Momentum.

Psalm 84

4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house;
they are ever praising you.
Selah

5 Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.

6 As they pass through the Valley of Baca,
they make it a place of springs;
the autumn rains also cover it with pools. 

7 They go from strength to strength,
till each appears before God in Zion.

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blown away by John Siebeling's sermon last night at the Dreamcenter. Thursday night's guest speaker exceeded expectations, and i heard so clearly. 

Momentum. forward motion. living a life of momentum. 

People living without momentum are allowing a moment in the past to define their moments in the future. dwell on that for a little bit. We can't live life looking backwards. and the part that blew me away was this: the moment in the past need not be a moment of failure, and of shame. it could very well be a moment of glory. a moment of celebration. wow. reliving that glory moment and allowing that moment to define your future moments. Are you stuck in a moment from your past?

Pilgrimage. A journey to a significant place. Verses 4 and 5 tell us that someone who is reaching for significance will be blessed. reaching for that something significant, that something greater than the self, and not having your eyes on the glory days or on your shameful past. 

Pastor John then goes on to talk about how the first 2 tracks of U2's All That You Can't Leave Behind paints the pictures of both opportunities and getting stuck in you past and puts them side by side. Track 1's Beautiful Day, which speaks of the moments of opportunity while right after that, Track 2's Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of  talks about the moments in our past we get stuck in. And the icon for that song in the album? it's a dot with four arrows pointing inwards toward that dot. Stuck in a moment you can't get out of. Stuck, and so void of straining toward the glorious future that God has for us. 

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So how do we get unstuck? Pastor John says we have to learn to be good forgetters--and to develop the gift of forgetting. moving on. 

The bible tells us to accept responsibility to forget. Oftentimes people have victim mentalities--he/she did this to me; i wouldn't be able to forgive her etc.  and so spiral into a situation where they get stuck in these past moments. But Psalm 84 says:

6 As they pass through the Valley of Baca,
they make it a place of springs;...

Even though God's people were passing through the valley (low point in your life) of Baca ("weeping"), they make it a place of springs... they make it a place of springs! (of refreshing!). They make it. Their attitude toward these seemingly unfair moments? they accept the responsibility to forget. and they make it.

1) Being a good forgetter means being a good forgiver.

There is no way to move forward without forgiving. Proverbs 18:19 says that "an offended brother is more unyielding than a fortified city." 

2) Being a good forgetter also means trusting God. 

Romans 8:28And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Forgetting means trusting God with all my stuff, all the baggage, the good the bad and the ugly, and trust that He works all that for the good of the believer. 

To relive the past is to relinquish the future. Just the decision to look forward into the future can release the healing power that you need for your situation. Stop, turn around, and dare to face it. 

Paul tells us in Phil 3:13- "Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,..." It seems as if Paul's actually telling us to do two things. but it really is one thing. Forgetting your past, you strain toward the future. To strain toward the future, you have to forget your past. 

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Verse 7 of this psalm goes on to tell us that the believer will "go from strength to strength,

till each appears before God in Zion." Reminded me of the verse that tells us that we will grow from glory to glory just as long as we keep our eyes on our prize, the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Strength to strength, as we let go of our past and reach for our future. 

Wow. 

and earlier that week, i was listening to Hillsong's Blessed--a song based on Psalm 84. I was like -- this message is for me. 

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In awe. 

Hillsong - Blessed

Hillsong London - You are Here

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The same power that conquered the grave
Lives in me, Lives in me
Your love that rescued the earth
Lives in me, lives in me

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it suddenly got colder in LA. almost cramped up both calves during soccer yesterday.

back from dinner at New Capital--a new found restaurant at San Gabriel. good food. and cheap dim sum in the day. ha. 

the past wk had been awesome, and every day has been so memorable. i'd hate to leave. :) eagerly awaiting Press Play's album release on May 19 though--their songs have blessed me so much. Dreamcenter's an awesome place to be. it truly is a church that never sleeps. and a church that gives so much of God's love to community. it's crazy revival. 

God is moving.

peace.

John 14:27
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

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Coffey Anderson - Call On The Name

loving the rap =)

take the shackles off.

back.

back in Los Angeles.

couple weird dreams last night though. twisted. still shrugging off a bit of jetlag.

many thoughts this winter break, i really should have them written down cos it's so easy to forget. it's amazing how unbelievable vulnerable we all are though, how the enemy so easily uses our past to remind us of failure, and to inject worry too, and feelings of inferiority. but no, i'm not turning back. not when the prize in front of us is that good. there is something better, always.

"...Se Deus é por nós, quem será contra nós?"

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another song to share, I love this one by Coffey Anderson. take a careful listen to the lyrics. enjoy. : )

Coffey Anderson - All Ye (Remix)

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humble thyself in the sight of the Lord
say All Ye come in one mind and one accord

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winding down

currently online @ Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil:

1 night @ Cabo Frio, 1 night @ Buzios, 2 nights @ Arraial and 22 hours on a leito later, we find ourselves at the Foz do Iguaçu, bigger than any i´ve seen so far. yes, it completely pwns Niagara. ha.

the Argentine side of the falls proved to be spectacular. a multi-sensory experience. unbelievable. a whole day hike was followed by a great time having dinner (and beer, afterwards) with Johanes and Alejandro, fellow traveling backpackers.

a 16 hour bus ride to Sao Paulo awaits after a trip down to the Brazil side of the falls.

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diving at Arraial exceeded expectations, especially at crappy vis conditions. about 10-ish turtles in total, couple moray eels and a sea snake was about what we could see. but still nice :) diving capital of Brazil, apparently.

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wow. and it´s back to LA pretty quick. hm.

Cristo Redentor

currently online @ buzios:

4 rough nights @ elmisti for the new year, revellion 2009 @ copacabana, the Cristo, santa teresa and having been caught in a thunderstorm on top of the sugar-loaf, there´s so much to be thankful for. :) grace overcomes all.

2 nights at arriaral du cabo and then it´s off on a leito to the Foz de Iguaçu for another 2 nights, booking accommodation on the fly. tons of fun. :)

the brazilians must be the happiest people in the world. great hospitality at the Botequim de Baiano last evening too. so much grace and favor.

looking forward to a week long of adventure and beach, and then it´s back to hard-nosed los angeles for one final semester.

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Your love O Lord, reaches to the heavens

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Matthew 17:2

There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light.

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