Justin Kim

The Inner Life

There are certain times when we all have a lot of trouble understanding and dealing with the very deep conflicting, confusing, powerful... sometimes warring dynamic impulses and feelings that just roll through our heart.  And we feel helpless and we don't know how we got feeling like that but we know that there's something deeply wrong with it and we don't know what to do about it.  The Book of Proverbs speaks to our inner life, as not only being complex and hard to understand, but that it should be a priority to us. 

Proverbs 18:14 tells us that the human inner-being or what we would call today, "emotional energy" or "passion for life" ... that which propels us into life and that which makes us want life, to navigate and to deal with life... is important.  A crushed spirit is to look out at life and have no desire for it, to have little or no joy in it, have no passion to get out there and to deal with it.  There are differing degrees to a crushed spirit.  It could be anywhere from listlessness to restlessness, to discouragement to despondency, to being very, very down-cast to being filled with depression with no desire to live at all. 

People get down because their favorite team loses.  People get affected because of the weather (here in Seattle, we call it, SAD... "Seasonal Affective Disorder").  Others are absolutely crushed because someone they love has passed away.  But whatever the cause, people have a crushed spirit at times.  Proverbs 18:14 says that there is nothing more important than maintaining one's inner-life.  A broken body can be sustained with difficulty by a strong spirit.  But a crushed or broken spirit can never be sustained or carried by the strongest body of all.  

We have a Savior who had a crushed spirit and a broken body... on the Tree, He died and received the full wrath of God so that we who deserve the crushing and the breaking... could someday be renewed and be healthy emotionally and one day receive a new and glorified body!  Now to the degree one lets that melt his or her heart and to the degree that one sees what He has done for him or her... to that degree one will rejoice and experience what someone said, "Joy beyond the walls of the world!" 

Use the gospel on your hearts and minds and your emotions... remind yourselves of what He has done for you every single day.  Be saturated in His grace and let His Holy Spirit change you from the inside out. 

Sadskins!

I haven't blogged in a long time and I want to start again.  I'm preparing for tomorrow's worship service but my brain is feeling fried.  I'm tired and I need a break... so I'll blog a little bit about my Redskins. 

I don't know what's going on with my Skins but they've got to start playing better. I don't think it's Jim Zorn.  I think he's a young coach, but he's 10-12 in two years as a head football coach and his record isn't that bad.  I think the players need to execute the plays better.  And I do think Vinny Cerrato has to go.  Daniel Snyder needs to hire a better GM who will draft players that fit the system.  Snyder also needs to be patient... 6 coaches in ten years is not good.  No stability.  Longevity is good for pastors in ministry and for the churches... but I think it's also good for football teams and their coaches.  The longer the coach is there, the teams seem to do better and the reason is probably because the team starts catching onto what the coach is trying to do.  Just give Zorn some time and allow him to make a few mistakes... let's groom him and commit to him for the long haul.  That's what I say. 

My Redskins have become the Sadskins.  But hopefully, they'll turn this season around and will play better down the stretch. 

Was a Redskins fan', still is a Redskins' fan, and will be a Redskins' fan for as long as I live. 

Jesus Wept!

“Jesus wept.”   What a powerful verse!  Just two words... probably the shortest verse in the Bible and yet, it must be one of the most powerful.  To conceive that God could and would weep for people is hard to fathom.  And if I understand this correctly, this isn’t just crying or sobbing or whimpering.  The word here is “wept.”  Wept is a past tense of the word, “to weep” and weeping is wailing and sobbing and whimpering and crying all put into one and it’s done uncontrollably. 

Lazarus has died.  Jesus sees Martha and Mary and others weeping, verse 33 says that “he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled.”  What does this verse mean and what does it tell us about Jesus?  Plenty!  Jesus, the Son of God, who came into the world is emotional.  He has a heart!  And He is moved by humanity and it’s need for Him.  He cares!  He cares for people like Lazarus, for Martha, and for Mary and because He cares, He wept.  Verse 5, earlier in chapter 11, the text makes clear that Jesus loved Martha, Mary and Lazarus.  And Jesus wept in such a way that others who witnessed this weeping also said in verse 36, “See how he loved him!”  I have seen people die and I have seen people weep for their loved ones.  In most cases, the weeping is truly a wailing.  It is uncontrolled crying out for their loved one who has just passed.  It is sad.  And there is this sense that this should not be right... that this is not right.  Death is not right.  Jesus was not only deeply moved, but he was greatly troubled!  Why was he troubled and what does it mean for me to be “troubled?”  Can God be troubled? 

I believe he was troubled because death is not right.  He saw the hurt and the agony and the pain that death brought to them.  He saw the sting of death and it wasn’t right.  Or maybe, just possibly... seeing death, it reminded him that one day, soon enough, that day will come for him as well. 

In any case, God was moved and troubled.  He wept for people.  Do I do that much?  Am I ever deeply moved for people?  This means, do I care?  Do I love people?  Am I compassionate? 
And am I deeply troubled by the pain and hurt that I see in people’s lives and what I see in the world around me?  What am I going to do about?  It doesn’t have to be something incredibly stupendous?  It can be something small to begin and then see where that leads.  But I must do something.  Lastly, do I weep for people?  Do I care that much for people to cry for them and cry with them. 

Jesus resurrected Lazarus from the dead.  Could this be a portrait of what he would do in the future?  Jesus would die, but unlike Lazarus, he would die a criminal’s death... beaten savagely... scorned and spat upon like he was nothing but a pig.  He died a horrific death, murdered on the Cross.  But he too would rise again and defeat death.  And in this death and resurrection, we have faith and we have hope and we have life. 

No more pain?  No more tears?  We will experience that in glory if people place their hope and lives in the Great I Am. 

Baby Baby

Yesterday, my wifey and I went to the hospital to visit our dear friends who just had their second kid.  Baby Kailie is beautiful!  She came into the world weighing just 6 lbs, 7 oz.  Mother, father, and baby are all doing well.  It was fun to be in that small hospital room with 5 little ones.  Noah, Ellie, Ryan, Tabitha, and Kailie.  The nurse came in to check on the mother and she was shocked to see so many toddlers/infants in the room!  But us parents/grandparents loved it!  Yesterday, not long after we came back home from the hospital, I got a phone call from another couple at our church who was in labor.  An hour later, baby Ayane came into the world weighing just 6 lbs, 2 oz.  I hear that mother, father, and baby are doing well.  My family and I hope to visit them later today.  We know of at least three other couples in our congregation who are prego and we are so excited to see the Lord bless our peeps with children.  Children truly are a blessing despite the amount of work that goes into raising a child. 

And it seems like baby news abounds these days.  I lived in Florida for about three years.  I hear many of my dear friends in Florida just had their babies or have one in the oven getting them ready.  It's exciting news for me especially because these friends are very dear to me.  My own little sister is about to have her first in a few weeks.  That means my parents will have two grandkids and my daughter will have a cousin to play with.  Babies are amazing!  I remember reading Psalm 139 often when my wifey was prego with Tabs.  Sometimes I stare at my daughter while she's sleeping or playing and I just marvel at God's beautiful work.  She is a masterpiece!  I look at her hands and feet, her fingers and toes, her eyes when she stares back at me.  I love kissing her hair, nose, ears, lips... she definitely is a reflection of half Justin, half Virginia.  But more than anything, she is a true reflection of our God.  She's beautiful like our God.  What a huge and horrible task we have as parents to protect them, provide for them, and to lead them in the way of the Lord and yet, what incredible privilege, blessing and joy to be given the task!  Jesus said in Mark 10:14 to let the little ones come to him.  He loved children!  He told believes to be like children in the sense of having faith and trust and dependence like they do.  We need to mature and graduate from milk to solid food but in the area of faith and trust, we are encouraged to emulate our children. 

Sometimes I look at Tabitha and I can't help but smile.  She's growing so fast.  Her personality is coming out.  I think she's going to be a handful to her mother and father.  But I love every minute I have with her.  What a precious gift she is from the Lord.  There are moments when I catch myself still amazed and shocked that I'm a daddy... that I have a daughter and a beautiful wifey.  I love it! 

  

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Prayer for Grace

Grace Kim attends my church here in the Pacific Northwest.  She is a wonderful child of God.  She directs our STAR ministry, which is a ministry to the children with disabilities.  On August 19, at 12 noon Pacific Time, she will go into surgery.  Please keep her, her doctors and nurses, and her family in your prayers. 

"Dear Lord, I pray for Grace.  May you speak softly and gently into her ears of your love for her.  Remind her that you do all things well and that no matter what happens, you can be trusted.  More than anything else, Lord, I pray that you would make it known to her that she is loved by you.  She is not alone in this time in the valley.  You are there with her.  You never leave her nor forsake her.  Lord, may she fight the fight of faith and I pray for a complete healing and recovery from all that ails her physical body.  Be with the doctors and the nurses.  Give them your wisdom and your guidance as they treat Grace.  Be with the family.  Allow your peaceful presence to overwhelm them with incredible sense of comfort.  Be with Grace.  Touch her with your healing touch.  More than anything else, may she love you more then ever before. 

In Jesus' Healing Name, Amen!"

Fear

Being scared is not fun.  Some people may find a certain thrill to it and that's why they watch horror movies, but I don't like being scared.  Who in the right mind likes being scared?  Most people probably would like to be thought of as someone who is bold, courageous and fearless.  These characteristics, after all, are admired and celebrated.  To be afraid is to be a wuss.  "Don't be a wimp!" is something I often heard growing up.  I hate watching horror films because I think fear is unhealthy.  Fear is of the devil.  The only scary stuff that I like to watch either on the big screens or on the television are zombie or vampire stuff.  I think it's because they remind me something of the world... that the whole human race is like the zombies or vampires if they don't know and embrace the gospel of Jesus.  They're alive but not really.  They move but really, they're dead. 

When I was young, my parents left me home alone one night to go somewhere.  I can't remember now where they went but it was the first time I was left home alone.  My parents asked me and I said I could do it.  Actually, I think I was the one to encourage them to leave because I thought to myself, "This is going to be great!  I can watch whatever I want on the television and I can eat whatever I want from the refrigerator!"  Well, that night... a thunderstorm came through the area.  I'm talking major lightning strikes that were thunderous along with heavy down-pour.  My parents said they'd be home at a certain time but they were really late.  As the hours went by and they didn't call or come home, I got more afraid by the second.  I was a boy gripped with fear!  I was so scared that night to a point that I can still recall this experience even now after many years have passed. 

Fear is an interesting emotion.  Stephen King, the prolific writer of horror books says that fear is the most physically debilitating of human emotions.  The blood pounds, the pores gush, the heart-rate increases.  Fear is the root of everything bad.  All sadness is based on fear.  Fear is a powerful emotion and I guess that's why Stephen King writes so many horror stuff and that's the reason why I dislike fear. 

Many people have asked me since I moved out to Seattle... whether I was afraid of the big move and whether I was afraid of doing ministry far away from close family and friends.  My answers were always, "Yes!  I was deeply afraid about the big move and about doing ministry at my new church."  I remember being incredibly afraid about my move to Seattle.  I felt like everyone I was talking to was trying to discourage me, intimidate me and tell me how difficult moving to Seattle and doing ministry here was going to be.  I thought to myself that no one needed to discourage me or to make me afraid because I already was!  You see, whenever I think about my ministry, I get incredibly fearful.  I think to myself, "Can God really use me?"  I know that I have to be more prayerful, more disciplined, be more on target with my sermons.  I know myself and I am lazy and undisciplined... I lack wisdom.  Those who knew about us moving to Seattle also knew how insecure I felt and how much fear I had in making such a big move and also doing ministry in the Northwest.  But here's the thing... the thought that came to me over and over again was ... it’s not about me.  It should be about Him.  Because after all, God’s going to do the ministry, not me.  He’ll do ministry through me.  I just need to trust God and allow Him to use me. 

I should be more confident not because I think I can do this, but because I know that God has sent me here... He’s commissioned my wife and I to be here.  It was so tough to say good-bye to family and friends on the East Coast.  Sometimes, there are days when I miss them terribly.  I think it would have been a lot easier just to have stayed in the East Coast, but I knew that God was calling us to Seattle and to leave the comfort and to take a step of faith.  To take the risk and to be challenged. 

I know to be more confident because I serve a Mighty God and He’s going to do some awesome things here in Seattle.  What should I be afraid?  Whom shall I fear? 

Psalm 23:4, “I will fear no evil!”
Psalm 27:1, “Whom shall I fear?”
Isaiah 35:4, “Be strong, do not fear.”
Joshua 1:6, “Be strong and courageous.”
1 Timothy 4:12, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity.”

That night, when I was home alone amidst the biggest and longest thunderstorm I've ever experienced, I remember praying for God to help me to overcome my fear.  I prayed for my parents and my sister to come home.  I prayed that God would protect me and make me feel better.  I believe He heard my prayers that night and I believe He still hears my prayers today.  Later that night, my parents did come home.  They had some car trouble along the way which caused them to be so late.  I was so mad at them!  But at the same time, I was so relieved and happy to see them.  

What are you fearful of today?  Fear of failure?  Fear of death?  Fear of life?  Fear of being lonely?  Fear of dying alone?  Fear that you'll be single for the rest of your life?  Fear that you won't ever be a parent?  Fear of drowning?  Fear of people?  Fear that no one loves you?  Fear that no one cares about you?  Fear of your parents passing away?  Fear of work?  Fear of being found out?  Fear of scary animals?  Fear of bugs?  Fear of rejection?  Fear of work?  Fear of ministry?  Fear of being poor?  Fear of losing your house?  Fear of losing your job?  Fear of being friendless?  Fear that your team will never win the championship?  Fear of the future?  Fear that your past will catch up to you?  Fear of the dark?  Fear of the devil?  Fear that you can't do it?  Fear that you won't make it?  Fear that everything will go wrong?  Fear of being a bad husband?  Fear of being a bad wife?  Fear of being a bad sibling?  Fear of losing a friend?  Fear of getting into a car accident?  Fear of being late?  Fear of your boss?  Fear that your relationship will end?  Fear that you'll get a bad grade in class?  Fear that you can't cut it?  Fear that you're not smart enough?  Fear of being fearful?  Fear of not having enough strength and courage in your life?  Fear, fear, fear!  What are you fearful of today?   

"Dear Lord,
I am human so forgive me if I have fear in my heart.  I fear failure and not doing a good job.  I fear of being smug and being self-content.  I fear people.  I need you to guide me and give me great wisdom.  I need your strength, perseverance and your Holy Spirit to rest upon me.  My preaching needs to be better not so that people will be enamored with me, but so that they will be fed like never before... so that they might see the glory of Christ and a clearer revelation of who You are.  I need to be more prayerful not so that I can boast in my spirituality, but so that I can find myself humbled and be more dependent on you than on my own limited gifts and talents.  I need to be more studious and more spiritual.  I need You and I need to hear Your voice more than anything else.

O God, rid of me any fears!  Fear of man, fear of failure, fear of indifference, fear of the future... every fear except the fear of the Lord!  Breathe strength and courage into my heart and my soul! 

In Jesus’ Mighty Name,
Amen!"

Mike Vick

This is the look of a man who has been humbled.  This is the look of a man who has been reformed.  I know that looks don't always tell the whole picture, but I'm convinced that Mike Vick has changed.  No one really knows if the former football star is truly sorry for what he did and whether he's really learned his lesson.  I think being in a penitentiary prison for 18 months probably taught the man a few things.  He also has great people like Coach Dungy in his corner who are mentoring him and advising him.  Not to mention losing much of his wealth, losing two of his best years in professional football... what's probably the worst is just losing his good name and reputation.  In all, Mike Vick lost two years of his life.  I don't like what he did.  I saw some vicious pictures of dog-fighting and it's pretty shocking and shameful that people would do that to animals.  I love animals.  Ever since I could talk and walk, I remember always lobbying with my folks to get my sister and I a pet.  I've had some pets growing up.  I've had in my life time thus far three turtles, two dogs, and a few ants and 7 cockroaches as pets.  The two dogs?  I brought them home without telling my parents and boy, were they upset!  But what could they do?  They reluctantly let me keep them... for a month or so until I was forced to give them away.  It wasn't because my parents didn't like the dogs but it was because my mom was "supposedly" allergic to them, which I don't believe till this day.  But the more legitimate reason was really, I couldn't take care of them.  And no one else could in my family.  I didn't have the discipline and the care to feed the dogs and to care for them.  In hindsight, it was foolish of me to just bring the dogs home knowing I couldn't take care of them.  But I love animals.  My wifey and I are thinking about getting a dog for our daughter maybe down the road.  I love going to the zoo!  Animals are wonderful!  I love watching animal shows on the television.  But despite what PETA says and what other animal lovers think... there is no comparison between a human being and a animal.  There are other NFL players who've done much worst and they've gotten a slap on their hands compared to what Mike Vick got.  Again I don't like what he did because what he did was absolutely wrong.  But since when does the life of a human being come anything close to the life of an animal?

I believe in second chances.  It's called grace.  We all need second chances.  We all need grace.  I'm glad that the Philadelphia Eagles are giving him a chance to right the wrong and to resume his career.  I ain't no Eagles fan, but I'll be rooting for Mike Vick from now on... not just on the football field, but off of it as well.  I only wish my Redskins picked him up.  I hope he doesn't go wild on the Skins.  But even if he does, I'd be okay with it. 

Racism

Racism sucks!  I absolutely hate it!  When I lived in the East Coast, I saw a lot of racist activity.  I saw my parents being looked down upon because they couldn't understand nor speak English well.  Growing up in school, I remember being overlooked on athletic teams because they thought that an Asian couldn't play sports.  They're too small and short.  Tell that to my wrestling coach who wanted nothing but Koreans on this team!  He'd tell you otherwise.  Coach Paul Labazetta would say that we Asians were his best athletes!  My best friend in elementary and junior high school was a African-American kid name Jason.  Jason Ford and I hung out all the time.  He'd come over and eat my Frosted Flakes and my kimich bowl ramen.  His parents would sometimes pick me up and take me to school.  We played basketball and tennis together all the time.  It was great!  I miss my friend and I often wonder what he's doing now or how he's doing.  But there were many other times during my schooling days, I saw a lot of junk and prejudice mentality. 

Even in seminary, I experienced subconscious racism from the faculty and students.  I don't think they meant it, but that's exactly the problem.  How could they not know?!  Now, I loved my seminary and I loved what I learned from there.  It's prepared me well for ministry but there were at times, I just felt out of place.  I think a lot of that of me but also, a lot of that was ignorance and not wanting to accept folks who were different.  I heard about how a professor saying, "For an oriental, you sure preach well in English!"  Or I remember one time, I tried walking into a prayer group and he said, "Whoa there... this group is only for Gringos." I had no idea what he was talking about.  I still have no idea what he was talking about.  I tried to play sports with some of my fellow students... and I know I wasn't the best out there but still, I felt slighted and overlooked not because of my lack of skills, but because of my ethnicity.  Now, I know I'm generalizing.  I'm sure others have had different experiences, but I sure didn't.  And sincerely, I think my friends from seminary didn't mean to come across like that, but they did.  I think I could've been different as well.  I could've reached out more and tried to initiate more and I wish I had.  After awhile, I just felt more comfortable with my church friends who were mostly Asian like me.  I think I just felt "safe" there.

I'm writing this because on the East Coast, despite the age in which we live in... I'm accustomed to the fact that there's still racism in our society.  I see it every day.  And if you look even closer... my friends and mentors like Soong-Chan Rah would say that racism is alive and well in this country.  We have an African-American President and still, we see it everyday if you look closely.  On the East Coast, I'm just used to it. My family and I moved out to the beautiful North-West earlier this year.  I'm sure racism exists here as well, but I haven't seen much yet till recently.  This is probably so minor compared to what others face everyday... and my experiences are nothing compared to what others have experienced.  My beautiful wifey is preparing to run a 10k this coming Sat.  So she's been training and running to prepare for it.  We live in Bothell, which is a very qaint and quiet suburb north of downtown Seattle.  So the other day, my wifey is running and a car comes by and intentially goes over a big puddle of water to splash her.  My wifey got splashed and her new running shoes got dirtied up.  Now, this is when I got hot with anger!  Another car comes by and honks their horn while yelling at my wifey, "Ching, Chung, Kong!!!" and... well, you know how it goes.  When my wifey told me this, I wanted to grab my baseball bat and tee off of these knuckleheads!  I started dreaming and planning to run the following day, the same route in hopes that these idiots would come back again and do the same thing... but I'd have a baseball in my hand to beam their car.  If they were little and scrawny, I thought to myself that I'd take them on.  But if they were big and muscular... I'd run for it!  But in any case, I wanted some pay back! 

What was surprising to me was that this happened here in Bothell.  The Northwest generally seems more accepting of diversity.  Even the major local news stations have Asians as their leading anchors and driving around our area, you just see so many Asians and other ethnic folks.  This is a beautiful melting pot of a place to live!    

Going back to what happened to my wifey... to her credit, she wasn't as hot about it as I was.  She was just like "whatever."  She didn't care.  I don't know whether I admired that or bothered by that.  I admired her for her patience and just accepting the fact that we live in a world like this.  But it also bothered me because this is unacceptable!  Why does it have to be like this?  This is not right and this is not how we were meant to live... hating one another and making fun of one another because we're different.  In fact, I think it's our differences that bring out the beauty in humanity.  If we can live in unity despite our diversity, it brings glory to God.  I guess this will only be realized in glory, in heaven.  I know for a fact that every nation, every tongue and every peoples of the world will one day bow down before the King of all kings.  I know that in heaven, we will see no more racism.  That day will be a great day.  This will all be possible because Jesus died not just for the Jews, but for all the Gentiles as well.  He died for all the peoples of the world. 

Undying Pimple

Ok!  This is totally ridiculous!  My mountain of a pimple is still on my face.  Unbelievable!  It's definitely not as big and it's gone down a lot, but I never got to pop the sucker.  It never got to that point... I was so ready.  My wifey kept putting this skin medicine on my nose and it just dried it out instead.  And the pimple slowly got smaller and smaller.  The best thing is that it don't hurt as much as it did before.  But the pimple is still chillin' on my nose.  Sometimes when I stare at it from the mirror, I image the pimple with eyes, a nose and a mouth talking back to me saying, "What's up?!  What cha staring at, punk?!"  Talk about perseverance!  This pimple is the epitome of perseverance.  When you look up the word "endurance" in the dictionary, it should say, "Justin's Nose Pimple."  This red dot seems permenant.  I can't ever remember having a pimple this long.  It's been close to 2 weeks now!  Amazing!  Simply amazing!  

I guess one thing I can take from this is to spiritualize the pimple a bit and remind myself to press on and to never give up... to endure and persevere ... every time I see my pimple, or every time I feel my pimple... or every time some stares at my pimple... it will be a powerful reminder to press on, never give up... endure and persevere in the faith! 

Pimple be gone!  Please!!! 

The Money god

"The lover of money will not be satisfied with money; nor the lover of wealth, with gain. This also is vanity. When goods increase, those who eat them increase; and what gain has their owner but to see them with his eyes?"  - Ecclesiastes 5:10-11

I preached on money, wealth and finances this past Sunday.  It's not my favorite subject or theme to preach from the pulpit.  I've seen too many churches get jacked up because of money issues and I know that talking about money in the church is always a sensitive thing.  Three subjects that I've noticed to really put people on the edge of their seats and make them feel uncomfortable are the subjects of sex, politics and money.  This coming Sunday, I'll be preaching on sex and this past Sunday, I preached on money... so it'll be interesting to see the response I'll get from my congregation these next two weeks.  But regardless of the responses and whether people like it or not, the Bible has a lot to say about these subjects.  So I tackled the subject of money & finances.  I know that these are tough times economically.  I know of folks in my own church who are dealing with joblessness and struggling to make ends meet.  But I think it is imperative that the Church, the people of God, understand that we must not allow money to be the source of our hope, our security, our identity, our significance... to be a god in our lives. 

Now, I don't want to write my whole sermon here... it would be too long for you to read and you probably don't have all the time in the world to be reading blogs anyways.  But here's what I've got to say about money. 

Money is relatively a good thing in the Bible... especially in the book of Proverbs.  We all need money to make it in this world.  The Church needs money to do ministry and so on and so forth.  There is a strong connection between hard work, originality, creativity, self-control, discipline with prospering... prospering materially and economically.  Proverbs like "Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth," or "He who gathers crops in the summer is wise, but he who sleeps during harvest time is disgraceful."  Proverbs 10:22 says, "The blessing of the LORD brings wealth."  So money and wealth are incredibly great gifts from God.  But money also has incredible spiritual danger attached to it.  For example, money has the power to destroy integrity according to Proverbs 11:1.  Secondly, money has the power to destroy community because you become self-absorbed according to Proverbs 11:26.  Thirdly, money has the power to distract us from what is really important in life.  Proverbs 11:4 says, "Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death."  This verse is talking about judgment day.  Questions like "What is my life amount to?", "What am I really doing with my life?", "What difference am I making in the world?", "Who am I really helping?", and "What contribution am I making?."  Wealth blinds us to judgment day questions.  Wealth instead pulls us away and sucks us into a frantic cycle and a frantic life of consumption. 

Lastly, money makes us proud and over-confident according to Proverbs 30:8-9.  When people have money, they often tend to say, "I don't need God.  Why in the world would I need God for?  I have everything I want and need."  Who's the LORD?"  There is nothing like economic success to make one feel over-confident.  The more money a person makes and the more successful he or she becomes, the more the person will think he or she got it because they were so smart or so disciplined.  And this makes the person feel over-confident and proud.  Bernard of Clairvaus once said, "To see a man humble under prosperity is the greatest rarity in the world."  

I don't know about you but integrity and character, community and humility are all important to me.  I don't want the might of money to destroy these things in me.  I don't want money to control me and how I live my life.  My wifey and I are not rich.  We don't have anything saved up for the future but we are hoping to start very soon.  We only have one car.  We don't own a house... we rent.  We live off of one income so that my wifey can stay home and be a mom to our daughter... it's been tough at times.  We've had to dip into our savings and learn some hard lessons along the way.  Budgeting and staying true to our budget has been equally difficult especially for a guy like me who's not as detailed oriented.  But with all of this, still I feel that we are incredibly rich and wealthy.  We've always had food on our tables and a roof over our heads.  We're not living for this world or trying to be comfortable.  We're trying to be more "Christ-like."  This world is not our home.  We are just passing through.  We are resident aliens in this world.  We have a Father who owns a thousand cattle on a thousand hills.  My Father is rich!  We know that there are people all over the world that can't eat like we do and don't have anything near what we have in terms of shelter and just basic neccesities of life.  So what God gives to us, we accept and we are thankful.  I know that others who read this will not like what I've written.  But it's safe to say that all of us (including myself), whether we know it or not, or whether we like it or not... have too much love for money.  It has become either our significance or our security.  Money either makes you feel important and proud or it makes you feel safe and secure.  Instead of God being our significance and security, money is.  It is the alternative to God and it has enormous spiritual power over us. 

We need to be aware of this.  Now if you are someone who is struggling to make ends meet... or maybe you're not even doing that... I know that our country is in recession.  But God is still God and He is still in control.  He's sovereign over the affairs of men.  He knows what He is doing.  We can trust Him for all things.  And even if God doesn't do what we'd like for Him to do concerning our money and finances... let that not change our commitment to live for Him and our devotion to Him.  Even if He doesn't save us from this economic crunch, "Blessed be His Holy Name!"  You have a wealth Father and you are truly rich beyond all measure. 

Habakkuk 3:17-18, "Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on teh vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there areno sheep in the pen and no cattle in teh stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior."

If God has given you wealth, that's great.  More power to you... or I should say, "more money to you!"  But with wealth comes great responsibility to be a great steward of what God has given you.  Use it wisely.  Apply the scattering principle, which is that the more you scatter your wealth, the more you'll gather wealth in a different form.  It's called "Agricultural wealth."  Proverbs 11:24 and Psalm 112 pretty much says that he who scatters gathers and he who gathers scatters.  It's a paradox, but it works in God's economy.  In agriculture, you scatter seed and the more you scatter, the more you gather.  The more you sow, the more you reap.  But if you hold onto our seeds and won't scatter them, you'll starve.  But if you're willing to scatter your seeds and give it all away, you'll gather.  Now when you gather, it comes back in a better form.  The only way for you to turn your wealth into real riches is by giving it away.  I'm not talking about the wealth and health prosperity junk that's out there.  I'm not saying that if you give it away, God is somehow going to make you richer in the end... no.  I'm saying God will give you wealth in a different form.  Also, you will have broken the power of money over yourself. 

In 2 Corinthians 8, St. Paul is trying to get people to give to the poor.  And in doing so, he doesn't go after their will.  He doesn't say to them, "You better give or God is going to punish you!"  He also doesn't go after their emotions.  He doesn't say to them, "You have to give because these people are so poor and look how much they're suffering..."  He goes after their hearts!  2 Corinthians 8:8 says, "No!  Listen.  You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.  That though He was rich, for our sake He became poor.  So that you through His poverty might become rich."  He's talking about Jesus.  Jesus Christ on the cross was literally broken into pieces.  On the cross, he was broken.  On the cross, he was distributed.  On the cross, he was scattered.  Why?  So that we could be gathered.  Paul is calling us to see that Jesus on the Cross became the ultimate scattering to gather, the ultimate example of agricultural wealth.  The cross is the picture of the ultimate act of generosity, the ultimate act of wealth distribution, the ultimate place of becoming poor in order to get real riches.  Jesus gave up heaven and glory because He valued us more than those things.  Jesus Christ is the ultimate treasure who died for us.  Give your wealth away and you'll receive ultimate joy.

I think the church needs to learn how to tithe.  How a church gives is a reflection of how the church is doing.  Proverbs 11:24 says, "One man gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty."  The part about "withholds unduly..." is talking about a stingy person who is not giving away what is required.  What would be required?  In the Bible, it says 10%.  In many places in the Bible, it's says that if you're not giving away at least 10% of your income to charity and to ministry every year, then you are disobeing God's rule for generosity.  But I think it's more than that... tithe is the rule, but the Cross is the wisdom.  Jesus didn't save us by tithing His blood.  Jesus didn't save us by tithing His glory.  We are alive by His giving of everything!  Jesus' Cross means sacrificial giving.  Don't you dare think you're being wise about money if you only tithe!  If it's not making any measureable difference in the way in which you live, in the way in which you do things, in the way you take your vacations, in the way in which you buy things... you're obeying the rule, but you haven't brought the cross into your economic life.  Everything already belongs to God... He's just letting us keep most of what He's given to us.  An authentic believer who is striving to live in obedience to God, who is loving God will tithe faithfully to his or her church, but on top of that... they will give sacrificially to charities and to missionaries and to other ministries.  This is hard, but this is God's wisdom for His people. 

Jesus Christ gave himself away and look at his harvest!  It's you... it's me... it's the people of God! 

"No one can sever two masters.  Either you will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve both God and Money." (Matthew 6:24)

"Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness.  Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD.  But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living.  But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD."  (Joshua 24:14-15)

As for the Kim Family... we will serve the LORD!