calls you to do?

I don't want this to be a religious answer. I don't know what's going to happen. God did not layout the blueprint for me. I don't know all the details. I don't know what awaits me, but God knows. YES. I am willing. It's fun to have faith in God. I know for without faith is impossible to please You.

Do you know who you are?
Yes. I am the son of the living God. I am an heir according to the promise. Abba Father!

2006 and 2007 are two years of miracles and blessings for me. 2008 will continue to be better and better, fulle of mercy and grace. Prasie the Lord!

2007 Winter Training

I went to the last day of 2007 Winter Training at Anaheim today. I didn't plan to go but I have no rest in my spirit staying home.

Praise the Lord. This is the first time I am at the live training. There are so many precious saints.

Lord, wash us from the vain manner of life. Please guard me from stumbling and to set me before Your glory without blemish in exultation. (Jude 1:24) For You is the kingdom and power and glory forever and ever, AMEN!

home, sweet home

Yah I am home! =)

I flew back home right after finish my memorable EE20 final. I wish I can stay in Berkeley for a day or two just to enjoy some study-free time.

I am putting together my budget for fiscal year 2008. I have to cut a lot of discretionary spendings. I need to distinguish between "what I need" and "what I want". Do I really need that or do I just want it? No more impulse buying. Period!

Other than that, I can totally see that next year is going to be the best year so far. God never performs His greatest feats in my yesterdays. :-)

What is anxiety?

Here is my non-clinical definition of anxiety. Anxiety is anticipating the future in the wost possible scenario and FREAKING OUT ABOUT IT. That means you think you are a prophet, but you are a prophet of doom. You are a false prophet.

"It's gonna be bad. It's gonna be really bad. It could go this way. It could go that way. This can happen. That can happen. What if...What if..."

Anxiety is a sin to be repented for, not a condition to be managed.

Oh Lord, take all my anxieties away.

Who am I in Christ?

Who am I in Christ?

I am

A Child of God (Rom. 8:16),

Saved ny Grace through Faith (Eph. 2:8),

Redeemed from the Hand of the Foe (Psa. 107:2),

An Heir of Eternal Life (1 Joh. 5:11-12), Forgiven (Eph. 1:7),

Led by the Spirit of God (Rom. 8:14), A New Creature (2 Cor. 5:17),

Redeemed from the Curse of Law (Gal. 3:13),

Kept in Safety wherever I go (Isa. 46:4),

Strong in the Lord and in His Mighty Power (Eph. 6:10),

Living by Faith and Not by Sight (2 Cor. 5:7),

Rescued from the Dominion of Darkness (Col. 1:13),

Justified (Rom. 5:1), An Heir of God and Co-heir with Christ, (Rom. 8:17),

Blessed with Every Spiritual Blessing (Eph. 1:3),

An Overcomer by the Blood of the Lamb

and the Word of My Testimony (Rev. 12:11),

The Light of the World (Mat. 5:14), An Imitator of God (Eph. 5:1),

Healed by His Wounds (1 Pet. 2:24),

Being Transformed by Receiving of My Mind (Rom. 12:2),

Heir to the Blessings of Abraham (Gal. 3:14),

Doing All Things through Christ who Gives me Strength (Phil. 4:13),

More than a Couqueror (Roman 8:37).

Amen.

Front House Brothers Spider Hunt

Dumb college students try to kill a poor spider at night and find it amusing :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PSUKHGxmZY

report of a defective product

I don't know if you noticed that a lot of a alarm clocks stop working in the winter. lol...

So many people bought two or three alarm clock and set them up before sleep, hoping at least one of them works.

God's faithfullness

God's faithfulness does NOT fail. When Jeremiah viewed the destruction of Jerusalem, instead of of questioning God's faithfulness, Jeremiah reaffirmed it: "Great is Your faithfulness!"

My experience is that never judge God's faithfulness on the bases of what you see, or how you feel, because His promises DO NOT fail.

O Lord, I rejoice all day long in your wonderful faithfulness. I exalted in Your righteousness. You are my glorious strength. My power is based on Your favors. Amen.

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.