Peace...

Your Peace

Verse

A E D A E

Lord, I come into your presence

A E D A E

Into my quiet place where I can meet you

F#m D

And you come, here you come

Chorus

E F#m

Lord, your peace rushes through me

D E

Like a mighty river flowing to the sea

A E

And heaven opens its gates

D E

Then, the Spirit of the Lord descends like a dove

End

A

Like a dove

See Matt 6:6

I wrote this song a little after I came to Canada, when my spiritual life took a tumble. I started to get concerned about the big things of the present (well i guess it would technically be the past). I felt my hubris and and lived in a way where God was non-existent and just Santa-Claus who i'd ask stuff from. Eventually, I cracked. I couldn't take the coldness of the world and being on that edge...well...sucked. I felt alone, and totally stripped of pride in myself. I realized my total and utter dependence on The Lord's warm embrace and just knowing that he had everything under control was simply beautiful and put my heart at ease...an ease which i hadn't felt in a long time. I felt...His Peace.

Church...what's the deal?

The question that i've heard so many kids ask is this: Why do we have to go to church when we can just sit at home and watch a church service? Well, the typical answer is this: fellowship. And yes, i whole-heartedly agree with that answer. Hebrews 10:24 confirms it. ("24And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.")

So the statement of the day is this: we go to church for fellowship because the spiritual food and worshiping God with songs of praise can be done within your own time, really. The crux of the whole church idea is for FELLOWSHIP.

So what's the deal with the church services nowadays? You go in, maybe get greeted by an usher, sit through the service and leave. Is that really God's idea for fellowship?

We're supposed to "encourage one another" when we meet up, but how often does that really happen. I live in suburbia and the sunday church experience for me is filled with small talk and people with facades. I hardly see or hear people talking about their spiritual struggles and praying for each other. How can encouragement occur if we as Christians refuse to get deep into the lives of our brothers and sisters?

God designed us to grow into the fullness of Christ together. If you read Ephesians 4:1 - 16, it says that we as a church have the goal to "become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ." We're as a church are called to "grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ." How can this done when we wear a "mask" whenever we see our Christian siblings? Our Christian brothers and sisters should be the last people we want to hide things from. So how has the typical portrayal of church reached this point of mistrust?

Of course i'm only speaking from one perspective and i'm not condemning the churches of the world by what they are doing, for they are glorifying God. However, what i am definitely saying is this: we as Chritians have a responsibility to care for one another, and spur one another towards love and good deeds. If we don't want to have fellowship as God had planned it to be, going to church becomes a pointless country club gathering, with a couple of songs and a keynote speaker.

Brothers and sisters, we must...MUST...reach out to each other on a regular basis. Fellowship isn't just spending time together with another person. A wise man once defined fellowship as "fellows in the same ship, looking towards the same goal". Take a moment to examine how you've allowed God to work through you to simply be a brother or sister to another one of God's children. I know i've fallen short of this calling so many times, and that's why we have grace. Let us be united in faith.

To Love or Not to Love?

What is God's standard towards serving others in love? We (the highschool fellowship and I) have looked into this pretty far, and have a question to ponder: is indifference the same as hate in GOd's eyes? In Matthew 25:31 - 46, we see the story of the sheep and the goats. God told those who didn't serve others in love by catering to their needs (hunger, thirst, belonging, clothing, care and comfort in verses 35-36) to "Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels." Later on, it was confirmed that "they will go away to eternal punishment".

From the outset, the typical Christians say, "Yeah, that makes sense...what's wrong with that? God punished them for their sin." Exactly, but what implications does it have on us? This passage shows that indifference to the needs of others is sin. I'm gonna make a really bold statement: If we are indifferent to the needs of others, we are hating them. 1 John 1:5 says, "God is light; in him there is no darkness at all." There is NO middle ground!! We're either in the light or in the darkness! Either we love our neighbours, or we don't!! In the eyes of God, those who did not love their neighbour in Matt 25 suffered the worst punishment thinkable: eternal punishment. It doesn't get any lower than that. So if indifference leads to such severe punishment, how is that any different from actually hating your neighbour?

It is black or white. You love, or you don't. John puts it this way: "9Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. 10Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him^[c] to make him stumble." You're either in the light or in the darkness.

So how should we react? Well, personally, i'm ashamed because i've often been so indifferent. I used to think that if i loved other people i was an obedient, good Christian, but if i didn't do the "extra-curriculars", i was still an OK Christian, as long as i didn't sin too much. But what God says is this: If you call yourself a Christian, not only must you stay pure, you must...MUST...love your neighbour, because anything short of that and it's the same as the darkness of hate.

For a stormy day

God hears cries

written by Andrew Chia

Verse 1

G C Dsus D

Hear my cry, O Lord

Listen to my prayer

From the ends of the earth I call to you

C D G C Em D

I call as my heart grows faint

Life is getting tough

It’s harder than what I thought it would be

I have no idea as to what to do

Hear my cry, O Lord

Chorus

G C

God hears cries

G D

God will hear yours

G C

He’s standing there

D C G

Right beside you

Verse 2

Satan is firing his arrows

They’re headed straight for me

I cry to Jesus as my shield

Hear my cry, O Lord

Chorus

Bridge

Am G D

Lord you are my Rock and Shelter

I’ve got nothing to fear because…

Chorus

This was written a little before perhaps the lowest time of my spiritual life. i didn't know where God was leading when i wrote it, until i hit rock-bottom. Just the comfort of knowing that he's with us is enough to hold on. enjoy.