Be A Landmark

I went  up to Kundasang to have a silent time so i could get away from all the distractions and  spend sometime searching for God. And to Listen to what God wants for me.

There are a few things i would want to Pray for:

1. Intimacy with God (i need a breakthrough)

2. God to speak to me regarding my current spiritual state

3. God to show me the vision for my spiritual life in the future (goal or dream or greater purpose)

4. That i may listen to God, be clear of distractions to really hear God.

5. Whether He wants me to go to Tung Ling seminary on 1st to 11th july or not

6. What kind of future or situation is He bringing me in the physical. (work and life)

7. For work (which job will delight Him if i do)

And Just as  i was spending time praying, I felt God is saying these things.

When you mention Sabah, you think of mount KK. It's like Mount KK is the icon of the State of  Sabah. Just as  Mount KK is the  landmark of Sabah. I felt God ask me to become a landmark. And to Be a landmark by first follow after Christ. I have to Wrestle, Fight, Run, Try, Endure, and Enjoy this journey. Have pleasure in doing these knowing God is with me. And to be Chrsitlike by obeying God. I Felt God is saying that i should focus on the "being" rather than the "doing". Because "being" is me but "doing" is my expression of love from being me. And through this becoming a model for many.

I felt  it is not fair! That the others don't deserve it. They don't deserve this sacrifice and hard work that i have to put into this. But then God said I don't do this for them but I am doing it for me and for God. Because God wants me to be more and more like Him. And I want to be the person God created me to be. And in being so, i will end up doing the things God wants me to do.

God place me on earth to be Christlike. Not to do things but to BE. Because my presence is important.

Luke 11:9 - 10

9 “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.

In Luke 11:9 - 10  says to ask and you will receive. So I started asking God, have I not been asking? Why is it that my dreams are not coming through? Should I ask for a longer period of time? What is happening?

So I started reading the entire chapter of  Luke 11 so to find out about the context God is speaking about. What is it that God is saying about us asking and he will answers?

And I felt strongly when I read this part in Luke 11: 2 - 4. And I Felt God is saying to me that I should be persistent in prayer in these.

Luke 11:1-4

2 So He said to them, “When you pray, say:

Our Father in heaven,

Hallowed be Your name.

Your kingdom come.

Your will be done

On earth as it is in heaven.

3 Give us day by day our daily bread.

4 And forgive us our sins,

For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.

And do not lead us into temptation,

But deliver us from the evil one.”

1. Your kingdom come, Your will be done

To seek His will first above all else.

2. Give us day by day our daily bread.

Ask God for Him (daily bread) daily so i am filled to Be Christlike.

To be able to endure and focus in this journey towards Christ-likeness.

3. And forgive us our sins, For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.

Ask for forgiveness and remember to forgive.

4. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.”

Pray and endure and have self control to overcome temptation.

This is a guide towards Christ-likeness, that God wants to remind me to focus on. 

Prayers:

Pray that We will open our ears and heart to listen to God

Pray that we will focus on things that is pleasing to God.

Pray that we have the strength to endure through while we learn to be Christ-like

By:

Andrew Tham

Imprinted into My Heart

9^th  Breakfast

A heart after God

Imprinted into My Heart

Genesis 23

As I Read the whole Chapter of Genesis 23, It came to me about 1 thing that I couldn’t understand.

                                

^{Genesis 23: 4-5}

⁴ “I am a foreigner and a visitor among you. Give me property for a burial place among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”

⁵ And the sons of Heth answered Abraham, saying to him, ⁶ “Hear us, my lord: You are a mighty prince among us; bury your dead in the choicest of our burial places. None of us will withhold from you his burial place, that you may bury your dead.”

Now first, The sons of Heth are Hittites and they are an idolatrous nation. They are non Jews and that means they do not recognize with the God Abraham is worshiping.

So This question came to me, Why is These people Putting so much honour and respect to Abraham, a foreigner among them?

Look clearly at their answer, the Hittites respect Abraham as a Mighty Prince.

Why?

Yes  Abraham is wealthy and mighty even to be able to challenge Kings. But is this enough to command such respects from a whole nation to the extend that they are willing to break their commandments of Selling burial place?

In the ancient times, they have this law that state selling and buying of burial land have to at least pay the minimum. It shouldn’t be for free. Even selling a land to the poor, they have to charge a minimum amount.

Then why would they break their law and wanted to give the land to Abraham for free?

In Deuteronomy 4:5-6

New King James Version (NKJV)

⁵ “Surely I have taught you statutes and judgments, just as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should act according to them in the land which you go to possess. ⁶ Therefore be careful to observe them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes, and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’

Through this, I learnt that because Abraham obeyed God’s voice, and he observed God’s safeguard, God’s commandments, God’s decrees, and God’s laws, Abraham Radiated True holiness. Which was keenly felt even by the idolatrous Hittites. The Hittites having recognized Abraham’s personal and spiritual greatness and together with his wealth, it was their natural behaviour to treat him in public with great honour even to the degree of lying about the terms of transaction. Because guest of honour receive gifts, not bills.

This story gives me an example of how people far away from God’s values relate positively to a personality who was indeed an authentic servant of God.

Deuteronomy 11:18-25

New King James Version (NKJV)

¹⁸ “Therefore you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. ¹⁹ You shall teach them to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. ²⁰ And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, ²¹ that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, like the days of the heavens above the earth.

²² “For if you carefully keep all these commandments which I command you to do—to love the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, and to hold fast to Him— ²³ then the Lord will drive out all these nations from before you, and you will dispossess greater and mightier nations than yourselves. ²⁴ Every place on which the sole of your foot treads shall be yours: from the wilderness and Lebanon, from the river, the River Euphrates, even to the Western Sea,^[a] shall be your territory. ²⁵ No man shall be able to stand against you; the Lord your God will put the dread of you and the fear of you upon all the land where you tread, just as He has said to you.

Let us follow God’s words and allow God to do great things in our lives.

Prayers:

Pray that God will help us abide in his ways and keep his commandments.

Pray that God would send the right people into our live to guide and help us.

Pray for a humble heart and allow God to give us favour of man.

Pray that God would help us shine his glory and  be a great person for Him.

By:

Andrew Tham

Sinking Sand, Helping Hand!

8^th  Breakfast

Sinking Sand, Helping Hand!

2 chronicles 7:6 (NKJV)

Nevertheless God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus

Yesterday, as  I was driving , my car got stuck in sand. I Tried to drive myself out of the sand but it only got deeper. So I decided to look for rocks and plank of wood. I placed them under my tyre and tried to step on the oil. However, everything goes deeper into the sand. I prayed so hard, asking God to give me a miracle. That my tyre could just get unstuck and I could go on with my plans. But sadly, No miracle happen. I started asking God the most frequently asked question. “WHY?”

As I think and try hard, I started to have an idea, which is to go to the nearby houses to ask for help. Maybe they have better ideas? But I still refuse to just go over to ask because I am afraid that it would be embarrassing. But after a while, I just went and look for help.

While walking I prayed to God that He would give me favour and help. It only takes around 5 minute for me to found help. A guy is spending his off day, fishing by the sea. He said he could help me, and drove his car using it to pull my car out from the sand. Praise God.

Many times when we face problems, we will ask God for help because we want to rely on God. That is Very true and it is the correct way. However, there are just too many things that as we want God to help us, we ignore any help around us.

There is this hidden mind-set in us that if we rely on people, we do not rely on God. However, in the bible, there are so many examples that God would use people to encourage us, to help us in times of need.

Paul as he is suffering, and during his low times, God sent Titus to encourage him. Just like when I am stuck in sand. No matter how I dig and put rocks below my tyre, I just cannot come out. Everything continues to go deeper.

All I need to do is to look next to me to find people. And as there is another person to help me I could move on. God works in many ways; let us not try to limit God. Look around you today, you might be able to find the help you need from someone else, and also be able to be of help to others.

No wonder God ask us to help one another.
“So encourage each other and build each other up” (1 Thessalonians 5:11)

Prayers:

Pray that God would send the right people into our live to guide and help us.

Pray for a humble heart and allow God to give us favour of man.

Pray for a Good start of the day that God will lead us in everything we do.

By:

Andrew Tham

FROG (Fully Rely On God)

1^st Breakfast

Read 2 chronicles 15 – 16

Many times when we face problems, we will focus on God and God will deliver us from our problems. However, as God helps us more and more. We slowly rely on our strength more than God. Sometimes we just could not notice it. Today as we read the word of God, let us learn that, we should constantly humble ourselves.

In 2 chronicles 14, King Asa Previously fought a war with the Ethiopians. His enemies have 1 million armies and 300 Chariots, where he only has 300 thousand spear warrior and 280 thousand bow warriors. He fought with the power of God, relying on God for it is a hard battle. In the end, they killed so many Ethiopians; they can hardly count, winning the war mightily.

Look at 2 Chronicles 15: 1-7, God gave his promise of protection, however God also warned His people to rely on Him no matter what happens. In 2 Chronicles 16: 7-14, God rebuke King Asa that he has rely on the power of another King rather than FROG – Fully Rely On God! Until the end, King Asa is heart hardened, that he still relies on the power of physicians when he is sick.

Through this, we should learn that God has in mind to build us strong to face problems. He warned us to follow him no matter what. Telling to have faith that, He would always be by our side. Let us learn to Fully Rely on God in everything we do and in every problem we face.

Prayers:

Pray that we have the faith to Fully Rely on God.

Pray for a humble heart and surrender your life to God.

Pray for a Good start of the day that God will lead us in everything we do.

By:

Andrew Tham

Spiritual Breakfast - Blessing In Disguise

7th Breakfast

Blessing In Disguise 

Read Genesis 39 : 22 -23

Ever Watch movie of ace this in real life? When someone who have authority over  you, tried to cause you to do mistake  by putting a few people under you. He/She might say " whatever mistakes your team make, it will be accountable to you". It is like, if  they make mistakes, it shall be  my mistakes. To make it worst, your superior place people under you that has all the bad record, attitude problem, and the worst you can ever have as a team.

Every time someone face this problem, they probable curse the superior for doing it. They will live in fear and loose hope. This is the worst situation to be in. Mistakes is inevitable with such a team. However, for Joseph, he react differently. Let us look at Genesis 39: 22

Genesis 39:22

New International Version (NIV)

²² So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there.

New King James Version (NKJV)

²² And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners who were in the prison; whatever they did there, it was his doing.

In both version, Joseph was made in-charged and also accountable for what the other prisoners do. Joseph Go through the same treatment we go through. Is this situation a blessing for him? It actually means, If a prisoner is murdered, Joseph is the murderer. If a prisoner is raped, Joseph is the Rapist. Again Joseph will get accused for what he has not done. He will be punished for something he did not do. In whatever sense, this situation is not fun for Joseph. 

However, because Joseph is close to God, he have God by his side and the favour of God. God turned a Disaster into a blessing for Joseph. Joseph was trusted by the  prison warden. 

Genesis 39:23

New King James Version (NKJV)

²³ The keeper of the prison did not look into anything that was under Joseph’s authority, because the Lord was with him; and whatever he did, the Lord made it prosper.

Through this, we learn to have  faith in God. No matter what type of situation we go through, God can make a disaster into a blessing. Trust In God. Most of the time, Blessing comes in Disguise.

Prayer:Pray that we can trust in God

Pray for faith to rise up in us

Pray for a good start of the day to walk in trust with God

Pray God will pull you through your situation

By:

Andrew Tham