How do others know that we are followers of Jesus Christ?
By the way we love. Jesus has set us the example of love and humility. We are to love others as He has loved us. His nature is love.
It is not easy; we can’t give what we don’t have. since God is love, it is His Spirit that flows in and through us to others. We can only love others through God’s love.
Praise the Lord for sustaining us throughout another year!
Have a joyful reunion with loved ones!
According to the hymn, “And Can it Be” by Charles Wesley, we were once imprisoned, chained by sins. But Jesus Christ left His Father’s Throne above, came to die for us, the helpless race because of His loves for us.
Jesus broke the chains, and set us free. Our response? Arise and follow Him đź’•
Being a leader isn’t a popularity contest. Oftentimes, the leader has to make tough decisions by basing on the big picture and personal convictions that this decision will best benefit everyone. And a real leader can’t please everyone.
A leader without respect from those under him/her isn’t really a leader at all (by title, yes, but that’s about it).
Respect is not given; respect has to be earned. Respect is earned by living with integrity and caring for others.
At this start of the New Year, many Methodist churches will be renewing their covenant using the covenant John Wesley wrote:
“Beloved in Christ,
let us again claim for ourselves
this covenant which God has made with his people,
and take upon us the yoke of Christ.
This means that we are content
that he appoint us our place and work,
and that he himself be our reward.
Christ has many services to be done:
some are easy, others are difficult;
some bring honour, others bring reproach;
some are suitable to our natural inclinations and material interests,
others are contrary to both;
At this start of the New Year, many churches will be renewing their covenant. Ponder these words from that service—
Beloved in Christ,
let us again claim for ourselves
this covenant which God has made with his people,
and take upon us the yoke of Christ.
This means that we are content
that he appoint us our place and work,
and that he himself be our reward.
Christ has many services to be done:
some are easy, others are difficult;
some bring honour, others bring reproach;
some are suitable to our natural inclinations and material interests,
others are contrary to both;
in some we may please Christ
and please ourselves;
in others we cannot please Christ except by denying
ourselves.
Yet the power to do all these things is given to us
in Christ, who strengthens us.
Therefore let us make this covenant of God our own.
Let us give ourselves to him,
trusting in his promises and relying on his grace.”
Have a blessed 2024, dear friends!
Martin Luther (1483-1546) was known as a Reformer. What amazes me is the fiery passion he had in making hymns accessible to worshippers during his time.
To him, music is a gift of God for refreshment, healing and comforting the worshippers. Music in church is also helps us to learn about God and to celebrate His generosity and goodness.
The next time we sing in church, let us be mindful that singing and music is indeed God’s precious gift to us.
While our world is full of sufferings and tragedies, when we think about the life in Heaven with our Creator someday, we will have hope to live our daily life.
Our time on earth is but a breath (Psalm 39:4-6). There are sufferings in this world, many are deprived of their basic human needs, people living in poverty, victims of wars and natural disasters…
Christians are not exempted from such sufferings too. In fact, more than 360 million Christians are facing high levels of persecutions for their faith (https://www.opendoors.org/en-US/persecution/countries/).
As believers, we know this broken world is just temporal. God offers the beautiful gift of eternal life through His Son Jesus Christ. In the new heavens and the new earth, God will restore everything as He has intended from the beginning: sickness, sins, death, mourning, crying and sufferings will be no more (Isaiah 65:17).
The new heavens and new earth will be a glorious place. It brings the promise that God “will wipe every tear from their eyes” (Revelation 21:4).When we reflect on what is to come, we will have the hope and the strength to live for Jesus today.
Being a leader doesn’t mean we can bulldoze others’ opinions to follow our agenda. Being a leader means seeing the potential in others and help them to develop their potential while setting an example how we live our lives.
Maya Angelou’s books and quotes have been an inspiration to me. When I first look at this quote, I was deeply moved.
 “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better”
Life is a series of learning. We make decisions basing on what we feel is the best option at that time. In hindsight, we may regret certain decisions but that was what we think was the best thing to do at that moment.
It is comforting to know that when we know better, we can learn from our mistakes and make better decisions in the future.
