Closure: Our God is Greater

Read the story below:
JOHN 6:2-12 (The Voice)
2 As Jesus walked, a large crowd pursued Him hoping to see new signs and miracles; His healings of the sick and lame were garnering great attention. 3 Jesus went up a mountain and found a place to sit down and teach. His disciples gathered around. 4 The celebration of the Passover, one of the principal Jewish feasts, would take place soon. 5 But when Jesus looked up, He could see an immense crowd coming toward Him. Jesus approached Philip.

Jesus (to Philip): 
Where is a place to buy bread so these people may eat?
6 Jesus knew what He was planning to do, but He asked Philip nonetheless. He had something to teach, and it started with a test.

Philip: 7 I could work for more than half of a year[a] and still not have the money to buy enough bread to give each person a very small piece.
8 Andrew, the disciple who was Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up.
Andrew: 9 I met a young boy in the crowd carrying five barley loaves and two fish, but that is practically useless in feeding a crowd this large.
Jesus: 10 Tell the people to sit down.
They all sat together on a large grassy area. Those counting the people reported approximately 5,000 men—not including the women and children—sitting in the crowd. 11 Jesus picked up the bread, gave thanks to God, and passed it to everyone. He repeated this ritual with the fish. Men, women, and children all ate until their hearts were content. 12 When the people had all they could eat, He told the disciples to gather the leftovers.

As we come to a close for the school year of 2012-2013, we can say that God has done a marvelous work at the LU Prayer Center. In the Fall Semester, God brought a faithful, God-loving, people-caring pastor into our Prayer Center Team--Pastor Tim Voogd. As Pastor Tim and Dr. Hughes poured their lives into the students serving here at the Prayer Center, God also brought a team of God-loving, people-caring students together, and manifested His blessings to us day by day. From the formation of the mission of the Prayer Center, to the implementation of SharePoint (Thanks Mr. Matthew Coplin!)--God had brought much effectiveness and influence to the ministry of the Prayer Center. With our "two fishes and five loaves of bread," God had granted us a feast to dine in! As of today, we have received over A THOUSAND prayer request from the Liberty Family in this past half-a-year! Praise God for giving us the privilege of ministering and caring for people around us.

Having been serving at the Prayer Center since 2010, I am able to say that God had brought us a long way. In increasing the amount of student volunteers and the magnitude of our influence, God had started a fire within the hearts of the students here. The LU Prayer Center’s mission is "to encourage, comfort, intercede, and uplift people by walking with them into the throne room of almighty God and presenting their requests through prayer." As students gather together to pray for others, we can sense that God is doing something marvelous these days. What is God doing in the coming semesters? I do not know, but I know that we are confident in the promises that God has given to us through His Word!

As we go through our finals week and enter into our summer season, we believe that God will do marvelous things in the lives of those whom we have been praying for--not because our prayers are big, but because the God we pray to, IS BIG! Let's praise Him and trust in His Word as we go forth from here!

Forgive me, Father!

Hi! My name is Bryan Tang and I am a Student Worker at the LU Prayer Center. Just as God wrote Joey's love story (see previous post), God also brought me a wonderful lady by the name of Becky Wood! In fact, we are preparing ourselves for our wedding in August. How exciting it is! Well, at least for the both of us:)  Part of the preparation entails us reading through several books together. As of now, we are reading through "The Five Love Languages of Apology" by Dr. Gary Chapman and Jennifer Thomas. It's a wonderful book that gave us much practical insights as to how people apologize and such. A good read!

As I was reading through the book, one of the things that convicted me the most was the purpose of apologizing. The book said, "When we apologize simply to avoid facing an issue rather than seeking genuine reconciliation, the apology ceases to be sincere. Remember, the purpose of apologies is to receive forgiveness and reconciliation with the person you have offended."

Many times in the past, I have confessed my sins to God and asked for forgiveness because I know that my sins deserved to be punished and judged. However, whenever I have such a perspective on seeking forgiveness, I have merely scraped the surface of the issue-my rebellious heart towards God. In fact, I have missed out on what God had originally intended for me to experience. Picture this,

"There was a young little boy who got in trouble in his house. A huge trouble - he broke his mom's favorite cookie jar! Afraid of being punished by his mother, he teared up and cried out to his mother for forgiveness. His mother, who loved the boy to death, bent down to the little boy and gave him a kiss on his forehead, and told him, "my son, I love you. I forgive you." and she wrapped her arms around the little boy and held him until he stopped crying"

This story, in some sense, illustrates the forgiveness that believers ought to experience through the cross of Christ. Just like the little boy in the story, we ought to experience his love, and his forgiveness -- and the reconciliation that comes when we humbly come before Him and confess. 1 John 1:9 says "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Romans 5:10 tells us, "For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life."

The next time you come before God, remember that He has reconciled us to God! Not only are we forgiven, we are also reconciled into a relationship with Him and loved by God Himself! Therefore, let us examine our hearts and humbly lay it before Him - ask Him to examine it and reveal to us how we can please Him, the glorious King who deserves all the glory, honor, and praise!