Fall in Love

“If you love me, obey my commandments.” 

John 14:15

so on my course of reading through “Big God” written by Britt Merrick. 
I came to the chapter called “Faith Working (Noah)”. It is basically studying through Noah’s life.


Man, I was totally blown away how the lesson we can learn from his life is relevant to me today!!!
I knew how Noah’s life was and teaching I can glean from him, but, as always the Word does, I felt I was reading passage that I had never read before!


So I want to share what God taught me with you.


As we live in dark world, we need to be the light and get ready for Christ’ return.
When I say that I want to love and follow Jesus, I need to make adjustments in my life to be obedient.
For Noah, it took him 120 years of his life to build the ark. He had to make radical  adjustment!!!


I really believe that I have to make radical adjustment for God more. I need to stop surfing internet, being lazy, sleeping in....... the list can go on and on...
When I do that for God, and live for Him, God work through and in my life more.


Noah lived his life that is radically different from everyone else did. But he lived for God!!


Pastor Britt writes....
“Noah’s life was a sermon. Like Noah, we preach the gospel not just with our words but also with our actions. Actions speak louder than words. As Saint Francis of Assisi said ‘Preach the gospel at all times - if necessary, use words.”


but, the question is how do I make such a big adjustments like Noah??


here is the answer, “Fall in love with God more and more”.

“Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart.” 

(Psalm 37:4)

 God is my joy!! I know when I am on His path and spending really good time of intimate relationship with Jesus, I am so satisfied than going to Disney Sea (which I love so much yet), sleeping in and all the other earthly pleasure. 
It is about intimacy with God!!


A.W. Tozer said
“When we catch the true life of worship, then the work that flows out of it will have eternity in it.”


again, Pastor Britt writes
“The truth is that ministry should flow from intimacy.”


Oh, I want to love Jesus more and more than ever I did!!


Let this be my prayer always.

Need me???

Everyone wants to be needed.

Well, I think it so true to human being.
We long to belong to some kind of communities. 
We make friends. 
We want to be around people. 
We want to be good at a certain thing.
.
.
.
.
the list can go on and on


Now, let me ask frankly, "Why??". 
Why do you want those??


I think because so many of us likes or loves to be needed.


My friends at dorm needs me. My sister needs me. 
My friends at church, in a sense, needs me.


But, 
Does God need me???


The answer is "No".


He does not need you. He is omnipotent. He is almighty. He is all powerful. 
He can do whatever He wishes.


This can be depressing to some. This fact can be offending to some.
But we must find great joy in this truth.


It is so freeing!! It is so refreshing!!!
He loves us!!! So although in fact He does not need us, He invites us to His mission!!


Pastor Britt writes,
"Love reaches out and includes. That's what love means. God loves you, so He wants to includes you in His passions and in His mission. That's why He invites you in."

Amen! 
Oh, I find a great motivation to serve His in this fact. 
He loves me so much that even though in face He doesn't need me for His mission, He invites me to it!!


So the question is "Do I want to join the work?"


誰でも、必要とされたいと思っている。


このことは、人間に良く当てはまると思う。
私たちは、何かしらのコミュニティーに属したい。
私たちは、友達を作りたい。
私たちは、人の周りにいたい。
私たちは、何かしらの長所・特技を持ちたい。
・・・・・


これら、全てのことは何を表すか、
一番最初に言った、「必要とされたい」ということではないでしょうか？

私たちは、求められること、必要とされることが好きなのです。

実際に、私もそうです。
寮は私を必要としているし、家族も私を必要としている。
そして、友人も私を必要としているし、教会も、ある意味では、必要としている。


しかし、神はどうだろうか？　神は私を必要としているか？

答えはノーだ。


神は全能で、全てに勝る力をもっておられる。神は、ご自身が望むことを何でもなさることができる。
このことは、ある人には悲しいことかもしれない。また、ある人には不快なことかもしれない。

しかし、この真実からは喜びを引き出すべきではないか。

もしも、神が私を必要としていないなら、なぜ教会があり、なぜ奉仕があるのだろう？
それは、神が私たちを愛しているから。
パスター・ブリットは
「愛は手を差し伸べ、巻き込む。これが愛なんです。神はあなたを愛している。だから、神はご自身の情熱とミッション（使命）にあなたを巻き込みたいと思っている。だから、神は私たちを招いている。」
と書いている。


そうです！！神は私を愛していて、そしてともに働きたいと思ってくださっている。
これほどの、励ましがあるでしょうか？


残る問題は、「私たちがその働きに参加する意思があるかないか」です。

Love Is On the Move!!!

well, some of you noticed that the title is from Leeland's latest CD which was given me by my sister for my birthday. ( Isn't she cool?)

I really liked the title, "Love is on the move".
This will be the final post from CCC conference from which I have been writing these past few posts.

College life is very tough and challenging. To some, it is stumbling.
I've seen what the "College life" is like 2 years on campus. Well, what it is like, you know, drinking, trying to have girl friend, partying....etc. I do not know if it is same in other countries, but it is very sad to see many students who left their parents place and started living alone to get into those dirty things.

But, one of the biggest encouragement that God gave me was the people I met who accepted Jesus as their Savior during the time, mostly through evangelism at campus!!!
I was so blown away to see the evidence of God's power!!!

God's love is on the move!! He never stops working, it is always us who stop.
Let us expect what God has in store for us at where we are!

ＣＣＣのカンファレンスシリーズのポストの最後になります。
リーランドの最近のＣＤのタイトルは「Ｌｏｖｅ　ｉｓ　ｏｎ　ｔｈｅ　ｍｏｖｅ」です。
このタイトルで、書きたいと思います。

大学生活はとてもきつく、チャレンジでもあります。そして、悲しいことに、ある人にはつまずきにもなります。
「大学生活」というものが何か、この二年間で実際に見てきました。お酒、女の子、セックス、飲み会・・等。心を満たしてくれないもので、何かを満たそうとしていることを見ることはとても心が痛みます。
親元を離れ、大学に来て、この「普通」の大学スタイルに流され、神のもとから離れていく人も多くいます。

先のカンファレンスで神が与えてくれた大きな祝福の一つは、大学で救われた人や大学時代に救われ今でも神に仕えている人たちとの出会いでした。
彼らは、神が今も大学生の救いを願い、働かれているということの明らかな証拠です。

神の愛は決して停滞することなく、動き続けている！！！
止まってしまうのはいつも私だということ。

神に期待し続けましょう！

右はＩＣＵの学生のＫ村さん。
二年ほど前に救われたそうです。

なんと、ＣＣ宜野湾に行ったことがあるということでした！！

Father's Love

Just wanted to introduce this video.
I actually have not watched the whole movie "Most" yet, but I think this short clip illuminates the Father's Love towards us, mankind well.

Hope you'll like it.

God bless

Best present EVER!!!

"Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."

John 15:13

"For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:6-8

　It is simply amazing how God teaches me things in my daily life.
I know it has been a while since I posted last time. But, God, in His grace, is still teaching me about His great love.

I was preparing for the Bible Study which I share the Word with usually a few guys weekly. This time, as Christmas is coming soon, I decided to share some thing about Christmas.
So as I was praying, studying and preparing for the time, God totally broke through my heart.
I had known that the greatest gift of Christmas is Jesus Christ, Himself.
But, I found myself taking it for granted.

We all know that Jesus wasn't born on Dec. 25th.
We all know that this date derived from pagan event.
We all know that one old guys with white bear comes from chimney and leave some presents.

But, what is Christmas really means to us?
It is a day we remember God's goodness, especially sending His Son to us.
Somehow, the meaning has been twisted into wrong stuff.
(here in Japan many celebrate Christmas with KFC chickens)

We all look forward to Christmas day. Wait, do we all??
There are many who cannot look forward to.
Maybe they are in poverty, they are in broken home, they are suffering from disease. The list goes on and on

In the darkness, God sent His Son for His love towards us.
God sent His Son to earth, Jesus took all the pain that we would ever go through and was obedient to the death on the cross. Why? So that God can have restored relationship with us, and He might become our richness, He might become Father to the fatherless, He might become our healer.

When I learned this, my heart was overwhelmed with awe and .....what can I say..
Jesus is our only Hope!!!
His name shall be called Emanuel, God with us!!
He is with us forever!!

His Love is Supernatural!!! スーパーナチュラルな愛！

For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” . The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.

Romans 8:14-17 (NKJV)

I just finished studying Romans. God totally blessed the time of study and showed me so much.
If you never read through Romans, I highly recommend to do so. I was listening to the message of Pastor Tim Chaddick of Reality LA on this passage, which was really impacting. So I'd like to share how God spoke to me through this passage.

Chapter 8 is one of the most inspiring chapter of the Bible. ( I even once heard this joke "All the scriptures are inspired by God, but not all scriptures are inspiring as Romans 8" )

The work of the Spirit is indescribable. He enables us to call God "Abba, Father" !!!!
I was once so far from God. But, Spirit convicted me of my sins and brought into the relationship with God. Once, I was slave of sin but now child of God!!
This is supernatural awareness, awareness of where I have been adopted from, by and into.

We are to obey God. But, how do you do it? What makes and motivates you to do it?
It is Love, Supernatural Love of God.
It is the beauty of the gospel and His love that melts our hearts and makes us want to respond to the Love. So the fact that I can say that I love God, itself is supernatural.
We try to tell non-believers how great God's love is. I have hard time to understand why they can't get it. But, it is not really our work to show the love. It is work of the Spirit to help man to understand and appreciate the love and to be moved and affected by the love!!

I also found the beautiful work of Trinity there.
God's love was revealed through the incarnation, the cross and the resurrection of Jesus, the Son. And His Love is poured out into our hearts by The Spirit.
Francis Schaeffer said "If God were not the Trinity, He would not be Love."

His love is so deep and wide that I cannot fully understand this supernatural affection. But, Scripture remedies the supernatural.