DFC Weekly

Psalms being the obvious poetic sections of the Bible, as per academic classification of genres there are three others in this category: Song of Solomon, Jeremiah, and Lamentations (although some Hebrew scholars bunch Job as an early narrative poetry, while still more will include Genesis 1 as a poetic and theological preamble to the other creation narrative in Genesis 2). But Psalms in and of themselves have a lot of different kinds:

a. Thanksgiving and Adoration
(8,19, 29, 33, 65, 67, 81, 91, 95, 96, 98, 100, 103, 104, 105, 107, 111, 113, 114, 115, 117, 123, 124, 131, 133, 134, 135, 136, 145, 146, 147, 148, 149, 150)
b. Individual Praise
(11, 18, 23, 30, 32, 34, 40, 41, 46, 48, 66, 75, 84, 85, 92, 106, 108, 116, 118, 138, 139)
c. Individual Lament
(3, 4, 5, 6, 7,13, 17, 22, 25, 26, 27, 28, 31, 35, 39, 42, 43, 51, 54, 55, 56, 57, 63, 64, 69, 70, 71, 76, 77, 86, 88, 102, 109, 120, 130, 140, 141, 142, 143)
d. National Lament
(44, 74, 79, 80, 83, 90)
e. Royal
(2, 18, 20, 21, 45, 72, 89, 101, 132, 144)
f. Enthronement
(47, 93, 96, 97, 98, 99)
g. Songs of Zion
(42, 43, 87, 121, 122, 125, 126, 129)
h. Penitential
(6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, 143)
i. Imprecatory
(35, 58, 69, 83, 109, 137)
j. Messianic
(2, 16, 22, 24, 45, 72, 110)
k. Wisdom
(1, 9, 10, 12, 14, 15, 19, 36, 37, 49, 50, 52, 53, 73, 78, 82, 94, 112, 119, 127, 128)

One of the interesting categories that strike me, is “Imprecatory” or cursing Psalms. Why? Because these set of Psalms are extremely comforting in times of spiritual attack. There are times when even your best friends will turn on you, and there are times when you will realize that they had never even been truly friends. There are times when for no reason, you are plotted against by many and there are times you are ensnared and stumbled by malice. But Jesus and Paul’s teachings run decidedly antithetical to these Psalms. (Matt. 5:44 “But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” Luke 6:27 “But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,” Luke 6:35 “But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.”  Rom. 12:14 “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.”) These are hard teachings, and the ones that fulfill them consistently will be proven to be truly of God.

So who can we curse? I think it would not be unbiblical to curse the forces that clearly exist, both in the visible and invisible, that hinder our love relationship with God. These can be operative within the self, within a collective group, a territorial region or even a political boundary. When I was younger and more naïve, I used to think that I had no enemies. But when you have made an allegiance and commitment to the Truth of Jesus Christ, all sorts of enemies suddenly creep up into your life, both inwardly and through people of your intimate circle, through people that you would not have expected. It is always with the hope that they too will come to know the Lord, that we do not curse the people caught in a particular opposition against us. Instead we bless them with our prayers, our thoughts, and our actions. It is entirely appropriate to vent our vexations to God, as many of David’s Psalms abundantly show.

And some of the keener minds out there may be thinking, wait a minute, aren’t you just trying to spiritualize our opponents? Well, there is a spiritual priority to the material reality, they are not disconnected. On a concluding note, Woe to the spirits, who take pleasure in malice!

“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.” Gal. 1:3-5

This past Monday was Memorial Day, a day which our nation remembers those who gave their lives for what we appreciate the most about our nation- freedom to do whatever we want to do. But do we actually remember them, those young men and women who had actually fallen in battle for our nation? There are men like Richie M. who was shot in the forehead and who wore different colored socks on each foot for good luck. No one remembers Eddie G. who promised Julie W. that he would marry her right after he returned home from the war, but he never did as he fell on Iwo Jima.

But when we say such men “gave” their lives for our freedom, that would be an inaccurate statement. They didn’t give their lives, their lives were taken from them. They were compelled by circumstances to place themselves in harms way- but not a single one of them would say they willing gave their lives for their country. No, they had no choice, their lives were taken in horrific struggles in our least noble act, war.

There is one man who did freely gave His life- that man, Jesus Christ, “No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.” (John 10:18) Because of His sacrifice, we enjoy our freedom from the bondage of sin. His blood was the price for our freedom.

Memorial Day has become just another day off… bbqs, 18 rounds of golf, shopping deals at the local mall. I feel we need to give reflection to such men who gave their lives so that we can enjoy this day off. If you think about sacrifice- it should make us reflect about how we spend our freedom.

There is a story of Russ McGuiness, a 19 yr old who jumped on a grenade to save four of his fellow soldiers in Iraq. Ian Nooland, one of the surviving soldiers, believes he has to live every single day worthy of the sacrifice of his friend. Nooland now has opened a horse ranch in Colorado to help other veterans help cope with the war.

How are you using your freedom?  “Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called.” (Eph. 4:1) There was a price for your freedom, freedom from global threats, freedom from our bondage of sin. Be thankful and live worthy by utilizing your freedom properly. May God bless our country.

Pastor Sung Chang

“Then Noah began farming and planted a vineyard. He drank of the wine and became drunk, and uncovered himself inside his tent. Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it upon both their shoulders and walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were turned away, so that they did not see their father’s nakedness. When Noah awoke from his wine, he knew what his youngest son had done to him.  So he said, “Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants Canaan shall be to his brothers.” (Gen. 9:22-25)

Ever wonder whether your life really matters?  Ever wonder if each decision you make has a rippling effect upon others? Do you sometimes ask yourself whether the sacrifices you’ve made for your family will have any lasting effect?  Let me assure you, your life does matter and that each decision you make has consequential effects upon your family.

Noah was a righteous man but he made a mistake- one day, he drank too much and became drunk. From that one episode, he started a chain of events that had lasting impact upon generations to come. We do not know the relationship Noah had with Ham but from the Scriptures we can see that Ham mocked his drunken father which resulted in his family line being cursed. One decision led to a generational impact.

Your decisions do matter and I base this bold statement on two studies about how a person’s actions affect the lives of their family in generations that follow.  The research centered on the lives of two men:  Max Juke and Jonathan Edwards.  Here’s how the men lived and the legacy they left.

According to research conducted by Richard L. Dugdale in, “The Jukes: A Study in Crime, Pauperism, Disease and Heredity”, there was a man named Max Juke who lived in American colonial times.  Juke was reportedly an atheist who believed in dissipation, immorality.  He allegedly advocated free sex, had no formal education and hated imposed responsibilities.  Dugdale wrote that Juke was “‘a hunter and fisher, a hard drinker, jolly and companionable, averse to steady toil, working hard by spurts but mostly a life of idleness. He had a numerous progeny, some of them almost certainly illegitimate.”  In other words, Juke was neither principled person nor industrious.

Some years later, a gentleman named A. E. Winship studied what happened to the descendants of colonial era evangelist, Jonathan Edwards.  Edwards was everything Juke was not:  hardworking, God-fearing and Bible believing.  Edwards “was a godly minister who was credited with igniting The Great Awakening through his sermons. He served for a brief period just before his death as president of what is now known as Princeton University. He believed in leading by example. He authored two books on the subjects of physical fitness and kindness. Mr. Edwards later became involved in teaching people to be responsible for their daily actions.”

Certainly Juke and Edwards had an impact on their immediate families, but what about the generations to follow?  Here’s what happened in the years after Juke and Edwards died:

Of 1026 descendants of Max Juke, 300 were convicts, 27 were murderers, 190 were prostitutes and 509 were either alcoholics or drug addicts.   Dugdale was able to estimate that the Jukes had cost the State of New York almost $1.4 million dollars to house, institutionalize and treat the family of deviants.  By contrast, the 929 descendents of Jonathan Edwards included 13 college presidents, 86 college professors, 430 ministers, 314 war veterans, 75 authors, 100 lawyers, 30 judges, 66 physicians, and 80 holders of public office, including three U.S. Senators, seven congressman, mayors of three large cities, governors of three states, a Vice-President of the United States, and a controller of the United States Treasury.

Having a strong, disciplined and godly family does not guarantee success for generations to come.  But the studies of Juke and Edwards confirms what we know in our hearts.  The way we live our lives has a profound impact on people around us and on generations to come. We must be careful, then, how we live our lives, our families depend upon it. Live wisely, live each day making each decision for the glory of God- and remember, your grandchildren are watching. May God bless you.

Pastor Sung

“God blotted out every living thing that was upon the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky, and they were blotted out from the earth; and only Noah was left, together with those that were with him in the ark. 24The water prevailed upon the earth one hundred and fifty days…  But God remembered Noah” (Gen. 7:23-24; 8:1)

This past Sunday was my graduation ceremony from seminary. Four years of arduous study is now officially over. The ceremony was more impactful than I had expected. I never gave too much thought about ceremonies in my life, birthdays, graduations, etc. But in the midst of the ceremony, I began to reflect upon what has been accomplished, to the point where I became overwhelmed with God’s faithfulness. It climaxed when they called all the graduates to kneel at the steps before the podium while the faculty placed their hands on us all as John MacArthur prayed for us.

I finally made it. It was so emotional because of how difficult the journey had been (going back to school at 40, learning Hebrew that resemble elvish more than a human language, the all nighters, the endless hours of commuting and even a semester of sitting out). It was so emotional because through it all, I can only credit God for getting me through. I can still remember my first day of class, 7:30 Hebrew class and I was wondering if I made the right decision quitting my job and going back to school. There were many times when I doubted what God was doing in my life.

I am sure Noah felt the same way. Imagine God telling you to build a huge boat in your backyard in preparation for a flood. People ridiculing him since no one has even seen rain before. He gathers the animals and boards the ark as God closes the door. And then silence.
God doesn’t say a thing. Imagine not hearing a word, not one answered prayer for an entire year. That was Noah on the ark.

“The water prevailed upon the earth one hundred and fifty days…” (Gen. 7:24) Maybe you are going through such a flood right now, unemployment, a breakup, singleness or loneliness, maybe your church is waiting for a shepherd, personal sickness, to finish school, debt, or even a death in the family… What are you to do? What did Noah do those endless days on the ark?

The answer… what he had always done, he was faithful, “Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God” (Gen. 6:9), “Noah did everything just as God commanded him.” (Gen. 6:22; 7:5) Noah fed the animals every single day, he was such a faithful steward that he didn’t lose a single animal on the voyage! He continued to be a priest to his family, a faithful husband and father. He did everything just as God commanded him. That is the epitome of being a righteous and blameless man.

But as the page turns to Genesis chapter 8, I love what it says, “BUT God remembered Noah.” And in the midst of your own personal “flood” God remembers you too! That is the faithfulness of our God. He finally speaks to Noah, “Then God said to Noah, ‘Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives.’” (Gen 8:15) Just as God remembered Noah, He remembers us too.

Each one of us will go through our own “flood” as God calls us into the ark and there will be times of silence but never misunderstand the silence for God forgetting you, but rather “The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and His ears are attentive to their cry” (Psm 34:15). You can be certain of that and you can rest assure that He will someday instruct you that it is time to come out of the ark. The rain will cease, the clouds will part and you will see that beautiful rainbow! That day came for me this past Sunday and I can not stop praising my God! That day will come for you too but in the meantime, be righteous and blameless by walking with the Lord and doing everything just as God commands you. May God bless you as He remembers you.

Pastor Sung

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. – James 4:13-14

We are in a midst of a major dilemma and I wonder how many of us realize it. With our world becoming ever more sophisticated and complicated, technology is advancing exponentially to help us manage it all. But as more complicated our lives become, have you realized that time is passing proportionately? The days, the weeks, the months, the years just pass us by too quickly. Our lives are passing by way to quickly… I never imagined that I would be forty years old and I’m not… I am forty two!

The problem can be blamed due to just one reason- days pass us by so fast because we are anxiously looking forward to tomorrow. We are never content where we are in life, kids want to teenagers, teenagers want to be adults, adults are so consumed with getting head to the point that they reminisce about being a kid again just to escape being drowned in sea of responsibility.

I recently heard a weather man say that “summer is just around the corner.” Well, it’s not. The first day of summer is June 21- that is still fifty three days away! What’s the rush? I am still trying to just take a break so that I can enjoy the spring.

Planning for the future is the culprit. Making plans a month in advance does appear to make the current month pass that much quicker doesn’t it? I am looking forward to May because I like May but by looking forward to May, I didn’t realize that April is already over! The days that seem to last a while are the days where we haven’t plan anything. Those are the days we need more of so that we can just live in the moment. That is the lesson James is teaching- why are you planning for tomorrow, “yet you do not know what tomorrow brings. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.”

I guess there is no way around our planning, but may we just slow down. The less complicated your life becomes you will begin to realize how much longer your days will be. Slow down, smile a little more, commit to a random act of kindness, hug your kids and kiss your spouse and savor each day before the vapor of our lives disappears. Savoring each day is how we can give thanks to the Lord for each day is a blessing from our gracious Lord. God bless.

Pastor Sung

“For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. 8But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.”  Romans 5:7-9

It is a given to say that the greatest blessing in life are our loved ones. God so rich in His gracious love for us have surrounded us with so many people that are precious to each of us. But here is a thought, “Do we come to appreciate our loved ones more in times of pleasure or difficulty?” Sure we love being with people we love in our leisure, going on vacations, spending a leisure day at the park or the mall or just snuggling at home. Or do we come to appreciate them more in our times of difficulty?

The other day after I picked up my kids from school, Kylie, my youngest daughter, wanted to make for herself some soba noodles topped off with boiled eggs. She asked me how long she should boil the eggs and she went about preparing her meal. A few minutes later, I came down to the kitchen to find her sitting on the floor whimpering like a little, lost dog. I asked her what was wrong and why she was crying. She replied that every time she tries to make boiled eggs, the shells would not cooperate and she is left with mangled eggs.  I took out the eggs and best I could savaged what I could and placed them on her noodles. I dried her eyes and encouraged her to eat her prepared meal. A little while later, I came over to see how she was fairing and to my delight, she finished the bowl of eggs and noodles. “It wasn’t pretty but it eats good doesn’t it Kylie?” She didn’t say a word, she just wrapped her arms around me and hugged me tightly. Without words, it was one of those father/daughter moments where daddy is my hero. Dads live for those moments.

Our lives too can turn out to be a bowl of noodles and messed up eggs. We think we know exactly what we want but some how the eggs won’t cooperate. Aren’t those the times when we can turn to our God, “Come unto Me all who are weak and burdened and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28) What a wonderful invitation we have from our Christ! And that invitation is made possible because God in His infinite love offered His Son for our messed up eggs, that is how He “demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

Yes, there is such joy in abiding in Christ each and everyday but isn’t it great to know that when we have rainy days, we have a God who has promised us that  “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you. 6So we say with confidence, The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.” (Heb 13:5-6) What a hero we have in Christ!

How gracious is our mighty God who saves, who saw us in our plight and showed us love in the incarnation of His own Son to die for us so that He can be there for us each and everyday. Something we can appreciate when viewed in our past, difficult state- the wretchedness of our sins. Praise God today as you accept His invitation for His peace and His rest. May God bless you.

Pastor Sung

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul. Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation.” – 1 Peter 2:9-12

I have been faithful to my New Year resolution, thirty-six days and counting. No diet soda, no sugar, a low salt diet and going to the gym four times a week. The gym is an interesting place, you see a vast host of different individuals there, a wonderful opportunity to speak with people from different walks of life. There are the busy professionals, trying to get a good sweat during their lunch break, there are the elderly who try so desperately to turn back time and there are the “watchers” or the “scammers” who come to check out the crowd but the most intriguing are the “gym rats,” those guys who seem to be there every time you go. I wonder if they have a life outside of the gym. They practically live there. And some of those guys are yoked, I mean massive, muscles bulging from everywhere.

But one thing I also notice about them is that while their upper body is massive, their lower body is often neglected. They mostly have “chicken legs.” I am sure it is because the arms, “guns” are the most distinctive and surely makes the greatest impression on others. But what some may not realize is that to have large “guns,” the key lies in the tricep muscle not the bicep. People who want impressive arms may initially try to enlarge the frontal muscle, the bicep, but to have massive “guns,” the tricep is the larger of the two muscles.

What does having “big guns” have to do with Christianity? Quite simply this… just as one would develop the tricep muscle to enlarge your arms, the same holds true to a Christian’s life in terms of attracting people not to your arms but to Christ. The tricep develops by one “pushing” weights away from the body whereas the bicep develops by “pulling” weights to the body. For a Christian to be the light and salt of the earth, he must first push sins away before he can pull sinners to Christ. That is what the Apostle Peter writes, “I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul. Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles” If we have not yet abstained from our sins (pushing the sins away), then we have disqualified ourselves from the ministry, “A chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession.” You have been saved from your sins because “but now you have received mercy“ and now we are called not to continue in our sins but to do good works so that “they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God.”

So I ask you, “How big are your guns?” Are you still focusing on “pulling” people to Christ without first “pushing” away the sins of your life? If so, you have pretty underdeveloped arms and never strong enough for the task set forth by our Lord. “Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul. Keep your behavior excellent… so that they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God.” Keep pumping the weights and build your guns for the Lord. May the Lord be pleased in all your ministries in His holy name. God bless you.

Pastor Sung

“Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” – Phil. 3:13-14

I can’t believe we are at the end of January of 2010 already. One question, “How are your New Year resolutions?” I know many of us had made resolutions at the beginning of this year. For some, they are already a distant memory. I just have one thing to say, “Press on!”

Let me just share a quick story to encourage you to never give up. As some of you are aware, I just received my Masters degree in Divinity (MDiv) this past year. But before my completion, I had one huge obstacle, an obstacle according to legend. The class was called “New Testament Interpretation.” According to all, it was the most difficult class in our curriculum. Some students have repeated the class two or even three times. Some students have yet to graduate just because of this one class.

With all the buildup, I was very diligent in taking good notes and paying close attention so that I would not delay my graduation and continue to financially burden my family. I was also anxious to serve my church on a full time basis as well. As the mid-term approached, I thought I was in good standing. I was prepared and just for insurance, I was planning an all nighter. Just then, I received an e-mail from a fellow student who had study notes from a student who took the class the previous year. When I saw all the material that was necessary, I realized I was ill prepared and an all nighter would be insignificant. I just tried to focus and study as hard as I could.

Then about 3:30 in the morning, I came to the conclusion there was not enough time and I was going to flunk the exam. Heavy hearted, I made my way up to our bedroom to break the news to my wife. I apologized and asked for her forgiveness that I would have to retake the class. She was extremely understanding and encouraged me that all things would work out in His time. Whew!!! All the weight of the world just disappeared. Not only did my wife understand but now I didn’t have to study anymore, I could get a nice night of sleep and take my time to get to school the next day to drop the class! But as I made my way down the stairs to close my books, another weight came upon me- conviction. I just knew quitting was not right. I sat back down and I was determined to study and go into the exam and take the test even though I knew I didn’t have a chance.

The next morning, I went into the class and prayed, not that God would do a miracle but that even though I would fail, God would be glorified in my pressing on. I took the exam and left the class encouraged by my effort. Next week the scores were posted. I looked at my name and I got a 92! I had tears just reflecting upon God’s faithfulness. This would be a lesson on faith that I would never forget, not that God will always promise to prosper me but that when I choose to honor Him, He will honor me (1 Samuel 2:30).

Beloved, God is not glorified in quitting nor will He honor quitters. Therefore, “Press on!” Just as Paul said, don’t let your past haunt you, to discourage you, press on. Unbelievers will always allow their past to effect their future, but not the believer, we have hope, not in hope itself but a hope in a forgiving God. Our past has been nailed to the Cross, therefore, “press on!” May you feel the pleasure of the Lord each day you press on! God bless.

Pastor Sung

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”  Joshua 1:9

It’s difficult being a pastor’s kid. Just ask my kids. Not because they come under scrutiny nor criticized for not being flawless, but because they live with a preacher (i.e. a lecturer). Poor kids! The other day, I told them to do their chores and like average kids, they take their sweet, old time. That can only mean one thing- family devotion! I sat them down and asked them if they liked being told what to do. I was met with a roll of the eyes as if that was to be a rhetorical question and how silly on my part to ask such a question.

From there, I began to explain to them the inherent nature of a relationship that lies underneath of being told what to do. Joshua 1:9 is a perfect example. Joshua is now the leader of the nation of Israel. Moses has passed the baton to him and Joshua is petrified of the task that lies ahead of him. So how does God overcome his fears? How does God offer sweet solace? He tells him what do. And why? Because God loves Joshua.

For there to be commands, there must be a hierarchy, a system where one gives orders and another receives them. But not only must a hierarchal system exist, but there must also be a relationship much like a boss/employee, teacher/student, a parent/child, God/God’s people. Without a relationship, there is no respect, no desire to fulfill the commands.

One day as I was driving home, I exited the freeway and onto the off ramp. As I approached the signal light, I noticed the driver of the car ahead of me toss out his cigarette. When the light turned green, I drove up next to him at the next signal light and I noticed that he was but a teenager, no older than eighteen. I asked him to be careful since we recently underwent tense moments from recent wildfires. He just looked at me and offered a gesture with a finger. And why would I not be surprised… I had no relationship with him. I wasn’t his father or brother nor his youth pastor. I was nothing to him so my request, my wishes fell to deaf ears.

“Have I not commanded you?” Joshua could face all this responsibilities, face all the enemies of Canaan, face all the headaches of being a leader because he knows God loves him. And why? Because God tells him what to do.

So the next time you receive a command, greet it with a smile because a command is a coded message simply saying, “I love you.”

May God bless you.

Pastor Sung

“Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting.” – Psalm 107:1

At our church every year, we have a revival for the Korean Ministry. I was told a few years ago we had a missionary who served as a prison guard for many years of his life. He offered a series of personal testimonies. He spoke of the difference of those who knew the Lord versus those who did not know God and how they faced their execution. The most hardened criminals would face the gallows with a glow of peace about them once they had gave their lives to Christ. But there was one particular Buddist, a spiritual leader who was renown for his moral behavior while in prison, who faced the gallows with such a different attitude. The missionary said that as they brought him toward the gallows, he was screaming and cursing with every ounce of his breath expressing the greatest fear of death.

“Cowards die many times before their deaths. The valiant never taste of death but once.” -William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar

The exit of those who know Christ is far different than those who do not. Polycarp, the early church father, was commanded to denounce his faith in Jesus Christ. His reply… “Eighty-six years I have known Him and served Him and He has not once betrayed me. How then can I now blaspheme my King and Savior?” They then burned him at the stake.

The Apostle Paul was martyred in Rome and in the last days of his life, he was tormented by many who betrayed him. He writes in his last epistle, “Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. Be on guard against him yourself, for he vigorously opposed our teaching. At my first defense no one supported me, but all deserted me; may it not be counted against them.” (2 Tim. 4:14-16)

But even with the freshness of betrayal on his thoughts, the Apostle died with praise upon his lips, “But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me… The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.” (vv. 17-18)

The reality of our faith does not rapture us at the moment of our deaths but it rings loudly in our living. Separated from friends, unjustly accused, brutally treated, if any man had a right to complain it was Paul. But while languishing in prison, Paul’s lips were not filled with complaints but with words and songs of thanksgiving!

Just look at his life, in prison in Philippi, “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.” (Acts 16:25) Read his words from another prison epistle, “Be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Eph. 5:18-20)

It was certain that those around him saw and heard his thanksgiving. Who is to say that the Pretorian guards who guarded Paul were not instumental in influencing the Emperor Constantine when he made Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire.

To Paul, thanksgiving was not a once in year attitude but it rang loudly for he “gave thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thess. 5:18) everyday of his life. Thanksgiving was a daily reality that made him a joyful person. How about you? Is there a reality greater than the goodness of God in your life? May God bless you richly.

“Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting.” – Psalm 107:1

Pastor Sung