the Grip of Grace

so i subscribed to Judah Smith's sermons via Generation Church's website just to get a flavor of what he's preaching. turns out that he preaches uncannily similar to Pastor :)

Luke 7:14 "Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried him stood still. And He said, "Young man, I say to you, arise." 15 So he who was dead sat up and began to speak...."

Unearned, unmerited favor, he says. "Will the real grace please stand up?", he says. I wonder where he got those from. ;) seems to me that there's some sort of a revolution going on and the renewing of the minds of these ppl on what the good news really is. One thing that he said that kinda encapsulated part of my thoughts this week, and perhaps a counter-argument to those who do not believe that Grace is all we need: God's grace must be greater than the warm fuzzies that they give you when you're laying in your casket of sins under condemnation--which is what the critics of greasy grace contend with. But the grace that I have is not greasy! It grips you, and carries you. it grips you. it's a grace that grips you, not just touches you.

This sermon was on the grip of grace. The Greek for "touched" in the verse conveys a stronger, deeper meaning. It means a grip or a grab or to fasten oneself to. Grace is a grip.

And when Jesus gripped the coffin, all who were carrying the coffin, stood still. Grace provides a stillness by which we can hear the voice of God. Jesus grabbed the casket because the boy needed to hear His voice. There is a need for quietness. a time to be still and know that He is God.

and the boy sat up. Grace gives us our position back. Grace enables us to sit up.

and the boy spoke. Grace gives us our voice back.

His grace is sufficient. and His strength made perfect in my weakness. the boy had nothing to do with it!

In closing, you have an accurate picture of grace if you knowing grace makes you want to serve Him more and to sin less. If ever you find yourself thinking you know grace and wanting to sin more, you have an inaccurate picture of grace.

will the real grace please stand up. :)

let the redeemed of the Lord, say so.

was just surfing hillsong conference and came across Judah Smith. thought his message was great :) there is indeed a revolution. googled around and found that there were blogs and comments against what Judah preaches though. what's new.

somehow that got into my spirit: read about someone who disagrees with the statement that God will never ever bring sickness upon you. I mean, sure, there's sickness and all in the world but it's not from God. Sure, there were plagues caused to come upon the Israelites in the old testament, but that's God's justice in action! God's justice that was exhausted upon the body of our Lord Jesus Christ so that the punishment for our sins need not come upon us in these days. of course, i'm not slighting consequences to sin--that's another area altogether--but why don't you embrace the grace that God has so bled to give you?

And scriptural proof? I think Scripture has been consistent, read in the light of the finished work of Christ. what's good news to you? i'm not ashamed of the gospel of grace, for this grace that i have is not cheap. Jesus, He paid the price, because He loves you.

ah iono :) people with different opinions. yeah you're right bro.

and i'm entitled to mine.

just a rant.

on another note, one of Pastor Prince's sermons on Daystar is up on youtube. check it out . Grace is a Person. not a doctrine.

ah. i miss church.

hillsong conference? :)

hillsong.

back from a team meeting, and a chill-out at b-dubs. 2am. :)

talked about attending hillsong conference with someone over msn. just got me thinking if i could actually be there this summer. and if i do, will probably chap in with some friends in melbourne :)

then again, should i spend 6 weeks backpacking in south america from mid-May? that's tempting too. :)

i don't know. i miss church, and i miss pastor's preaching. sometimes, i really think his message is misunderstood by some. and so they miss out on the nuggets of gold he has for us. he's preaching during hillsong conference again.

random thoughts.

cancun in a few days :)

wait.

so i've been out-of-sorts lately, and people have noticed a lil bit, here and there. not that i did realize it myself though. i guess it's just the myriad of feelings about everything recently.

and so i switched on the tv, and joyce meyers was on. and what a message.
Don't be miserable where you're at, she says. Enjoy and embrace your place right now, she says. God promises to change us from glory to glory, bit by bit, she says. Frustration won't bring change. Discouragement and depression won't bring change. Running to other people to ask what I ought to do won't bring change. Being miserable and having a bad attitude won't make God move any faster.

Isa 40: 31 "But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength;... "

Refuse to live without joy. Refuse.

Everything in its time. all in God's time.

song, boh. :D

all the quarters, paid off :)
for a while... at least

praise.

Psalm 117
1 Praise the LORD, all you nations;
extol him, all you peoples.
2 For great is his love toward us,
and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever.
Praise the LORD.
---------------------------------------------
the recent sunday, feb 10, was the one-year anniversary for new life church. and what a great time it was. the day after cny celebrations too. thankful i made it for the 2nd service, even though i woke up late and missed the first. about a minus 30, it must be, outside. much as i would like to think otherwise, i guess reality is, ann arbor's in the thick of winter right now. (grr). wind chill's no fun.

what Pastor John talked about resonated pretty deep within me. how we fail time and again to be faithful to God, and yet...yet God remains faithful. Always. and why do we praise Him?

to remember His great love, and His enduring faithfulness to the promises He has given me.
and then, after remembering, to rejoice.
and in rejoicing, to be renewed in His presence.
and in being renewed, to reveal Christ, to all.

For when the Son of Man is lifted up, He will draw all men, to Himself.

thank You, for Your faithfulness, and for all You've done for me. and will do for me. it's just amazing :) indescribable.

and yet when i doubt, now i can look at my track record of breakthroughs that God has brought about and believe that if He did all that for me, who knows what else He can do for me in the future?

i am free.

and i pray for you to be, too. yes, specifically you.

easy riffs?

had a great time at Access. this 'bible-study'-ish thing by HMCC. :) reminded me of the Ben Gen camp i attended some years ago. haha dating and sex. good stuff :) and the whole setup reminded me of Campus ministry. even had a glimpse of someone speaking in tongues right behind me. sweet.

cny celebration dinner's a few hours ahead. had a great sleep (yea! after 2 all-nighters, baby!). woke up at about 11. spent the day surfing around and playing the guitar for a bit.

easy-to-play riffs? :) i probably should start with these. ha. i so wish i could up my game for guitar man... pretty amateur still. we'll see, though. oh, and we missed jamming last night cos' everyone was too tired. so we'll see, too. :D

stereophonics - Handbags and Gladrags. go listen. :) hope to jam to this. pulled in ted for the sax.

we'll

see.

abundant grace.

so we had a job to do. and we saw it through completion. i'd say God saw it through completion. 2 consecutive all-nighters at the dude saw the payoff of the completion of a project truly started on Wednesday. wow. :) just in time for cell group tonight as well.

ah, just as well. :)

thanks, for this. on the Amplified:

Heb13: 5 (Amplified)
"Let your character or moral disposition be free from love of money [including greed, avarice, lust, and craving for earthly possessions] and be satisfied with your present [circumstances and with what you have]; for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!]"

something better in store. i know. always.

oh. and happy cny.

enough is enough.
i say, enough.



i have better things in store.

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Now playing: Hillsong - Sing (Your Love)
via FoxyTunes

pats lose. but brady still gets mvp.

ok.

fine.

so the Patriots lose. and the Giants get the biggest upset in NFL history. (alright, i exaggerate).

we still love our Brady. :)

go Pats next season!

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Now playing: 周杰伦 - 最長的電影
via FoxyTunes

Daddy's best. :) for you

If you wanna hear something supernatural, this is it:

Supernatural Sign from Heavens

at about 3:33.
download the playlist and play it :)

Confirmed with signs and wonders.

read all about it here.


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Now playing: - jesus
via FoxyTunes

praise.

praise night was fun, last night.

thought the skits and presentations were artsy cool. and apt. we're all as guilty. yet He came down.
still.

am I doing enough?
Moses saw the back parts of God's glory. We're looking straight into the face of God's goodness.

rest.


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Now playing: Pastor Joseph Prince - Beholding Your Face
via FoxyTunes

perfection.

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Now playing: Yael Naim - Pachad
via FoxyTunes