Freedom Blog

I’ve felt moved by the Spirit of God to begin meditating on life. So, in response to His leading I’ve read through the story of creation (Genesis 1 and 2) while paying close attention to signs of life. Overall, what struck me was God’s power over His creation. Never once while reading the text did I ever get the sense that God was really straining Himself to create. No, when I read the narrative, my sense of it is that God was thoroughly enjoying Himself during the creation process: He took great pleasure in creating because God loves life. Not only do I believe that God loves life, but that He also loves celebrating life. I couldn’t help but wonder about the joyousness that must have gone on while God was creating. After all, it was quite the epic event.

Reading through the creation narrative was a good reminder of the truth that God is the Author of life. This means that whenever and wherever we encounter life, we should be reminded of our Creator who is the Giver of life. I don’t know about you, but I spend far too much time gazing at Man’s creation (technology) than I do gazing at God’s creation (all living things). Maybe we can spend the next few days together watching creation while praying that God would help us to see the wondrousness of life and to celebrate creation as He does: “as very good.” This truth has not rung more true to me than now.

Currently, I have been given the privilege to serve the Lord in Tanzania, Africa for the next two months. When I look around at the quality of life here in Tanzania, I am arrested by the pervasive poverty everywhere. It is hard for me to see the goodness of creation because sin has marred creation and distorted the created order. But, the more time I spend being among the Tanzanian people, the more I’ve come to see not only the preciousness of people, but also the goodness of God’s creation as very good. God has blessed me to see that because everyone is created in the image of God, we are all precious, period. He has also blessed me to see the resilience in the Tanzanian people which I see as coming from God who proclaimed at creation that what He created was “good.” God doesn’t ever create junk and because of this, He has built into us a resilience to endure through great hardships. He is after all the master Craftsman.

So this is my prayer: that as we gaze upon creation, God, the Author of life, would bless us with redemptive eyes to see past the sin that mars and distorts all of life, and to see creation from an eternal perspective with the faith to believe that because of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, He is making all things new (Revelation 21:5). In His Name, Amen.

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FOUND lost in the shuffle

by Gerald T. Ching

Wandering amongst the ruins of a decayed wasteland,

my eyes scan the debris and rubble, yearning

for answers. Digging

in the trenches, I search

for what I cannot have.

Within this perpetuation

I am bound to this obsessiveness

that leads me by the tip of my nose

through the fields within my mind, in addiction.

Against bitter swirling winds I am blown,

but still I press on. Little dogs nip

at the heels of my feet as I shoulder the wind. Running

at a snail’s pace I make my way towards destruction. Pulled

by invisible strings, I am

forever bound to this driven path.

Caught within the sands of time,

I melt into wickedness.

The barrier that has shielded me

for all of my years slowly starts to dissolve

into the aging decay of my darkened soul.

Beaten and scarred

with scarlet letters pinned to my breast,

the aura of my former self

suffocates in this dimming light

forever found wishing to be lost

once again to ignorance. All the many answers

to the simplicity of why, fill and clutter my head.

Confusion sets in

as the overload siren honks and hoots in the still air.

Anxiety sets in

as steam starts to pour from every orifice of my body,

draining me, leaving me exhausted, spent, and shivering in space.

Sinking in to the darkness of my shadow

that has become my soul, the tensionsof this heartache

eases; helping to soften the wrinkles

that spider web around my impure eyes.

Floating into a dreamscape of reality

I melt into deep slumber

and am set free into the cosmos

with memories of old coming to life,

filling the deepness of my heart.

In this weightless environment

all things become possible. The lost moments

that have haunted my wakened existence are relived in perfection;

impulsive decisions turn into thoughtful evaluations

as hindsight becomes foresight

with prudence reigning above all.

The should’ve, would’ve, could’ve procrastinations

become living assertive realities, while 

 the chest of regret that a lifetime has gathered and stockpiled

groans in defiance as it feels its demise come charging in.

The chains that have kept

these sorrows safe, snap like twigs

as an Angel of the Lord riding a fiery steed of Hope

blazes in on this vision, setting it to ash;

to linger no longer in the remnants of longing.

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faithfullyTRUE

by Gerald T. Ching

In the moments of my deepest and darkest times

when life has overcome me with its worldly grief

and I am brought to my knees in desperation.

A loving Presence graces me and soothes my soul.

The long days that pass by these weary eyes,

flow into the dark nights that weigh upon my soul;

filled with stillborn dreams, stark

with the realities of a fallen world.

Enshrouded in this dimness

is a sparkling light of hope

that flickers and flares

within the deficiency of my character.

Thoughts and feelings get

pushed and pulled from my struggling soul.

Living in that sparkling light

an Angel of Christ lives

who battles daily to lift this heavy curtain of burden.

Quietly with purpose and in purity

he stands full of love, in Truth.

With a humble and pure heart

he stands in servitude, awaiting

the final transformation of my capricious soul

as goodness sweeps away the cluttering debris.

Sealing me with Your Holy Spirit,

a warm reassuring smile eases the furl of my brow;

brightening the gloom

that surrounds my existence.

From the darkness a little boy emerges

naked, frightened, broken, and shivering;

Your Spirit breaks through the barriers that bind.

There is sad joy in his little eyes

as a waterfall of relief rains down.

Pulled by an unseen magnetic field,

the darkness seeps away. A reassuring gesture

beckons him into Your heart, filling

the strange longing within his own heart

as he is drawn across to You.

In a deep embrace, his soul is finally united –

home at last. Giving way to a bright future

full of big dreams and surrounded by brilliance,

this all encompassing loving light

overflows with compassion.

In the moment of my deepest and darkest time,

when life defeated me with its worldly grief

and I stood at the doorstep of death,

I was swept away in the arms of Christ;

brought from the darkness and into the light, saved.

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I was called something the other day that I’ve never been called before: a grace dealer. Now if you know my story that’s more than just a little ironic. Personally, I find it miraculously hilarious! Only God could transform a person from being a drug dealer (a destroyer of lives) into a grace dealer (an encourager of lives). But, I’m getting ahead of myself. What spurred our conversation was the fact that I love to pray grace into people’s lives. From my understanding of Scripture, without God’s grace we are all lost to our own devices, dysfunctions and distortions. Hence, the reason that I love to pray that God’s grace would literally invade a person’s life. Have you ever thought about what the world would be like without grace? I shiver at the thought.

Grace is a crucial component to the healing and recovery process of addicts and alcoholics. From what I surmise from reading the Bible, grace has a way of setting people free from the bondage of sin. I mean when Jesus walked among us, He embodied in fullness both the grace and truth of God (John 1:17). And this grace and truth healed and set people free because anytime grace is mixed with truth it will always encourage and empower people. It is also through Jesus that we experience the depths of God’s amazing love. I know I say this a lot, but knowing the Father’s perfect unconditional love changes everything. His love has a way of turning our divided, shallow, hardened, wounded, scarred and deceptive hearts into whole, deep, tender, healed, renewed and genuine hearts.

I mean God’s heart towards us is to let His wonderful grace rule in our lives, over and above sin (Romans 5:21). But, giving people grace can be messy business because who knows what they may do with this grace. I believe that’s why Paul admonishes us to not abuse God’s grace by using it as a license to sin (Romans 6:1,2). But, from God’s vantage point, He’s not worried. He knows what His grace can accomplish in a person’s life and He’s patient. There’s a verse that says “God’s kindness leads to repentance” (Romans 2:4) which I couldn’t agree with more. But, if you’re like me, than it’s all too easy to slip into the mindset that through judgement people will come to repentance. And though I do believe that the fear of judgement can lead people towards repentance, it will always be God’s grace that brings a person into His presence.

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Over the past few weeks, the question that the Lord has been asking me is, “Are you available?” You see, God has been crossing my path with quite a few people who keep telling me stories of how God has been using people who have simply made themselves available to Him. It’s really easy to think that God only uses people who are gifted and talented or mature in the faith. But, that couldn’t be further from the truth. I believe God uses people who simply make themselves available to Him. Let me explain. When God calls us to something we can trust that He will enable us to do the work He’s called us do. But, we need to let go of our own agendas and expectations and just come with a willing spirit and expectant heart. God is near to us and I believe is continually talking to us, but most of us fail to recognize His voice when He speaks because we are so consumed with our own agendas and in achieving our own expectations.

I am and have been a spiritual director to a growing number of people which I disciple in hearing the voice of God for themselves. I believe that God’s heart is to position all of His children for Kingdom work, but because we have made ourselves unavailable to Him; we get passed over and God raises up someone else. Recently, I’ve been hearing story after story of God positioning the most unlikely of people to do great and amazing things for His Kingdom simply because they made themselves available to Him. People who trusted in their ability to hear God and who also believed that God could empower and equip them for whatever work He was calling them to do. How well do you recognize our Shepherd’s voice? I am constantly having to remind myself that I do hear God and that He does speak to me through Scripture (of course), but also through my thoughts, imagination and the feelings and convictions within my heart. The Holy Spirit dwells within us (1 Corinthians 6:19) and speaks directly to us (Romans 8:16). God also speaks to me through other people, music, animals and creation at large. Viewing creation often makes me marvel all the more at the amazingness of God our Creator. If we seek to hear God’s voice, He will reveal Himself to us (Matthew 7:7,8; James 4:8).

But, at the end of the day, step one for us is to simply say, “Here am I. Send me” (Isaiah 6:8 NIV) and not worry about what step two is. Instead, we need to trust that God will empower and equip us in preparation for whatever is step two, three, four, five, etc. But, if you’re like me, it’s really easy to spend too much time waiting on God, when often times He’s already spoken to me and I am just being hesitant, fearful, even lazy at times. God has been steadily weening me off of needing to know too many steps because He wants to cultivate more faith in me. I mean, it really doesn’t take much faith if we already know what lies ahead. But, the more we make ourselves available to God, the more He will stretch and build faith in us by positioning us in situations that will proclaim that the Kingdom of God is near. I’ve heard this preached and I believe it to be true: doing great things for the Kingdom of God demands great faith. What I’m starting to believe is that God is waiting for more people to simply say to Him, “Lord, whatever You would have me do, I am willing.”

Just last week I was in Toronto, Ontario with some friends both old and new and we ended up walking around a public park, listening to Holy Spirit’s voice and leading in whom He desired that we talk to, pray with and prophesize for. In some Christian circles this is called “treasure hunting.” It was an amazing time. God lead us to very specific people, who needed to know that God sees them, loves them and wants to heal and save them and redeem the pain in their lives. He did this by giving us descriptive clues like green shirt, big sunglasses, straw hat with ribbon, park benches and brown sandals. Afterwards, I was spending time with God processing all that happened, when I asked Him if there were more people that we could talk to, pray with and prophesize for. What I heard next, I will never forget. God said to me that “there will always be more work, there will always be someone who needs to be loved and cared for.” In that moment, I felt the immensity of the work that lay ahead. I mean aren’t those Jesus’ words in Luke 10:2 which says, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

So this is my prayer: “Father, soften our hearts towards You. Set us free from whatever hinders us from making ourselves available to You. Forgive us for when we get too busy with our own lives and in building our own kingdoms. Change our hearts Lord, transform us into people who simply believe that You can raise anyone up to do great things for Your Kingdom. Cultivate the faith needed within us to do the greater works that You said we would do. We believe You when You say that “the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.” We want to be those workers whom You call to labor in Your harvest fields. We trust You Father with our very lives and the lives of our families. In Jesus Name, Amen.

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