Pastor Jonathan’s Weblog

I read in Readers Digest that 26 minutes is all we need for a productive nap. According to sleep expert Dr. Sara Mednick (UCSD), taking a nap in the afternoon “increases alertness, boosts creativity, and reduces stress” [well, unless if you miss your appointment because your 26-minute nap got extended play and became 260 minutes!]. She also suggests that it can “reduce the risk of a heart attack, aid in weight loss, and improve memory.” [wow, this is better than diet and exercise -- I better remember this by taking a nap!]

Dr. Mednick also reminds us that Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein, and Lance Armstrong were nappers. That’s why I napped instead of studying physics and calculus and winning the Tour de France! But I must confess: When I get a chance to squeeze in a short nap in the afternoon, I get refueled for the rest of the night, especially when I need to stay up late for message prep!

Of the many blessings I inherited from my mom is the ability to fall asleep within 10 seconds flat so my 26-minute nap is really 26 minutes. This is great for me but frustrating for my wife (and those who are stuck with me at retreats and sleepovers). That’s because I inherited from my dad the ability to snore at 85 dB levels! So if you ever get stuck with me as your cabinmate at a retreat, don’t stress: Take a nap in the afternoon!

It’s been a while since I was 18 years old, but the memories are still vivid in my mind: Getting the admission letter from U.C. Berkeley and seeing my dad jumping up and down when we opened the thick envelope together in our small kitchen in Southern Cal… (Actually, that was the first time I saw my dad jump!) Leaving for Berkeley in my car packed with food that my mom froze (she even froze my favorite soup in Ziploc bags!), and a heart filled with hopes for a 4.0 GPA in college! Yes, I was very fresh and very very naive. [BTW, as you can tell, Susanna had a much better photographer than I back then!]

Recently, our family went to a birthday party for an 18-year old who I’ve known for his entire existence on earth: Isaiah (son of Pastor Ed & Kelly Kang). Boy, he has grown up to be a solid young man: He was able to do 40+ one-hand push ups and even beat Hans & Franz in arm wrestling! It made me think about my life and how quickly it has passed. I used to be able to do my share of push ups, but now, I’d rather simply sit down and share old stories of those yesteryears…

Somewhere in the Bible, it says, “your old men will dream dreams.” I don’t think I’ve reached that stage of being an old man yet, but it’s a bit frightening seeing our children looking more like how we were when we were 18… And we’re looking more like what our parents used to look like… Maybe I am an old man now. Naaa…I think I’m just dreaming! After all, compared to those old folks in the Bible who lived beyond 800 years, I’m still a young teenager!

Baseball season is in full swing but my son’s batting average has dropped to .294. He’s pretty bummed, but it’s teaching him the importance of attitude and gratitude (and hopefully not bratitutde). I’m hoping that sports would teach him how to win graciously and lose graciously…

Someone recently forwarded me the April 1, 2008 David Brooks’ NY Times Op-Ed piece entitled, “Pitching With Purpose,” where he writes about H. A. Dorfman’s book, The Mental ABC’s of Pitching. Here are a few interesting quotes from the article and my comments:

“…you can’t just urge someone to be disciplined; you have to build a structure of behavior and attitude. Behavior shapes thought. If a player disciplines his behavior, then he will also discipline his mind.”

“If a pitcher doesn’t actually feel this way when he enters a game, Dorfman asks him to pretend. If your body impersonates an attitude long enough, then the mind begins to adopt it.”

We’ve heard the adage “Mind over body” before, but Dorfman seems to suggest that it can be “Body over mind” as well. I found this to be increasingly important in this feelings-driven culture — there are times when in the very act of doing something loving, I begin to increase in feeling love. So instead of waiting for the warm, fuzzy feeling to lead you to serve others, maybe just getting up and serving would warm your soul…

The article also noted an aspect of pitching that I can apply to preaching:

“A pitcher shouldn’t judge himself by how the batters hit his pitches, but instead by whether he threw the pitch he wanted to throw.”

In other words, the pitcher should be evaluated by how many pitches were actually executed (e.g., 50 pitches out of 73, instead of 3 runs in 9 innings). Here’s the connection to preachers (with a changeup): The preacher shouldn’t judge himself by how many people hit home with the message, but rather, by whether or not he communicated the Word of God as he should have. This is comforting, especially for those Sundays when no one makes a life-transforming decision after your sermon. But it is also discomforting since even if there were 100’s of decisions made, if you didn’t preach as you should have (in truth & love before God), then you’ve struck out…

Last week, I went down to Alameda to visit my best friend, Tony, who was recovering after a surgery (he got his appendix removed). I grabbed some takeout from Sushi House (”Fuji’s of Alameda” but alas, not a buffet) and ate an oishi lunch together at his house. We got caught up on things going on in our lives (he works in SF and serves at Gracepoint Fellowship Church) — the time spent was so short, but so sweet…

I remember my first time meeting Tony at church when he transferred into UC Berkeley in 1987. He immediately got connected with our class peers, and soon, he was the one planning for our birthday parties and get-togethers. He’s quite an organizer and he brought an infusion of life and excitement in our college days — we were quite a boring and lethargic bunch before Tony came along!

Interestingly, he’s got the exact same personality type as my wife. Many times, when I just cannot understand Susanna, I talk with Tony and he’s able to help me see from the perspective of an ESTJ (per Myers-Briggs). (BTW, I am an INFP — 100% opposite!)

One of my fondest memories is when we would pray over the phone during our lunch breaks. He was working in San Rafael and I was working at Berkeley, and it was the days before cell phones so it required extra effort to connect! That was 12 years ago, but I still vividly remember being in that public phone booth in Donner Lab, sharing prayer requests, praying for him and listening to him pray for me. Thanks, Tony, for being my best friend and for your prayers & support over the years and many more to come!

Yesterday, I spend the entire day with my son since he’s on Spring break. It was a father & son covalent bonding time (while mom & daughter had their own in Monterey). We started the morning with a nice brunch (hot dogs while mommy’s not looking!) while watching The Two Towers. I normally don’t watch movies, but after using a clip of it for yesterday’s Easter sermon, I was drawn to this precious movie. It’s an incredible story of hope and courage, never giving in to despair even when it seems hopeless. Every chance I got throughout the movie, I would tell my son of the importance of having courage and hope. I was a running commentary throughout, and for some parts, I was preaching!

Afterwards, I took him to the batting cages here in town; he’d been begging for it for a while, so today was the day! When I was his age, I was so into baseball (LA Dodgers of the 70’s) but I never got to play Little League or anything with real pitching. I just played catch on a dirt field behind our apartment complex with a couple of my friends. Sometimes, we would use a tennis ball and hit in the apartment garage — that was our batting cage. So seeing my son get to play with real baseballs with real pitches brings a big warm smile to my face. You might say I’m living out my childhood dreams through my son, and I’d say you may be right.

After five tokens worth of hitting, he asked if I wanted to give it a try. I was reluctant at first, partly because I didn’t want to look foolish striking out. After all, even I have some father ego to protect. But it didn’t take much to convince me to take a swing at it; in fact, I was secretly hoping that I’d get a chance! I did pretty well, and hit a good 0.700 average; yes, it was at the slowest pitch setting, but that doesn’t matter when you’re living out your 4th grade dreams…

Knowing someone for 20 years is a long time. And having been known very well by someone for 20 years is even longer. I still remember that day in 1988 when I first met Pastor Ed and Kelly Kang (of Gracepoint Fellowship Church) at a Chinese restaurant on University Avenue in Berkeley. They thought that I was a FOB who couldn’t speak English! (I’m still shocked by that, Pastor Ed; was it my hairstyle?) Well, to their surprise, when I opened my mouth, I spoke English without any accent to speak of!

Throughout the past 20 years, they’ve forgiven me at my worst, been gracious at my best, and loved me through all the stages in between. I’m a far better minister because of what I learned from them. I’m a far better husband because of the marriage counseling I’ve received from them (for free!). I’m a far better father because of the example of parenting they demonstrated. All in all, I’m better by far because of their presence in my life.

Everyone needs a spiritual mentor, a shepherd, a leader, a pastor, or whatever you call them, as long as you call on them to lead you to Jesus. My wife and I are blessed to have Pastor Ed and Kelly to call on. And I’m sure that we’ll continue to call on them for the next 20 years to come. By that time, we’d be old and gray, sitting at a Chinese restaurant reminiscing the good old days when I was an English-speaking FOB…

Thank you, Pastor Ed and Kelly, for your perseverance, your steadfast commitment to the Truth, your tireless service to the Lord, and for pointing the way to Jesus these past 20 years!

This is Passion Week, the most serious and somber week of the year for Christians. It’s because we followers of Christ follow Him to the painful point of betrayal, the lonely garden of Gethsemane, and the cross on Calvary. It’s a week that causes us to stop and think about life, about Jesus’ life — a beautiful sacrificial life that was given for ugly undeserving sinners like me… It’s a week where Christians understand how weak we are, how sinful we are, how we are betrayers like Judas (and Peter and the rest of the disciples), cowards like Pilate, ruthless like the Roman soldiers — we all are sinners just the same. It’s a dark week, but it’s because, as someone observed, “It’s the darkest just before the dawn!“

The thing that keeps me going through Passion Week is the reality that it points to the glorious Easter Sunday morning! And that’s what I’m looking forward to all year long! It’s not because we get to have a nice Easter picnic after our Sunday service (although that’s always good!). Easter Sunday brings hope to even the darkest of circumstances, even in the face of the grave, there is the resurrection hope that Jesus’ resurrection ushers forth.

One of my favorite Easter traditions is singing that great and glorious hymn, “Low in the Grave He Lay“:

“Low in the grave He lay, Jesus, my Savior! Waiting the coming day, Jesus, my Lord! Up from the grave He arose, with a mighty triumph o’er His foes; He arose a victor from the dark domain, and He lives forever with His saints to reign. He arose! He arose! Hallelujah! Christ arose!” [Baptist Hymnal #160]

That’s a song that I sing with full gusto and VOLUME!! How could you not sing those words with shouts of cheer? It’s the greatest of all victories for all of eternity! So don’t ever despair in times of darkness, the dawn is right around the corner!

[Jacob, let's be sure to sing this on Sunday; I won't be able to wait for another year! ]

I always carry some mint with me (usually Eclipse) because I have, you guessed it, bad breath. I think I’m cursed with some malfunctioning alpha-beta-hi gene that’s producing the bad odor every morning; funny thing is, my nose is right above my mouth, but I don’t smell it at all!

Anyway, this morning, I heard a sermon podcast from Pastor John Ortberg who mentioned bad breath! He started with the obvious: When we wake up in the morning, we wash our face, brush our teeth, floss, shower, put on deodorant, etc. And then he moved to the spiritual connection: Likewise, we should invite Jesus to wash clean the bad awful filth that is in our hearts and minds each morning. That’s right! Can you imagine going to work without proper hygiene in the morning every day? (I know, some of you work with people who skip all of that.) But all too many of us are too busy getting our outside presentable, that we don’t have the time to present our inside to God. Pastor Ortberg encourages us to start off the day by saying:

“God, while I’m cleaning up my body, would You clean up my mind? [...] It’s important to clean up my body, but way more important than that is my mind. There’s all kinds of thoughts going on in there––jealous or envious or prideful or fearful and anxious, greedy––so would You just kind of scrub those away, and lead me to thoughts that are noble, and hopeful, and pure? God, would You cleanse my mind?” (mppc.org 2/24/08 sermon)

So don’t skip out on proper spiritual hygiene! Yes, each morning, as you brush your teeth, invite Jesus to brush away the plaque of bitterness from your heart. As you wash that strange stuff that mysteriously accumulated in your eyes overnight, invite Jesus to wash out the anxious thoughts and worries that have mysteriously accumulated in your mind. And as you shower and put on deodorant, invite Christ to fill your day with His fragrance of Life. Your friends will be glad you started the day that way…

Monday is when I get to rest after a weekend, which, for a pastor is like a 40-hour workweek packed into 3 days. This past weekend was an especially long one for me: Gave a Bible study at UCD campus on Friday, led an 8-hour quarterly staff rally on Saturday, and gave a sermon on Sunday (followed by a 3-hour directors meeting). I’m an introvert, so being with that many people and speaking for all of those occasions does require a lot out of me…

That’s why I take Mondays to just rest and do things that don’t require much talking. This morning, I caught up with lost sleep from Saturday night sermon prep. Afterwards, I got caught up with some e-mails, and then Susanna and I went out for our weekly lunch date…this time, to Costco! For some reason, we’ve been craving their $1.50 Polish dogs, so we went to the newly opened Costco in nearby Woodland (which is the 2nd largest Costco in California!) where we had a leisurely lunch, topped off with their strawberry sundae.

I also got caught up with my hair cut. (Did you get that pun?) I also cut my son’s hair, but he’s complaining that I cut too much off his bangs. I guess he’s not going to give me a tip for this haircut! “Don’t worry, son, it’ll grow back!”

Today was also a good day because I got to mow our lawn — the first cut of the season! There’s something relaxing about being in nature (even if it’s merely the backyard of a suburban home). The green grass growing and the cherry blossoms blooming tell me that the cold Winter has gone and Spring has come! That reminds me — I better start taking my allergy medicine soon!

TGIM (Thank God it’s Monday)!

It was a wonderful time in the Sierras, spending the past 3 days with 3 pastors who are older & wiser than me in many ways: Pastor Ed Kang (Gracepoint Fellowship Church), Pastor Chris Pak (Bridgeway Church of Silicon Valley), and Pastor Don Kim (New Community Baptist Church). We thoroughly enjoyed eating lots of good food (which my wife packed all nicely for us — thank you!), talking about life & ministry, singing old songs, and enjoying the beauty of the snow & trees all around us at the Sierra Lodge. We even hiked up the big hill all the way to the train tracks!

Man, I am blessed to have spiritual mentors such as these men of faith who are diligently and faithfully serving in ministry near me. Pastor Ed continues to guide me (these past 20 years and still going strong!) and simply put, he’s my pastor; he tells me the hard truth, points me to Jesus, and is there when I need to be ministered to. Believe it or not, Pastor Chris was my first campus ministry director when I first served under him as a staff intern at Berkeley back in 1989; that was when I made many mistakes and realized that God’s grace is what we all desperately need. Pastor Don, the oldest of the three, was ordained into full-time ministry exactly 20 years ago; and so this pastors retreat turned out to be an informal 20th anniversary of sorts. Just being with them brought back many memories, too many to write on this weblog…

Last night, we picked up the guitar and sang the good old praise songs of yesteryears. Suddenly, I was transported back a full generation when the only musical instrument we had at church was a guitar (but we sure made up for it with passion!). The four of us sang songs like, “Share a little bit of your love, my friend,” “It only takes a spark to get a fire going,” and “I just keep trusting my Lord, as I walk along.” Yup, these tunes were before iTunes for sure!

(BTW, in case you were getting worried…No, we did NOT sing “Kumbaya” — that would have required a campfire, and besides, we didn’t want to hold hands.)

Some things in life are even better paired up. Peanut butter & jelly. General Tso’s chicken & broccoli. Pizza & Polish dog at Costco! Actually, I should be eating well, especially since my annual physical exam and cholesterol test is coming up. (It’s just like my college days — cramming right before a test!)

One thing that I’ve been doing these days is eating yogurt with diced apple. For some reason, it tastes doubly good together. I don’t like to eat apples and I don’t like to eat yogurt either. But somehow, the combination of these two good things are too good to be true! Try it out for yourself!

Here are some other two-good combinations that I enjoy:

• Reading the Bible while listening to a good praise selection. (By the way, “You are My Strength” on my PlayCount is now at 65.)
• Spending time with my kids while getting some exercise (e.g., playing catch with my son or going bike riding with my daughter).
• Eating a good meal while spending quality time my wife (without kids around for these weekly lunch dates).
• Sharing the reasons for God’s existence with a person seeking to find out what Christianity is all about.
• Serving the Lord wholeheartedly with friends.

They’re too good to be two’ed! What are your two-good combinations?

My wife and I just came back from Asilomar Conference Center in Monterey where we spent some RR/RR (rejuvenation & refeshment over resting & reading). We thoroughly enjoyed our time walking on the boardwalk along the beach, hand-in-hand, while we talked about kids, about ministry, about life… (By the way, in case you are wondering, it’s perfectly normal for a pastor and wife to hold hands…even after 16 years of marriage!)

We marveled at the beauty of the Pacific Ocean, the fine sand that felt so good under our feet, and the awesome roar of the waves… There is a small gazebo about a mile up the coast and we sat there and talked for a good hour, and it was a very good hour. Such times of walking, talking, and being together is what’s needed in marriage and this time together was very good for us and for our soul, especially in the midst of all the busyness of work and ministry. We plan on going back there every quarter or so, to experience this kind of Sabbath where we get to stop work and say, “What God has done is good,…it is very good.”

An interesting thing happened: We went back out to the beach to see the sunset before dinner. It wasn’t anything spectacular, just a run-of-the-mill sunset, so we decided to head out to the restaurant before the sun had fully set. Then all of the sudden a stranger near us says, “It’s not over yet!“ We were taken aback, but yielded to her words and stayed there a few more minutes, patiently waiting until the sun had fully set beyond the horizon. Then we heard her voice again, “Now it’s done.” We were free to go!

Actually, I’m glad that we got to stay on the beach even for those few extra minutes. Nothing spectacular happened, but there’s something soothing to be still before God, watching and waiting…

When I get to heaven, I want my room to be right next to Eric Liddell’s — Eric, the “I’m-not-running-on-Sunday-even-if-it’s-the-1924-Olympics” hero, who became famous from the movie Chariots of Fire. He received a gold medal in the 400 m which was not even his race. Actually, the race of his life was not on the track field — it was in the mission field in China. When I recently watched a DVD documentary of Eric Liddell, I immediately felt drawn to him: He was a chemistry major in college, loved to joke around, and joyfully served the Lord in every circumstance (even as he was suffering and dying from brain tumor).

As one of the young lads who was cared for by “Uncle Eric” in Weihsien concentration camp in China during Japanese occupation during the WWII, wrote:

“He was greatly helped by the Oxford Group and their emphasis in Bible study on reading accurately, interpreting honestly and applying drastically. The latter meant living each day by the Four Absolutes: absolute honesty, absolute purity, absolute unselfishness, and absolute love. [...] He knew that to attain to such a standard in his own strength was impossible. This led Eric to a personal pursuit of the cleansing, filling and empowering of the Holy Spirit.” (James H. Taylor III, in the Forward of Eric Liddell: Pure Gold by David McCasland)

Now that’s a tough race, but a race worth running to the finish line: Reading the Bible accurately, interpreting honestly, and applying drastically; absolute honesty, absolute purity, absolute unselfishness, absolute love. That’s absolute surrender to our Lord Jesus Christ that I want to emulate.

“Lord, may I run this race as faithfully to the very end! And save me that room next to Eric’s!”

I’ve been listening to this song that our college band played tonight at the Bible study–”You are My Strength” by Hillsong (from their album, Saviour King):

You are my strength
Strength like no other
Strength like no other
Reaches to me

You are my hope
Hope like no other
Hope like no other
Reaches to me

In the fullness of Your grace
In the power of Your Name
You lift me up
You lift me up

Unfailing love
Stronger than mountains
Deeper than oceans
Reaches to me

Your love O Lord
Reaches to the heavens
Your faithfulness
Reaches to the skies

I think I’ll be playing this song for about a good week! (As some of you know, when I get hooked on a song, I play it over and over again, I put it on one-song repeat on all my devices!)

This song expresses exactly what I’m feeling, especially in the midst of ministry burdens: I need strength, strength like no other…and it’s the strength that only God can provide to those who are weak. I need hope, hope like no other…and because of Jesus, I can have hope even in times of despair. This song is really ministering to me (I’m already on my 12th time listening on repeat)… That’s right–God’s strength, hope, and love reaches down to me because He loves me! What can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord? Nothing! Nothing is able to separate us from the love of God and because of that, I am lifted up once again.

This is my first blog post ever! Why blog? Why now?

At the early stages of blogs, I (and many others) dismissed weblogs as a fad that would quickly dissipate. However, over the years, I’ve come to realize that blogs are powerful and an effective way to communicate. So, like the cellphone that is attached to my waist, and the mp3 player that’s attached to my ears, I’ve come to accept this technology as an inevitable extension of my fingertips.

This is also a place where I can journal — a practice that I wish to start up in earnest this year. (Sorry, it won’t contain very very personal things.) But it will contain entries that I think might be of use to others out there.

One concern about this whole blog thing is that it might become a time sink for you and me. So let’s agree to not let this blog get the best of our lives. After all, we have to live real life in the real world so that we can have real stuff to write about…

So, “Hello World!” Here it goes!