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My wife, Christina, keeps reminding me, “As we get older, we should be more unselfish, more humble and more loving.” In theory, this makes a lot of sense. But in reality, it is a whole different issue altogether.

As we get older, we should realize more of our sinfulness. As we get older, we should become more humble and loving. The older we get, the more we should have testimonies that point to the experience of God’s love and grace. Then what seems to be the problem? For me, it can be summed it up in three simple words: I. Am. Forgetful.

I forget that I was once spiritually lost and dead in my sin (Eph 2:1-3).
I forget that I was chosen and predestined for God’s purpose (Eph 1:4-5; Ro 8:29-30).
I forget how God redeemed and rescued me through the blood of Jesus (Eph 1:7).
I forget how God’s grace was richly and abundantly poured out on me (Eph 2:4-7).
I forget how God adopted me into His family because of His love (Eph 1:5; Ro 8:5).
I forget all the spiritual blessings that I now have in Christ (Eph 1:3).

Forgetfulness. So many of us know this all too well.

This is the reason why I reacted in annoyance and frustration when Christina mentioned that God might be calling us to foster a 4-month old orphaned baby, who has a physical disability. Instead of remembering who God is and His Father’s heart for the orphans and the lost, all I could think about at that moment was – me. I forgot about all that God did in my life. The only thing that took center stage was my selfishness.

For the next 30 minutes I was in a back-and-forth discussion with Christina. I tried to help her to see all the reasons why this might not be a good idea. But the more I talked, the more forgetful I became of God’s love and grace. I was so consumed with myself that the only thing that kept coming to mind was the inconvenience and the discomfort of going through sleepless nights and endless diaper changes. Everything inside of me cried out, “What about me? Didn’t I pay my dues with our three kids? Why do we have to go through it again?”

It was in that moment that God had to remind me of His Father’s heart towards me.

I remembered how spiritually dead and hopeless I was.
I remembered how I was separted from God because of my sin.
I remembered how God reached out to me, rescued me and redeemed me.
I remembered how God loved me and adopted me into His family.
I remembered how God graciously and lavishly poured out so many blessings.

I knew what God was trying to say to me. I had a choice – to obey God or to obey my flesh. I’m thankful that through Christina, God reminded me of His Father’s heart. With the short amount of time we will have with her, I think it is going to transform our family for good. We are thankful that today, our family will have the privilege of welcoming a little 4-month old girl from China into our home.

For some reason, things feel different already, as God has been preparing our hearts to receive her into our home; but most of all, welcome her into our hearts. We would greatly appreciate your prayers and we can’t wait to introduce her to all of you.

In the last 2 weeks, I have been reminded of the song, “Good, Good Father.” The lyrics are:

Oh, I’ve heard a thousand stories of what they think you’re like
But I’ve heard the tender whisper of love in the dead of night
And you tell me that you’re pleased and that I’m never alone

You’re a Good, Good Father
It’s who you are, it’s who you are, it’s who you are
And I’m loved by you
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am

Oh, and I’ve seen many searching for answers far and wide
But I know we’re all searching
For answers only you provide
Cause you know just what we need
Before we say a word

You’re a Good, Good Father
It’s who you are, it’s who you are, it’s who you are
And I’m loved by you
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am

Cause you are perfect in all of your ways
You are perfect in all of your ways
You are perfect in all of your ways to us [2x]

Oh, it’s love so undeniable
I, I can hardly speak
Peace so unexplainable
I, I can hardly think

As you call me deeper still [x3]
Into love, love, love

You’re a Good, Good Father
It’s who you are, it’s who you are, it’s who you are
And I’m loved by you
It’s who I am, it’s who I am, it’s who I am

Throughout history, whenever a need arises, the people who take action are the ones who transform the world. Instead of idly standing by, they decide to do something. Their actions, often times, stem from a conviction or a burden. They count the cost and take steps of faith in order to make a difference. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

The challenge that people from HMCC of Hong Kong faced was the suicide crisis on university campuses. Within a short period of time, news of students committing suicide became a frequent occurrence in HK. As the number of suicides began to rise, we realized that something was happening and we needed to do something about it. Therefore, with our limited resources, we decided to bring awareness and spread hope by letting students know that they matter. It was a small gesture, but it had a big impact on people’s lives.

We began to meet people and hear their stories. Some people personally knew those who passed away. As our hearts began to break, we asked God to show us what our next steps should be. This is when a South China Morning Post article brought greater clarity to the suicide crisis in HK. We know that the problem has many factors, therefore, even topics such as mental health must be considered. But for now, we are going to continue to bring awareness and link up with other organizations that are involved in suicide prevention.

As we move forward, we are praying for wisdom and God’s favor to open up doors of opportunity to bring the message of hope and love to every student on the university campuses of HK. We are going to do this by 3 specific steps: Be aware. Act. Advocate.

So much of what is going on can seem so daunting, but we are confident that for such a time as this, people are rising up to speak hope and love to this generation. Every conversation and every prayer that is spoken can have an incredible impact on someone’s life. It is our sincere desire that we will not shy away from this situation, but rather, speak the truth and offer hope to anyone who is struggling to believe that they matter to God and to others.

Mother Teresa once said, “We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop.”

Let’s do our part!

#youmatter on website, Instagram, and Facebook

It has been over a year since I wrote anything on my blog (sorry); but recently, with various things going on in Hong Kong, I felt compelled to write and share some things that are on my heart.

In the last seven months, there have been 24 suicides committed by young people in Hong Kong. This is one too many. Each person ended their life due to various circumstances, but the story line is the same – they felt hopeless and could not see a way out. At an age where a person has their whole life ahead of them, it is hard to believe that their circumstances won over and the hope of a better future was eliminated. But this is the sad reality and we can no longer just ignore the situation.

The Hong Kong government and school officials are trying to address the issue but many people are saying that their efforts are not enough. While there are different available organizations and health services, it seems like the students are not seeking help. I know that it is a complicated issue with many different factors such as family background, mental health issues, school pressures, etc. playing a part in the overall problem.

Therefore, we have to approach this situation from many different angles; but the first major step is to bring awareness to the crisis. When people are not aware of the problem, there is no sense of urgency nor a willingness to get involved. We can only become part of the solution when we acknowledge that there is a problem and something has to change. We also want to somehow communicate to the youth of Hong Kong that there is hope and there is something greater to live for.

As I personally reflect on this crisis, my heart is burdened for this generation of youth. If you stumbled across this blog and you are struggling with thought of suicide, I want to say 4 things to you:

 
I’m always inspired when I hear about God using a person’s messed-up past to advance His mission. We have to remember that God never makes mistakes. Even through some of our deepest pains and trials, God can use it somehow for His glory.

The best part of God’s creative work in redemption is that He uses our experiences and personalities to reach many people with the Gospel. Due to my personal experiences and personality, I am able to reach a certain segment of the world.

In the same way, your life, which is probably very different from mine, can reach out to another segment of the world. Can you imagine what would happen if we shared our stories with people that can relate to us?

God is always in the business of turning our ashes into something beautiful (Isa 61:3). This story is about how God turned a bad boy into a warrior for Christ.
 
 

 
It is interesting how the Apostle Paul uses the illustration of adoption when he describes our relationship with God, our Father (Eph 1:3-14).

There is something very powerful about knowing that you are chosen and loved unconditionally. This is part of the core of the Gospel message.

Sometimes through an earthly adoption, people are able to know the love of the Father. May our love for people overflow.
 
 

 
I realized that it doesn’t take much to see a child laugh or smile . It brings great joy to anyone who see the sense of wonder in a child’s eyes.

This is why when people are willing to go out of their way to make kids happy, it makes me smile.

I pray that we will never lose the sense of wonder and amazement as we get older. God smiles when He see a heart of a child in us.
 
 

 
After having a daughter, I have become more sensitive and tuned into how girls are treated in our society, especially in the Church. It is amazing to see how a girl’s self-esteem is shaped by their relationship with their father.

It is my hope and prayer that Karissa (a.k.a. KiKi) will grow up believing that she can do anything she puts her mind to. The world will tell her otherwise. The world will put barriers and limitations in front of her. But I want her to know that with Christ and my full support, she can do anything.

I want to be her greatest cheerleader and supporter. I want her to know that she can be a world shaker, history maker!
 
 

 
I do quite a bit of counseling throughout the week. I guess it comes with the calling of a shepherd (pastor). After many hours of listening and talking, I have come to the realization that a lot of things come down to perspective. If a person is able to gain God’s perspective in the midst of their situation, then it’s a huge win – both for the counselee and the counselor.

It is hard to see God in some of the difficult situations of our lives. Unless we believe in a Sovereign God, who is in complete control and working out all things for our good and His glory (Ro 8), it is easy to become disillusioned and even bitter at God. It is humbling when we get a glimpse of our theology (what we believe about God) by the way we respond to things that we have no control over.

I am constantly encouraged to see Christ-followers who struggle to understand God’s purposes, but at the end of the day, they realize that they are not God. This is when we all have a choice to either trust God or to trust in ourselves. As we get older, we begin to learn that choosing the former is far greater. Why? Because God has proven Himself to be faithful time and time again to make something beautiful of our lives, regardless of how messy it is.

What appears to be a life of ruin, God has the audacity and the capacity to turn things around to something that is “gloriously ruined” for our good and His glory.
 
 

 
It is always exciting to see two of my passions come together.
The heart of a samurai and the heart for soccer.

I cannot wait for the World Cup to start!
 

 
When you see a father so passionate about protecting his daughter, it reminds you of how love and security play an important role in a relationship. As I watched this video, I couldn’t help but to resonate with this father as I thought about my daughter.

Then, I thought about God’s love and protection for His children against Satan and his evil forces. No matter what we are facing in life, we can be confident that God will persistently protect us because He passionately loves us.
 
 

 
God is the Greatest Artist of all time. We, as human are able to create beautiful things because the Creator created us.

Whenever I get inspired by a musician or an artist with their talent, I am reminded that they are just a reflection of the Greatest Artist.

Therefore, keep on creating great music, art and other creative pieces because it will keep on pointing to the One who alone deserves all the glory!
 
 

 
I am constantly reminded that in order to experience true freedom, we have to let go of everything; but it is always easier said than done. Living a life of complete surrender to Christ is hard.

We love ourselves too much, even to the point of being narcissist and full of pride. The times when I have been able to fully let go of things and “withhold nothing” from Christ is when I saw how worthy He was of my everything.

The more I focus on Him and less on me, the easier it is to step out in faith and let everything go. There is no other way in this life of following Christ.

This song by William McDowell called, “Withholding Nothing” has been on repeat throughout this whole week. May this be the prayer of our hearts.
 
 

 
Coming back from my recent trip to Cambodia, I was reminded once again about the evils of human slavery. As I looked at the issue, I couldn’t help but to conclude that everything starts from the heart. Since we live in a broken world, we try so hard to “fix” ourselves from the pain and hurt in our lives. This is where many of us turn to various things to numb our pain; but instead of getting better, things get worse.

It is discovered that a lot of the sexual exploitation has its roots in pornography. If pornography is one of the roots to human slavery, then we need to do everything possible to cut it off. We cannot allow pornography to be the fuel for human trafficking. Therefore, in order to fight human slavery, we have to invest in winning the hearts of men. In particular, we have to invest in the next generation.

The real fix can only be found in the Gospel.

It is the Gospel that can set us free. It is the Gospel that heals our hearts. This video is a good reminder of the fact that we need to win the hearts of men with the Gospel.
 
 

 

 
 
 
I remember when our kids were younger and they all went to the same school. It was so much easier driving them to one location; but now, they all go to different schools. I miss those younger years when we were all together in one car.

Everyday, as we got closer to school, I had one of them pray on behalf of all of us. Of course, we rotated the person who would pray because if we did the “can someone pray for us” method, there would be silence.

My favorite part was a phrase that they always included in their prayers. They said, “Lord, help us to be world shakers and history makers!”

I pray that this would be true of us.

We are part of the greatest movement in history. It is unstoppable.

God, may Your Kingdom come and Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven!