Pastor's Corner by Larry Tong

March 2007

Chinese are blessed! We have two New Year to celebrate. Two months after we celebrated New Year on January 1st, we once again celebrated Lunar New Year earlier last month. This is the Year of the Boar. I don’t know enough of the history behind the twelve chosen Live Stocks to represent the cyclical Lunar Calendar. The significance of the Year of the Boar is beyond my understanding, but behind the rich Chinese culture is a yearning—blessings bestow from Heaven.

Blessings! Who doesn’t want to be blessed? I believe every culture intrinsically is looking for blessings from above. But then, who can provide the blessings that we need? I had a chance to visit Mexico City during this Lunar New Year for a Short Term Missions trip. For sight-seeing, we visited two pyramids, which stand a few hundred yards apart from each other. The courageous and physically fit members of the team climbed a few hundred steps to the top of the taller pyramid. It wasn’t too bad, even for an old man like me who was able to reach the top. The view was great! The top isn’t pointed as the Egyptian Pyramids we often seen, but it is flat. The natives built these two pyramids long ago to worship the Sun-god and the Moon-god.

As I stood on the top looking afar, I thought of what the Apostle Paul told the people in Rome. He said, “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.” It is so true that when we open our eyes to see the creation, we have no choice but to admit that there is a Creator, and that the Creator has eternal power and divine nature far beyond our understanding and ability to match His power. If I wanted to be blessed, I would like to receive it from the Creator. Unfortunately, every civilization worshipped the created (Sun, Moon, Stars, Rivers and so on) rather than the Creator. Long time ago, Chinese worshipped the “Heaven Above.” It was only after the emperors made themselves “Sons of Heaven” that we see people started to worship men and other created things. What a pity! We abandoned worshipping God for lesser idols. How nice it would be for Chinese to return worshipping the Creator rather than the created!

The Bible tells us that the Creator desires people to be connected with Him so that He can pour His blessings to those who believe. We see God through nature. We know God through the Bible. Jesus Christ is the bridge that connects the chiasm between God and men. Without Jesus as the bridge, no one can cross the chiasm to reach the Almighty God no matter how hard he tries.

Before I sign off, I wish all of you a belated Happy and Healthy Lunar New Year. God does want to bless you from above. He wishes you to accept His free gift of Salvation so that you may enjoy an eternal dwelling in Heaven with Him.

Pastor Larry

Pastor's Corner

March, 2005

Being lost is a terrifying experience. When my family gets together, one of the favorite pastimes is to sit around and catch up with the “good ole times.” Maybe all of us are getting old because we enjoy talking about our childhood. From time to time, I am reminded that as a toddler, I had gotten lost once because I wandered away on my own. My brothers and sisters were supposed to look after me, but they wanted to play. They bought me some snacks and asked me to wait until they returned. I started to wander away after I finished eating. I was too young to have remembered anything, but one thing I do know is that the feeling of being lost is scary.

Without vision, it is easy to get lost in the shuffle of life. The busyness of life can easily entangle us, and gradually causes us to lose grip of the purpose and direction of life. Vision is important, especially for churches. Vision allows us to plan for the future and evaluate the present. We aren’t looking into a crystal ball and trying to interpret the future. Rather, true vision is seeing what we can become in the future. The Bible says, “Without vision, people perish.” We thank the founding fathers of our church, who set a long-term vision for us. The goal was to plant another church. It has been twenty-five years since this church started her ministries in Milpitas . We’ve gone through a lot, but one fact remains: we still haven’t planted another church. I believe if we continue to be obedient, we will one day experience the joy of seeing the expansion of God’s Kingdom through church planting.

The founders of this church also have another vision. When we first started the church, we saw the importance of having its own sanctuary. Within the first few months of existence, a “Building Project Committee” was formed. We began looking into acquiring properties to build instead of continuing to rent. Looking back, it was a great vision. Who can afford any real estate at the current price? God allowed us to see that the vision is within His will because the church outgrew the fellowship hall we were using at Park Victoria Baptist Church in a short time. This is not an exaggeration by any means, but God miraculously brought us the “old house.” What was amazing was that we could walk across the parking lot to the neighboring church, Emmanuel Baptist Church , for worship after Sunday school classes! Near the time we outgrew the worship space at Emmanuel, we were able to purchase the empty lot adjacent to the “old house.” Due to lack of resources at that time, we decided to first build a fellowship hall to temporarily use as a worship place, with the vision that a main sanctuary would be built in the future. It is time for us to move ahead to finish this task, and bring the vision to reality. I am thankful to the founders of this church because they had visions. A clear vision allows us not to get lost.

“Vision that looks inward become duty; Vision that looks outward becomes aspiration; Vision that looks upward becomes faith.” The “Building Project Committee” invites you to attend a special meeting during lunch to give you an update of the project and also to share with you how to get involved in turning this vision into reality. In addition, I will be preaching on a related message that morning. Let us together capture this “Vision in Faith.”

Pastor's Corner

March, 2004

The hottest news these days in the Bay Area isn’t the Presidential campaign. It is the gay-marriage, initiated by Mayor Gavin Newsom of San Francisco . His initiation came at the heel of the Massachusetts Supreme Court decision on equal right for the gays and lesbians as “partners” for life. In spite of the outcry of social conservatives, Mayor Newsom’s provocative action went on as expected. By the time I wrote this article, there were about 2500 marriage licenses issued during this Valentine weekend. More people will be lined up in the coming days to get on the bang-wagon. Legally speaking, these marriages are primarily symbolic and may not be valid at all because they are illegal in the courts of both State and Federal government. How this “mess” is going to play out in court leaves to be seen.

As I was following the news, I couldn’t stop to think how a mayor of a metropolitan city could do such a defiant thing. Knowing gay marriage is illegal in California , how could he order the city clerk to prepare illegal marriage licenses? This act of “defiance” brought forth a new level of moral standard, or should I say “sub-standard.” Being a mayor, I thought he took an oath to uphold the State law he serves under. Obviously, he disagrees with the written and implied law of the State on marriage. But still, as an elected official, representing a city, he should be a model for the rest of the citizens to follow. This is a case of misused authority. It is equally strange that I haven’t heard or read anything on this issue at all. We are at an age of moral declination. I wonder how far would it slide before God will say, “Enough!”

As Christians, how should we work this through? First, I think we should do all diligent to uphold the local laws. Wherever you turn to the Bible, we are told to submit to authority, whether agree with it or not. Too many Christians misquoted, “We must obey God rather than men!” The context is that we must obey God to preach the gospel in spite of men’s opposition. We obey local laws because God, in His infinite wisdom, allows even evil government to rule. Second, we need to fulfill our obligation as citizen to vote for what is biblical. If we forfeit our “rights,” we are the ones to blame. Third, we must keep our faith regardless of how corrupt morality is in the society. We may not know why it seems that God isn’t doing anything about it. Let us remember that God isn’t blind nor is He indifferent. The Bible tells us in II Peter that Lot was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men. Seeing that, God rescued the righteous men from trials by putting the unrighteous for the Day of Judgment.

Before I sign off, I would like to encourage you to keep up your faith and not to let lawlessness affect your moral. If you have yet to accept Christ as your Savior, I pray that you will because God doesn’t want to judge you with the lawless ones.

Pastor's Corner

March, 2003

This week during our “Family Time,” we read an article, titled “His Workmanship”, from The Finishing Touch by Charles Swindoll. I thought it was insightful and would like to share it with you. In respect to the copyright law and the length of the article, I’m unable to reprint the entire article for you. I’ll just quote to a few comments he made.

“We sometimes clothe the infinite riches of Christ in unattractive rags! As a result, the treasure of Truth is tainted and cheapened by the way it is presented to the public.” He mentioned that given any town, there would be unattractive church structures surrounded with pathetic landscaping. Inside those buildings were the cheapest quality of furnitures, carpets, musical instruments, and sound systems possible. To put it bluntly, he wrote, “I’ll tell you, it takes all the forces of heaven and the prevailing prayers of the saints just to get a visitor into a place like that, much less get him or her saved or spiritually turned on. That’s why Satan dances with glee when churches cut every financial corner and emphasize only their so-called ‘stand for truth’.” How true! I remembered the words of God spoken through the prophet Haggai, “Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin? . . . Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with his own house” (Haggai 1). I see that God has no problem in us fixing up our own homes, but at the same time, we shouldn’t give God’s house the “left-over.” If we can help it, nobody wants to live in a dirty and ugly home, but then, why would we think that God doesn’t mind such treatment?

He also wrote, “Several years ago a man told me that his first contact with a Christian was so offensive he ‘never wanted to hear about Jesus again.’ He said the person who witnessed to him had bad breath and body odor, never once smiled, was dressed in clothing completely out of date, and angrily close his remarks, with, ‘Don’t blame Jesus if you go to hell’.” Yes, there are obnoxious Christians that turn people off. We may even have come across a few of our own. Sometimes, I feel that it would be better to lock those people up so that they can’t further damage the image of God. The author concluded, “Let’s not change our message. But it will be worth it to change our appearance from the ugly duckling to the swan. We are His workmanship, and all we do should reflect that beauty and grace.” And the Finishing Touch was, “Sometimes people can’t see past us to hear our message. We never have a second chance to leave a first impression.”

Before I sign off, I ask you to challenge yourselves to better present our Lord Jesus Christ. We sometimes challenge others too much and fail to see our own short-comings. Every great movement starts from the “self.”

Pastor Larry

Pastor's Corner

March, 2002

Looking back at the series of preaching on the Beatitude, I can understand why the “world” in general is having a difficult time understanding the teachings of the Bible. The reason is because Jesus taught that happiness (blessed) is free! People in this country spend billions of dollars each year on the obsessive pursuit of happiness—on houses to live in, cars to drive, gourmet food to enjoy, clothes to wear, and cosmetic to hide defects (men and women alike -- sorry guys). People are hopelessly addicted to advertising hype that makes them feel left out if they don’t buy a particular product. Companies that are paying millions of dollars for 30 seconds of commercial during Super Bowl game aren’t doing it for entertainment; they want you to feel “good” having their products in your hand! What a great technique!

In the midst of chasing happiness, the phrase, “Are we having fun yet?” keeps ringing in our ears. If toys, no matter how you define it, can make us happy, Americans, especially us who are living in the Bay Areas, would be deliriously happy . . . but are we? One statistic shows that one out of three Americans wake up depressed every morning. This is somewhat odd, because we do happy things and we have happy times. There is even “happy hour” for bars, but we are not happy people. Life experience shows that it’s full of disappointments. So often, it doesn’t work out as we had hoped for. Like a child traveling long distant always asked, “Are we there yet?” we operate under the delusion that happiness is just around the corner. “When I . . . then I’ll be happy.” At each happening, we ask the same question, “Is this it?” The smell of the leather seat in a new car sure smells great, but how long does the smell last? Whatever you are looking for, when you get it, it might give you an instant thrill, yet in a brink of an eye, you would fall back to ask the same question over again.

One day we all must realize that happiness is not a destination where we eventually arrive but a journey we take. We are happy because we are on a journey to the Promised Land. Once you recognize that you’re on this journey, you would have a different outlook in life. The Beatitude (Matt. 5:3-12) shows us the prescription for happiness: en-route to the kingdom of heaven, be comforted, be filled, shown mercy, see God, approved by God, and will receive great rewards. If we look carefully at these promises, we would be able to see that happiness is the result of God’s involvement in our lives. Only through Him can we find true and lasting happiness.

Before I sign off, I wish all of you find Jesus as your Savior. If you haven’t and would like to inquire how to do it, please contact us. If you have, I pray that you continue to grow in His grace and be connected with Christians’ fellowship.

Pastor Larry

Pastor's Corner

March, 2001

I received the following story through e-mail today sent by one of our members to her fellowship group. I would like to share it with you. The story is lengthy; therefore, I have to concise it in order to "fit" the page of the newsletter. I’ll try my best to retain its originality.

The story goes like this: Before the pastor gave his Evening Service message, he told the congregation that a guest minister would like to share before he spoke. An elderly man stepped up to the pulpit and began to speak. "A father, his son, and a friend of his son were sailing off the Pacific Coast. A fast approaching storm came and it was impossible for them to return to the coast. Though the father was an experienced sailor, yet he wasn’t able to keep the boat from being capsized by the waves. Grabbing a rescue line, the father had to make the most excruciating decision of his life: to which boy he would throw the other end of the life line? He only had seconds to make the decision. The father knew that his son was a Christian and he also knew that his son’s friend was not. The agony of his decision could not be matched by the torrent of waves. The Father yelled out, ‘I love you, son!’ He threw out the life line to his son’s friend. By the time the father had pulled the friend back to the capsized boat, his son had disappeared beneath the raging swells into the dark of the night. His body was never recovered. The father knew his son would step into eternity with Jesus and he could not bear the thought of his son’s friend stepping into an eternity without Jesus. Therefore, he sacrificed his son to save the son’s friend. How great is the love of God that He should do the same for us. Our heavenly Father sacrificed His only begotten Son that we could be saved. I urge you to accept His offer to rescue you and take a hold of the life line He is throwing out to you in this service." With that, the old man turned and sat back down in his chair. After the service, two teenagers who listened with interest during the service went to the old man. "That was a nice story," one of them said, "but I don’t think it was very realistic for a father to give up his only son’s life in the hope that the other boy would become a Christian." "Well, you’ve got a point there," the old man replied, "its sure isn’t very realistic, is it? But I’m standing here today to tell you that story gives me a glimpse of what it must have been like for God to give up His Son for me. You see—I was that father and your pastor is my son’s friend."

It is unusual to experience what it’s like to give up the one you loved to save another. God doesn’t ask everyone to do the same, yet God does expect us to sacrifice "some" in return for His giving His only Son to us. That’s what Missions is all about. The question remains: What are you willing to give up?

Pastor Larry

Pastor's Corner by Pastor Larry Tong

June 2009

Sometime during the crazy Hippie era in the Sixty’s and Seventy’s when everything went crazy, emotions somehow took priority over almost every decision. I think it must have been something to do with the rampage of smoking marijuana. Feeling became more important than thinking, even more important than common sense. Objective reasoning took second place to subjective feeling. The line between right and wrong became blurred, and life started to revolve around how one’s felt. “If it feels good, do it!” or “If it feels good, it ain’t bad!” became the common philosophy of life. Oh really? If you spend just an extra minute or two to think about that philosophy of life, you would realize that there are so many flaws in it. Things that make us feel good aren’t necessarily good for us. To take this a little further, “feel good” isn’t necessarily legal or moral. Feeling isn’t the gauze by which we set the standard of living.

We have to understand that there is nothing wrong with emotions. As a matter of fact, God made us emotional beings. And feelings are part of life. Imagine the coldness if there is no feelings. Thanks to feelings that spring from emotion, we have compassion for those who are hurting, we care for the poor children living in the third world, we anger when we see injustice done to the innocents, we share laughs with those who are funny, shed tears with those who are in sorrow, we have peace with God when we walk within His will, and so many other examples. We even have different levels of intimacy when relate to others. I love my wife a lot more than I love yours. I love my children more than I love yours. How empty life would be without those and countless of other feelings!

With that said, it is crystal clear that emotions are good and necessary, but the secret of it all is to have good control. While emotions add color and spontaneity to our daily life, we need to understand that it must be under control. This is what the Bible teaches in one facet of the spiritual fruit—self control. Like a river, our feelings need to run within their well-defined and controlled boundaries, or they will flood out of control and cause disaster. I don’t know about you, I have had experience that I allowed my emotions to take a better of me, and caused troubles too “hot” to handle.

Before I sign off, I would like to recommend for you to read the Bible every day, for in it, God gives you many guideposts to live a harmonious life that we are originally designed to live, on top of having a pathway to Heaven. This pathway isn’t limited to the knowledge of knowing who Jesus is, but also to love God with our mind (intellect), heart (emotions), and soul (determination). Oh, how I wish you will follow this pathway to Heaven!

Pastor Larry

Pastor's Corner by Pastor Larry Tong

June 2008

Happy Father’s Day! To all the fathers, I hope you will have a relaxing day with your family, enjoying each other’s company. Yes, relax and enjoy. I know, most of our wives think that we are already too relaxed anyway, so we don’t need a special day to relax. They may be right, but for the most part and contrary to what women think, we, men, are more intense, not necessarily work harder than women. For that, I decided on writing something “light” this month, so just relax and enjoy a few good, clean jokes.

I received a joke that was sent to me some times ago, but I can’t remember all the details. It must have something to do with my age, and of course, the make-up of a man’s brain—easy to forget and having selective memory. You see, we always forget what our wives tell us to do, like taking out the garbage, and those unnecessary works. Anyway, the joke goes something this: One time, a man went to a mental institute wanting to learn how it operates. While he was visiting, he realized that there were different wards for different types of patients. He asked the director how the institute determines which ward a patient belongs to. The director replied: “We have a very simple test to determine the severity level of the mental capacity of each patient. We will bring a patient before a bathtub that is filled with water. We give a teaspoon, a bowl, and a bucket to the patient, and ask the patient to remove the water as fast as he can. Which apparatus the patient uses will determine his mental capacity, and in turn determines which ward to place him.” At this point, the director turned to the man and asked, “By the way, which apparatus will you use?” The man replied, “That’s a no-brainer! Of course I will use the bucket.” To that, the director said, “Maybe I need to keep you here for observation.” “Why?” The man asked. “Normal people simply unplug the stopper!”

Here is a marriage joke. Now, it’s just a joke, so don’t take it too seriously. A man who had been married for ten years was consulting a marriage counselor. “When I was first married, I was very happy. I’d come home from a hard day down at the shop, and my little dog would race around barking, and my wife would bring my slippers. Now everything’s changed. When I come home, my dog brings my slippers, and my wife barks at me.” “I don’t know what you’re complaining about,” said the counselor. “You’re still getting the same service.”

Here is another joke: A businessman happened to be staying in a hotel where a group of ministers was holding a conference. The next morning was very cold and as the businessman approached the dining room, he noticed the ministers gathered around a blazing log fire in the dining area. He was freezing and tried to get close to the fire but the ministers blocked the way. The businessman sat for a few minutes shivering in the cold. Suddenly he shouted, “Last night I dreamed I was in hell.” “Really?” said one of the ministers. “What was it like?” The businessman replied, “Not much different than right here. I couldn’t get near the fire, for all the ministers were in the way.”

As I said it last month, “A cheerful heart is good medicine.” A cheerful heart involves thought process, feelings and behaviors. Someone has said that “Humor is the shortest distance between two people.” Therefore, laugh is good. It is the best remedy in a world of stress. So, take time to laugh with someone, but not at someone. It is extremely beneficial to relax if you can laugh loudly three times a day.

Before I sign off, I encourage all the fathers to lead their families into spiritual worship to God at home, and also bring humor into the families. There is nothing more therapeutic than having the whole family laughing together.

Pastor Larry

Pastor's Corner by Pastor Larry Tong

June 2007

Happy Father’s Day! I hope you will set aside a wonderful day to celebrate this special day. I read a story about an Olympian by the name of Bill Havens. He was selected to represent the United States to compete in a “Single Canoeing Event” in the 1924 Summer Olympics. He was good; in fact, everyone expected him to bring back the gold medal for the country. However, a few months before the Olympics, Havens learned that his wife was due to give birth sometime during the Games. He had a decision to make: the opportunity of a lifetime or . . . the opportunity of a lifetime. Difficult choice! He made his decision. He stayed home to wait for his child. The team left for Paris to the games without him. On August 1, 1924, his son Frank was born—four days after the Games.

Fast forward through all those summers when Bill Havens probably heard the results from every Olympic canoeing event and wondered if he’d made the right decision. In the summer of 1952, Havens received a telegram from Helsinki, where the Olympic Games was held that summer. The telegram read: “Dear Dad . . . Thanks for waiting around for me to get born in 1924. I’m coming home with the gold medal you should have won.” It was signed, “Your loving son, Frank.” Frank Havens had just won the gold medal in the ten-thousand-meter singles canoeing event.

As I was reading the story, many thoughts flashed in my mind. Was it too much for this father to forfeit the opportunity of his lifetime to have a chance to win the Olympics gold just to be around for the birth of his son? Wouldn’t it been better if he show his son the gold medal he would have won? What would be my choice if I were in his situation? This brings me back to my own experience when my daughter was born over twenty-years ago. It was on a Saturday, and I was unable to find anyone from work to take my shift. After settling my wife in the hospital, I had to reluctantly leave her for work. In a way I had no choice, but after all these years, I still feel that I owe my daughter something. I don’t think anything would change from me being there (I won’t go into the delivery room, anyway), but to me, there was a void somehow. I just can’t explain it.

Decision making is, at times, very difficult. We are faced with decisions, big or small, throughout the day. Some don’t have long lasting effects, while others leave a permanent mark in our life-history. Bearing the name of a father is easy, but to be a father isn’t as simple as it sounds. To be an effective father is even harder. I read a book by Ken Canfield, entitled The 7 Secrets of Effective Fathers. Without going into any detail, I’ll just give you the chapter title and let you think about it on your own. They are Commitment; Knowing your child; Consistency; Protecting and Providing; Loving their mother; Active listening; and Spiritual Equipping. While you celebrate Father’s Day this month, as children, thank your father for what he has done for you; he has a difficult job, therefore, respect him. As fathers, think about which area you can improve so that you may be a more effective father.

Before I sign off, I would like to invite you to know God as your Heavenly Father. To show His love for you, He made a decision to sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross to pay for the penalty of Sin so that by believing in Jesus, you may have Eternal Life. Will you make a decision to accept God as your Father?

Pastor Larry

Pastor's Corner

June, 2005

I read the biography of James Hudson Taylor, a man in Christ, a long time ago. The life of this man in Christ has made a tremendous impact on my life, as well as my ministry. Ever since the beginning of this year, somehow I had the urge to read this book again, but it was nowhere to be found on my bookshelves. When I went to attend the OMF Conference last month, I purchased a newer edition. I’m glad I was able to revisit the life of this man of faith who faithfully served the Chinese in the inlands that few missionaries dared to go, rather than in the ports on the coast. He was indeed a Chinese at heart with a Caucasian’s skin color.

One of the stories that stuck in my mind for many years is in the chapter on “A good Investment.” It was about the only “half-crown (British money)” he had. It brought tears to my eyes, reading once again how God answered prayers of this great man of faith. While Hudson Taylor was studying medicine, and working as a physician assistant, he was also seeking affirmation to go China as a missionary. Money was tight, but one day, he found that he had only a single coin left—one half-crown piece. His employer, Dr. Hardey apparently had forgotten to pay him when the quarter’s salary was due. At ten o’clock that evening, someone called him asking him to go pray for his dying wife and mother of their five children. The man’s family wasn’t able to find a priest who was willing to visit and pray with the patient unless he was compensated for his service. The family was poor and the children were starving. Taylor went with the man and said to himself that if he only had two shillings instead of a half-crown, he would gladly give the poor family a shilling. He told the man, “Don’t despair, there’s a kind and loving Father in Heaven.” Something inside rebuked him, ”You hypocrite! Telling these people about a loving God, and not prepared yourself to trust Him without half-a-crown!” It was a struggle, but he gave his only coin to the family. Walking home he said that his heart was “as light as his pocket.”

While eating his last breakfast the next morning (no food left nor money to buy), he received a letter with unfamiliar handwriting, and the postmark was smeared by the landlady’s wet hand. Without knowing where the letter came from or from whom, he opened the letter and found a pair of kids glove and a blank piece of paper. While he was holding them, a gold coin fell on the floor. “Praise the Lord! He exclaimed. “Four hundred percent for twelve hours’ investment.” This boasted his faith!

Time passed, and the money didn’t last. The rent was due the next day and Dr. Hardey continued to “forget” to pay him. He prayed if he should remind the boss. He received his answer, “Wait, My time is best.” At about five o’clock on Saturday afternoon, Taylor was watching some medicine being cooked in the laboratory, and Dr. Hardey was sitting in his chair. Suddenly, the doctor asked, “By the way, Taylor, isn’t your salary due again?” “It has been overdue for some time,” Taylor responded. Dr. Hardey said, “Oh, I’m sorry you didn’t remind me. You know how busy I am. I wish I’d thought of it sooner, because only this afternoon I sent all the money I had to the bank. Otherwise I would pay you at once.” Taylor felt sick! As soon as Dr. Hardey left the room, he poured out his heart in prayer to God. Still, he felt that God wouldn’t fail him. That night, he decided to stay at work till late at night so as to miss his landlady. At ten o’clock at night, just as he was about to go home, he heard Dr. Hardey laughing in the court. He went in to tell Taylor that one of his richest patients just went in to pay his bill in cash! Taylor received his pay. A patient went in to pay his bill on a Saturday night, in cash! What was the chance of that happening?

As you read this story, I’m sure some of you are processing in your mind that Hudson Taylor should have done this or that to remind his boss to pay him or even should have demanded his pay. It may be true that if he asked, he could have received his salary, but that wasn’t how Hudson Taylor reacted to the situation. I’m not suggesting that we should always be passive. I think what separates a “man in Christ” and a nominal Christian is that he uses circumstances to draw him to prayer and obedience to do the right thing—always trusting God. This and many other fascinating stories are written throughout this book. I suggest you get a copy to read it at your leisure. This book may help us to develop a leap of faith, which is dynamic. It may grow if you choose to cultivate obedience in the little things, or it may shrink if you choose not to. I pray that you would make the right choice.

Before I sign off, I would like to wish the fathers a happy Father’s Day. One thing that came to my mind while reading his testimony is that Hudson Taylor left behind a legacy of faith to his children and grandchildren. What are we leaving behind to our children?

Pastor Larry