A weekend with intercessors - the praying princesses

Four very special ladies - Trisha, June, Rubye and Barbara (right to left) - came to visit us from Garland, Texas this past weekend. They are an amazing bunch. Having been called to visit what was then a new church plant several years back, and having seen Vancouver, they were moved to pray inceasantly for our city and for our church. They do this literally: the four women gather together on Thursday evenings in Texas every other week and intercede for specific needs within our community and within our church. They also come visit Vancouver every year to regain a fresh vision of how best to pray for our city, and to put faces to people's names.

Imagine the surprise when these ladies, whom I hardly knew, greeted me and my family at our door by name, and asked specifically about how their prayers for my family had been answered. That is intercession indeed!

It was an incredible joy to spend a good part of my weekend with them. Here's why:

• Intercessors, by their gift, are people who long after God's heart. They long to hear God's Spirit and they yearn to do His will. People who are filled with the Holy Spirit are attractive: they are genuine and they are a joy to be around. In fact, their joy is contagious!
  
• Intercessors have an inherent assurance that the Lord is God, and that He is faithful to answering prayers. (They wouldn't be intercessors otherwise!) For the rest of us, who sometimes may wonder whether our prayers are even heard or felt, their steadfast faith reassures us that God is indeed who He says He is. Intercessors motivate me to pray even more inceasantly.
  
• I was motivated tremendously by the level of committment these ladies had for our city and for its people. Having been on missions myself, I too have been moved to pray for others not within my community. But never have I seen such dedication. (Did I mention that the oldest of the group is in her 80s?)

Karen, Erich and I had a fun time getting to know them this past weekend - not only at dinner gatherings, but in their very element too. We particularly enjoyed prayer walking with them around Kitsilano, and it was a privilege and tremendously encouraging to be able to pray together with them for people I knew in the community (my coworkers) and for my community at large.

Little things matter: to encourage and to be encouraged

The Ng family had a very busy weekend. In addition to Ruth Chan's memorial service, we also celebrated our friend Renee's 40th birthday. Then on Sunday, our church was involved in helping out with the BMO Vancouver marathon. As if that weren't enough, we also went to the Vancouver Christ Church of China to hear Annie, one of Karen's relatives (and our friend) give her testimony.

Amidst the busyness though, one common theme stood out: little things matter. Some examples:

How could Ruth have known that a little known thing she said to me two decades ago would serve to encourage me and possibly many others at her memorial?

How could Karen and I have known that answering Annie's recommendation for a church years ago would lead to her coming into a relationship with Jesus Christ? (which in turn served as an unexpected encouragement to us when we heard her testimony!)

I also didn't realise that handing out gatorade and cheering on complete strangers by name at a community event I once despised and grumbled at (because of the inconvenience it caused me) would be so fulfilling and so encouraging to others in my community.

Even Erich soon got into it as he helped hand out water and gatorade to marathoners.

Little, seemingly insignificant moments in life matter. Encouragement, particularly when spurred on by the Holy Spirit, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant matter. We may not see or reap the results of what we we are called to do for years, but God does. Our job is just to obey his leading and his prompting.

"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery"

Our family has recently begun a new routine during church worship services. We have discovered that Erich really enjoys the singing and worship portion of the adult service, so we keep him in the sanctuary during that portion before bringing him to the nursery. We've found
that this really helps him get settled and it allows him to participate in the worship service as well.

Today, he decided that he would REALLY participate and promptly conducted himself in the way many adults would. Instead of sitting on mommy´s lap, Erich found a seat in the row in front of us. He sat, grabbed a church bulletin, and began to browse through the bulletin. Then, when Rodney, the worship leader, asked everyone to stand, he took a stand himself and enjoyed as people sang. When the music was done, he sat himself back into the seat, and looked again at his bulletin.

It was all very cute to watch. It also got me thinking - many of us when we first become Christians begin by emulating and imitating the outward actions of Christ (WWJD). It isn't until later that we discover and we internalize our faith from which our attitudes are changed.

My prayer for Erich is that his faith would become genuine and that the habits and disciplines that he may begin by simply imitating would become a genuine article, attitude changing part of his walk with Christ.

Opportunities for application

In our quest to deepen our relationship with Christ, our small group at the Bridge has been tackling the various disciplines in which we commune and meet with God. Specifically, we've been looking at worship through prayer, and edification through the studying of His Word. One of the tools we have been using is homiletics: the process of breaking down then rebuilding a passage of Scripture. One thing I admire about this tool is that it allows the reader, through exposition of the passage, to extract application.

Laura, a person in our small group found that this tool really helped her. She put it succinctly when she wrote to me in an email that homiletics:

• allows the reader to really meditate on a piece of Scripture, and
  
• it provides the believer with an opportunity for application.

The word "opportunity" really stuck with me. I have never really thought of it quite this way - but in fact, she has nailed the aim of homiletics on its head. When we meditate on a passage of Scripture, in addition to its historical and theological significance, we are really given an opportunity to apply the passage in our lives. That is the beauty of reading the Bible to see how God may want to speak into our lives vs. reading the Bible to justify the way we have lived our lives. What we do with that opportunity is up to us.

My opportunity for application

We have been looking at Colossians 1 through 3 the past few weeks, and I must say that the opportunity for application for me is to keep on the "clothes" (or attitudes) of Christ. I need to remember to draw from Christ's strength rather than my own and that in all things, to all people, it is opportunity to demonstrate Christ's compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. (Colossians 3:12).

A month of blessings...

Oddly enough, this month has also been a month of great blessings and surprises. Count your blessings name them one by one... Count your blessings see what God has done...

• An old, old, old time classmate (from elementary school) whom I used to carpool with recently found me on Facebook. After reconnecting, she told me that she is (now) a Christian and is serving at Willingdon. You don't know how encouraging this is to me.
• Karen and I have had more opportunity (than usual) to connect with each another this month. (Perhaps it's because we've been sick so much...) or perhaps it's because we've grown to know how to serve each other better. Whichever it is, I have found a new appreciation for my wife.
  
• Erich is growing up to be a fine young boy. He has an amazing affinity for remembering things (particularly people's names) which always brings a smile to them. He's also got a great affinity for remembering words in hymns. (I'm not kidding folks...) He already knows the chorus to "O to be like Thee!" and "Turn your eyes upon Jesus".
• Erich has been adjusting well to his new daycare which he is starting to enjoy... particularly when Kimberly (one of the daycare workers) brings out her guitar. Erich promptly asked her where her guitar pick was - much to Kimberly's surprise.
  
• The Bridge (the church we attend) is experiencing some new growth and we are excited at what God is going to do amongst us this year.
• Eddie Wong has completed his training in Texas and is doing his practicum in the Dominican Republic. It has been a blessing and a great encouragement to see God working in those close to us.
• A certain someone got offered a job this month - an answer to many years of prayer.
  
• We sold our rarely used(!) exercise bike. Interesting story: we posted it on craigslist, found several interested parties.
  
• The first was a guy who asked for "real" photos of the bike even though I had posted real photos. I have never felt so complimented and insulted at the same time at my photographic abilities.
  
• The second was an athletic lady who had recently injured her foot and needed something to keep her in shape. She ended up purchasing the bike from us. When she came to pick up the bike she mentioned that she too was a Christian. We asked her how she knew. Apparently, she had read this blog.
  

It is good to take inventory of blessings - and they are good to remember particularly in difficult months. And it is good to remember that God is at work, even when we think we're not.

End of year reflection: the Heart of the Father, take 2

It's good to be given second chances. I had the chance to revise and give this message to the people at the Bridge toward the end of 2007. If you have been following my blog, you will know I gave an abridged version of the same message to some of the youth in Reading.

Having a second chance is neat. It has helped me to rethink some of the points and to better describe in words, what I believe God has been teaching me.

You can read it here, or listen to it here.

Day 3A: Learning from a mentor

We stayed with our friends and missionary pastors in Reading (England). Pastor Sam and Teresa are an incredible couple for which I have an enormous amount of respect. They minister primarily to the Chinese speaking in Reading (primarily restaurant owners and professionals) through the COCM. Theirs is truly long term work - planting churches and building relationships with those in the community in order to bring them to Christ. Ours, incidentally, (and those of the CCM short term teams) is to minister to the British born Chinese youth who often are caught between two cultures and one faith.

I said that I have tremendous respect for this couple because, at least from what I have observed, this couple just oozes with the attitude of Christ. It is humbling and a privilege living with them even for a few days. Their practical, down to earth attitude, faith-based living and genuine love for people is always a joy to observe. Their daily habits remind me of what is truly important.

This is not to elevate them to anything more than a fellow brother and sister saved by grace, but I am humbled because I realize each time I interact with this family that there is much for me to learn.

Monday morning: I wake up early along with E-yan, their daughter. I want to catch a ride with them into town (where E-yan attends school) so that I can hire a car. Karen and I had planned several places to take Erich, and since many of those places would involve many trains and buses to get to, we decided it would be more convenient (and fun!) to hire (rent) a car.

As I sit, wide-eyed and bushy tailed (I am not a morning person...) on their couch awaiting their departure, I observe their morning routine: Auntie Teresa is in the kitchen busily preparing the meals she will need to cook that day. The BBC radio is blaring and the announcer in the oh-so-british voice announces the news. Pastor is seated on the couch doing his devotions and planning his day. E-yan sits at the coffee table perusing a magazine dedicated to prayer items of missionaries abroad all the while eating her breakfast. Few words are exchanged, but it is obvious that the Shams' day begins with the Lord in mind.

Teresa walks into the room when the news finishes. She announces that they are going to have family prayer time, and asks if I wish to join in. I nod. We pray. Quickly, one-by-one, they pray giving thanks for the day and asking for God's grace to lead them in their activities that day. They pray for us (even so we are on vacation) and pray that God would grant us an enjoyable time that day and that God would grant us safety as we drive. The three of them (and me in spirit) finish, and we are off to town.

As we are driving into town, thoughts running through my head are: how often do I wake up, and rush out of the house without so much as acknowledging God? How much more unified as a family would it be if I were to pray with my wife and son each morning? What I observed was more than simple ritual - it was practicing the presence of God each morning, and it was keeping one's attitude in check.

More on the actual trip we took this day in the next post. But when we came back that day, Auntie Teresa had prepared dinner for us to eat. It was a delicious meal! What astounded us the most was the number of dishes she had put out and the relative ease in which they all came flying out of the kitchen. We had protested mildly that she really shouldn't fuss over us, but in actual fact she really wasn't - making meals and serving others in this manner was second nature to her. In fact, the previous day, she had made a meal for her bible study group, as if it were effortless. How many times have I struggled to make meals for people coming over? It never ceases to amaze me how they have placed their home in God's hands and let God use their home for His glory.

We feel privileged to have stayed in their home and to have grown as a result. I have made a pledge to practice more of these habits. Though I am still only half awake in the morning, like a determined runner who is out of shape, I am pledging (by God's grace) to pray with my wife and son every morning. I am pledging to make my home as hospitable and open for ministry. My goal is to do these things so that they become so habitual that they become part of my practice of the presence of God.

Day 2: Sermon from the heart of a father

I had the opportunity to speak to the Reading CCF youth group on the Sunday after we arrived. I had a little bit of prep from Kim Tsang, the current youth coordinator. I wanted something that would encourage both her (and the other youth coordinators), and the youth, but also something close to my heart. I decided I would speak about being a father and how learning to be a new father has taught me much about our Heavenly Father.

Sermon and Testimony to the youth at Reading CCF
October 7th, 2007
Jonathan Ng

(I have moved the text to a separate page - click on above link to read.)

Reflections on Fatherhood

So it was Father's Day again last Sunday, and to be honest I'm not entirely sure what to think of it - I am still trying to find my role as a father I guess. This is not to say I do not enjoy being a father. I love being Erich's dad. I am overjoyed, for instance, when I come home and Erich runs down the hall to greet me with a gigantic hug. I love to hear him talk, and I love reading him bedtime stories. But, I am talking more on a spiritual level. I find that as I mature into the role of being a father, I am also reflecting on what it means to be father.

I have often meditated on the parable of the prodigal son and contemplated which character I most relate to. As I think was Jesus' intention when he told the parable, I find myself identifying with each character as I go through the course of life.

In the past, I often found myself relating to each of the sons. In my youth, I could relate with the prodigal son who wanted to distance himself from his parents and wanted to try things on his own. As I matured and especially when I experienced the separation of my parents in my 20s, I related much more to the elder son who seemingly 'did everything right' and despised the wayward ways of the younger son. In perhaps a great ironic twist, for me that wayward son was my father. It wasn't fair (I have often thought) that I should have to stay around to clean up this mess that my dad left around particularly when he is supposed to be the father.

But the funny thing was the more I despised, the more I also felt like the younger son again - determined to strike it out on my own and "make it" despite my circumstances. Also, like the younger son, making it on your own isn't always so glorious and so I have often contemplated what life would be like in the loving arms of a dad who truly loves me.

Nowadays, I find myself going through yet another change in who I identify with. As I adjust to my new role as a father, I find myself reexamining all that I think a father should be, and trying to sort out what things are as they should be and what things are merely a longing and a reflection of what I did not have as a child. It is interesting to say the least. For example, I dream about bringing Erich on father-son only camping trips and doing dad things but mostly things I cannot do with him until he is much older. I often wonder if this is because those are some of the positive things of my childhood and therefore things I long for? Then reality strikes and I have to convince myself to think of things that would be great things to do with him now at his present age.

Other things I am also learning: how to be a compassionate and loving father yet manage the art of discipline? There are times when I can't wait to "spoil" Erich and go to great lengths to find him a new toy or something to make him smile. There are other times (particularly when he is mr. cranky-i-haven't-gotten-my-nap-today pants) when I have just about had enough. Then, there are those times when he will do something he knows is wrong, but does it anyway after deciding that the consequences are 'worth it'.

Of course, from a Christian standpoint, these are also things that our Abba Father has to deal with from us! Oh how I admire how He does it! And I guess, in the end, that is what gives us comfort - the ability to look up, see and call on the perfect example of Fatherhood. :)

Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." Since you call on a Father who judges each man's work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear.

- 1 Peter 1:13-17 NIV

Serendipity

Serendipity: |serəndipitē| n. Seeing God's providence in something unexpected.

Look up the word serendipity, and you are bound to find some pretty interesting definitions. The Oxford English dictionary describes it as the occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way. The Merriam Webster defines it as the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for. For me, I see it more as God's sovereign hand at work, so serendipity is simply us getting a glimpse of His glory, work and Divine providence at a given point in time.

I experienced this very recently. As you know, God has been doing some significant things in my life since having read Generation Ex. Some of these things, I have written about in posts on this blog. I recently commented on Jen Abbas' blog (the author of Generation Ex) thanking her for the encouragement her book has brought me. Apparently, the fact that God was still using her book to bring about encouragement really encouraged her that week. Check out her post on the subject and my subsequent comment.

This week, at BSF, we studied Paul's doxology at the end of Romans 11. Paul breaks forth in praise to God after revealing to his audience the wonders of God's salvation plan. Verse 33 stood out for me:

Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgments,
and his paths beyond tracing out!

This significant thought came about: We may never know the full impact of what our obedience to God will bring about for others. Paul reminds us that God's paths are beyond tracing out. But sometimes, perhaps in mercy, God gives us a glimpse - call it moments of serendipity. In a great twist of irony, God, in His grace uses even divorce, an act that brings about so much consequence and pain, and works it for His good and purpose.

Personal Quiet Time

I have noticed, particularly since having a family, that personal quiet time is both something that I long for and that is in increasingly short supply. So, when I was able to set aside some time explicitly for personal reflection, I was quite excited. Personal time not only refreshes my soul, it allows me time to gather my thoughts and gather what the Holy Spirit has been revealing to me over the past while.

This particular quiet time I had devoted to gathering my thoughts about what I had learned from the book "Generation Ex" and how it applies to my life. Since resolving to give this area of my life up to God, I felt the need to have an honest conversation to God about the subject - call it a first step in my action plan for my 2007 resolution.

Pastor Jerry and Nick Bansback, a friend from the Bridge, are both big proponents of using mind maps to organize thoughts for devotion. I had done many-a-mind-maps before, but had never attempted to put "my life" at the centre of the map. Doing so yielded some pretty interesting results!

At the root were four major branches: My New Roles, My Fears, My "Coping Mechanisms" and "Jesus". As I mapped each branch, I realized there was a pattern emerging. On one side was the circumstances of my life (roles and fears) and on the other were two common ways I deal with those circumstances: through coping mechanisms or by entrusting it to Jesus.

Coping mechanisms are sub-optimal habits we develop to cope with circumstance apart from God. Much like how I know I ought to exercise my legs to deal with my knee injury, but often find it much "easier" just to take pain medication, the same holds true for coping with emotional pain.

Entrusting it to Jesus often involves giving up sense of control over the situation. Intellectually, I know that giving it up to God is the better solution, but pride takes over and I subconciously conclude better the devil I know (pardon the pun) and live with the coping mechanism instead. Yet how often is this so utterly unhealthy for us? God after all did create us, and knows us more intimately than anyone else. If there were anybody who ought to know what "normal" is supposed to look like, it would be Jesus. Yet somehow in our twisted minds, we think our circumstances coupled with our "coping mechanisms" is more normal than entrusting the circumstance with Jesus.

Because much of what I reflected on is personal in nature (and this is after all a public forum), I will not go into the details of my nitty-gritty circumstances and coping mechanisms and how it relates specifically to me as a child of divorce. But suffice it to say that when I boiled my coping mechanisms down to their leaf nodes, it revealed cleverly concealed sin. Isn't "just coping" with something without fully giving it up to God just another form of pride?

In meditating on this, God highlighted one particular story in the Bible: that of the bleeding woman of 12 years being healed by touching Jesus' cloak (c.f. Matthew 9:18-26, Mark 5:22-43, Luke 8:40-56). For years, this passage had boggled me - exactly what is the faith that Jesus refers to in these passages (Luke 8:48, Matthew 9:22)? Is it simply faith that Jesus can heal, or is it more than that? I believe it is more: the woman knew and believed in her heart implicitly who Jesus really was - the Son of Man, and recognized this at a time when it was not widely known. Because she knew this, she implicitly knew that by touching "perfectness", Jesus' "perfectness" would impart on her, and the imperfect would disappear (c.f. 1 Corinthians 13:10). The faith had more to do with the woman recognizing who Jesus is more so than in his "healing powers". Healing was simply a logical result of her faith.

Applying it back to my own life, I draw this conclusion: If I am letting the coping mechanisms help me around the circumstances of life, I am really diminishing who I believe God to be.

Father in Heaven, You are the one who created us, and because of this, you know me more intimately than anyone else. Thank You for giving me this quiet time and directing my thoughts. Thank You for giving me the strength to start dealing with this area in my life that needs work. Help me to understand and recognize You for who You really are. Reveal areas in my life where I am just coping and not fully giving up to You. I confess these areas to you now. I also confess any areas where I have diminished who You are. I pray now that as you help me to take away each of these coping mechanisms you would remind me that You are so much greater than any one of those circumstances. Remind me that because Jesus died and rose again, You have already conquered our fears and we can face tomorrow. Amen.

Jonathan's Personal Reflection - Follow up

A few of you have contacted me (re: my 2007 Personal Reflection) either in person or via email to encourage me or to let me know that you'll be praying for me. I really appreciate this. Those that know me well know that it is a part of my life that is close to my heart.

I wanted to leave a quick note here to let you know that I have set aside some time next week to do some journaling. Part of healing emotional wounds is just having an honest conversation with God about it. I covet your prayers in this area.

Jonathan's Personal Reflection for the New Year

Shortly before I went on my work trip to the Prairies, I tuned into FamilyLife's daily Radio broadcast and stumbled upon an interview with author Jen Abbas. She was talking about her experience as a child of divorce. It was part of a week long series on the effects of divorce in adult children of divorce. Because I too am a child of divorce, this definitely caught my attention! I made a point of listening to the entire week's broadcast. After the broadcasts, I asked Karen whether she could look into buying the audio version of the book for me as I felt I could benefit from reading the book. I felt God had some more things he wanted to work on my life through this. I also knew that in my upcoming trip there would have many hours of driving where I would be able to spend one on one time with my Father in heaven.

Well God certainly did not disappoint. Karen obtained the materials for me (thank you Karen!) and I brought them with me on my trip. Upon listening to the book, I felt an overwhelming sense of encouragement: I was not alone in my struggle to reconcile our culture's often "brave faced" approach to the effects of divorce with the reality that I face every day. Listening to her story and her research on the topic confirmed my deepest yet often cleverly masked feelings of inadequacy and ill-preparedness as I enter into new roles in my life as a husband and father. Children of divorce experience, as she describes, a "sleeper effect" where the effects of one's parents' divorce does not fully exhibit themselves until the child is involved in a relationship himself. Children of divorce also experience an interesting identity struggle as much of what defines who they are becomes tied to the experience of their parents divorcing.

Her articulation of this effect not only brought confirmation but caused me to acknowledge that I too was affected. This acknowledgment brought acceptance; it caused me to wake up. For the first time in a long time, I allowed God to begin healing me in this area.

Part of me is trembling for fear I have awoken a giant. Do I really want God to work on this part of my life? For one thing I am not on speaking terms with my own father, and all truth being told, I feel my relationship with my mother is strained. Working on either or both of these will just aggravate already tense emotions. Yet another part of me feels an overwhelming need to deal with this particularly as I grow to become a better father myself. After all, if all of us children of divorce really experience this sleeper effect what good then would it be if we were to remain asleep for the rest of our lives?

I did some thinking about this over my trip. Early on in my marriage, although I would have never recognized it before reading this book, I had really only one goal in mind for my marriage: I had resolved to make my marriage work, and do everything in my power to stay clear away from divorce. I probably would have never articulated it quite like that, but deep down, divorce and its effects was my greatest fear. I knew the dangers and set my "marriage" compass to steer as far away from it as possible.

Upon listening to the book, I realize that this unspoken goal, although stunning in today's culture is really far from noble. To simply marry and not be divorced isn't fulfilling! So, one of the things God taught me was that I ought to think about what I really desire my marriage to be about. Here are some of the things I came up with:

• I desire for my marriage and family to be one. I desire not only that we not separate but that we purpose to be one, to be whole, to be together.
  
• I desire for my marriage and family to be godly witnesses in our community just by virtue of who we are. I believe that if we allow it, God can work through us to have an impact on others just by virtue of living open, and transparent lives through the power of the Holy Spirit.
  
• I desire to leave a legacy for my children such that they will develop a personal relationship with Jesus and that they will have a heart after God's heart.

There you have it - my 2007 new year's reflection. As you can see, I believe God has been doing some pretty significant things in my life, and I believe He has some challenging goals for me for the New Year. As with many New Years resolutions, things often fall by the wayside when life gets busy or we otherwise get discouraged. Perhaps you can help me increase my chances: If you are a Christian and you are reading this entry, would you please pray through some of the items I have listed below, and leave a comment telling me you have done so? It would be a great encouragement. If you feel comfortable sharing, I'd also love to read your story of how God has healed you in the past too.

• Perseverance: Pray that I will continue to allow God to heal me in this area. Much of this healing involves dealing with issues that bring about emotional pain. Reconciling with people that have hurt you so deeply is a bit like taking the scab off a freshly sealed wound. I imagine that many issues may surface, some of which I may have consciously or subconsciously buried.
• Joy: Pray that I would experience joy as I discover each new thing and I offer the burden up to God. (Matt 11:30)
  
• Renewal: Pray that as God begins to heal me that he would strengthen my marriage through the experience.