I was talking to a friend about decision making. Every decision we make involves some kind of risk. If we choose to go to Hawaii, we risk the opportunity lost of not going to Paris. If we choose to go to law school, we risk the opportunity lost of being an engineer. My husband and […]
Whenever someone says that they are not being “fed” by their pastor’s preaching at their church, I tell them to not criticize or complain. Afterall, it is not easy to deliver a good sermon every Sunday. Not every pastor is a good preacher. Rather than expecting your pastor to “feed” you (and I don’t think […]
In my Sunday School lesson, I taught from Charles Stanley’s principle that “you know you are growing in your relationship with Christ when spiritual battles are more fierce and you are still rejoicing.” Rejoicing during hard times is not natural. It’s supernatural, and that is why it is an indication that you are growing spiritually. […]
On Family Life, Dennis Rainey gave a simple way to find a spouse: Focus on running towards Jesus, and along the way, look to the side to see who is there. That’s how I found my husband 🙂
Some games are fun because they are fun games. But most games are only fun if the people playing them are fun. Take for example the game Apples to Apples. If you play with people who are not fun, and do not put effort into making it fun, it’s not a fun game. Life is […]
In the early 80’s when I was in seminary, I was looking for an internship with a church. At the time, the concept of ABC (American Born Chinese) ministry was just beginning to emerge. English-speaking-only Chinese churches without a Chinese congregation were starting to be planted in Southern Cal. (Multi-cultural Asian American churches has not […]
This article “Don’t want the freedom of the empty nest” resonated with me, particularly these paragraphs: “The sad thing is, when my own children were small our family activities had to be restricted mostly to free things. My decision to be a stay-at-home mom at that point meant an entertainment budget so tiny as to […]
When I turned 40, my sisters warned me that I will soon be getting white hair. My mother started getting white hair at about that age, and so did my two older sisters. Eleven years later, and I am holding the count at 3 white hairs. I count them everyday to make sure there are […]
I posted about my surgery experience on my parenting site, if you care to read that. Here are some additional thoughts: * When my surgeon and anesthesiologist came to see me just prior to the surgery, they asked, “Do you have any questions for us?” I said, “No question. I just want you to know […]
I read this from Dennis Rainey of Family LIfe: The choices you make today or tomorrow are not confined to today or tomorrow. A baby step of obedience may be all the ground you need to cover today in order to put yourself in position to launch a major spiritual breakthrough later on. As C. […]
It’s quite an enigma to me why we remember certain rather useless things from our childhood, while probably forgetting a lot of important things. I remember growing up when we had relatives over for dinner, my mother would start washing dishes right after dinner. My father would tell her to relax and enjoy the conversation […]
It’s been said that a good counselor is someone who has gone through a lot of pain him/herself. I think it is true. Most mental health professionals go into their line of work because they’ve gone through some hard times, and want to help others. They genuinely want to help people and can help them […]
A few weekends ago at our church retreat, the speaker talked about having a memorial of Bible verses. Memorials are things that remind us of something that happened in the past. The Lincoln Memorial, the USS Arizona Memorial. Memorials, often referred to in the Old Testament, also serves to pass on history to future generations. […]
I read this from my daily email from Family Life, and found it very encouraging. As Dennis Rainey says in this piece, I haven’t the foggiest idea of what God is up to. But either He is sovereign or He’s not. Since I believe He is, then that settles that. This is a true story. […]
Our former preaching pastor Mike used to say that we are a Costco generation – when we have a need, we don’t have to ask God for help; we get it from Costco. I find that true of myself. Have a problem? Google it. Call Dr. Laura. Get a self-help book. Ask a friend. Post […]
They are not my kids but I felt like a proud parent as I sat in the front row and took a video of “A” and “C” reciting their Bible verses. I’ve been the Sunday School teacher of these kids on and off over the last 5 years. As I watch them share what the […]
I always thought the role of Counselor Deanna Troi in Star Trek: The Next Generation, was ridiculous. They need someone on the team to understand people’s feelings? I thought her function was rather useless because her insights are often obvious. Her telepathic abilities comes up with something like – I feel that the people on […]
A few of my friends like to run. I don’t understand running. Why agonize, sweat, suffer aches and pains – for what?? It’s not even fun. It’s not like basketball with the challenge of getting the ball into the basket, or like football where there is fun in strategizing, or volleyball with interaction with your […]
Life’s disappointments can wear you down. Rejected for a date, not invited to a friend’s party, didn’t get what you wanted for Christmas – may be relatively minor disappointments and inconsequential in the scheme of things, but still, it can chip away the joy of living. There are the big things too – marriage problems, […]
Our church’s former preaching pastor Mike said that after he became a Christian in the Philipines, he was excited to share his faith, and wrote to all his buddies in New York to tell them about Jesus. Pastor Mike and I were converted at about the same time. I was in high school, in the […]