God controls

I was really stressed out recently since I have been studying very hard on my English tests, thus I was not very willing when I was challenged to follow up several wives and meet them in person who went to the hocking hills trip. 

It is so challenging to me to meet them directly in person so that I decided to compromise and email them first. And fortunately after two days, one of the three wives replied. She is the one that I met when I was helping check students in. Her name is Cici and we had good conversations through email. Then I prayed again for the other two wives to reply or that I can find ways to reach them. On the second day I met the Cici in the community center and got to know that she is doing her GMAT test and she told me she will join the wives group after the test. And she indeed joined the wives' group last week and said that she id interested in coming again. In the next week after I met Cici, I met an Iranian when I was doing exercise in the gym. Through conversation I found that she knows the other Iranian lady that I was trying to reach. Moreover, she told me that she is doing her TOEFL test, and we found a time to meet again since she wants me to share some experience about how to prepare for the test. 

I feel that God is so willing to help me when I was even only showing a tiny amount of initiation. This also encourages me to be more initiative in the future. 

The meaning of Christmas

In Italy, the Country I am from, when someone mentions Christmas the first image that comes to mind is a little baby in a manger, surrounded by Mary, Joseph, an ox, and a donkey. Then, you will start thinking of a man dressed in red with a white beard and you will immediately freak out because the list of presents you were supposed to buy is getting longer and longer and you haven’t started shopping!

But what is really Christmas all about?
Last week IFI partnered with Grace Polaris Church in order to promote “The Living Christmas Trees”. I have been there for three years in a row, and I think calling it just a Christmas play is reductive! The great presentation, the presence of live animals during the play, the high artistic level of the cast members made it the best evangelistic show I have ever seen.
The story develops in two parallel parts. The first tells the story of the crew members of a cruse sheep, while the second deals with the story of Jesus.

During the trip, they have to face a strong storm, which makes them wonder about the choices they have made, their priorities and the realization that life is like a ship: you can live on it, party and enjoy, but you are not really in total control of it, as you are not the one holding the rudder. But what should you do in the midst of a storm? How do you find directions? As well as when we drive and we get lost, even in our daily life we need a compass. That is why the protagonists start reading the Bible, that contains the information necessary to know who you are, where you are going and how to make sure your existence in the right hands.

In this way the characters begin reading the story of the first Christmas, the birth of the Messiah, his ministry and miracles. But it didn’t end here. Because the reason Jesus was born, the point of celebrating Christmas is that he was not only a lovely child, a great prophet, but he came to die, to pay the price for our sins, to make a way of reconciliation between us and God.
We had fallen short and walked away from God, there was nothing we could do to repair this damage. But Jesus took the initiative and came to Earth and he, the perfect Lamb, sacrificed himself, washing away our sins.

The Bible tells us that “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) and that “the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). But there is even more! In fact, three days after his death, Jesus rose from the death: “But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive” (1Cor. 15:20, 22).

Now you see why I love this play? It wisely connects the dots! It does not focus on one part or the other, but tells you the complete meaning of Christmas! Make sure you see it this year, or write to me if you have questions!

Merry Christmas everyone!

What is your world view?

What is your world view?

During the month on November we had the privilege to have a special teacher in our Iseeders course, Ellen Foell , who taught us one of the best classes I have attended so far. The topic was “World view”. “What is a world view?” you may ask. It is the filter throughout we look at the world around us, the sum of our values and beliefs. A world view cannot be kept, as it impacts the way we respond to the events, people and situations in our life.

When I accepted God in my life and decided to follow Him, I choose to put on a new pair of glasses, in order to see things through a new prospective. I accepted the fact that we live in a fallen world. The reason why you want to turn off the tv every time it’s on, is because people decided to turn their back to God. But together with the awareness of sin I also embraced a filter of grace and love:
“ For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16).
So, I started thinking about my world view and questioning if when people look at me they could see what I believe. Is my faith in Jesus clear in my actions? Are my words filled with compassion and truth? How do I react when people go too slowly when I am in a hurry or cut my road on the highway?

The Bible gives us the example of four men who kept faith to their world views and honored God even when the situation was hard and their own existence was threatened. They are Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Their world view was based on the Law of Moses, which prescribed to eat only certain foods and to worship only Jehovah. This led them to say no to the culinary delicacies of the court of Nebuchadnezzar and not to fall down and worship the statue of the king. They were ready to make sacrifices in order to defend what they believed in, despite the circumstances.

Are my choices showing who I believe in? What am I watching, saying, thinking? Am I ready to give up things that are not healthy in my life?

As the Apostol Paul says “But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ” (Phil. 3:7,8).

Come and Rest

It's the holiday season again. And it's hard to believe that 2016 is soon coming to an end.

Lights, Christmas trees, and the classic songs, everything is filled with the festive atmosphere.

Since being away from home for college, holidays have never been too exciting for me. It meant cold weather, long hours of studying for finals, figuring out alternative plans since the dorms were closed, and not being with my family when everyone else seemed to be.

But this year is different. Being a part of IFI, I'm excited to see how God would use this season to open doors for reaching more students. I know this would bring perfect opportunities, to share the joy and gratitude we experience in Christ as believers.

Thanksgiving involved a lot of big meals, social gatherings and building new friendships. It was fun, but also exhausting. And quite honestly, 4 months into moving to Columbus, I didn't expect myself to be in a stage where relationships with people seem to be just forming, and opportunities for me to share the gospel with unbelievers in a natural way somehow feel limited. It just seems like the more I'm trying to do, the more there is waiting to be done.

Why am I not doing enough? I remember questioning God over and over again. And is there even much meaning to the things I'm trying to do here?

And in response, He reminded that it's His work to be done, that I need to trust in Him with patience, that even when I don't see it, He's still at work.

"Breathe, just breathe
Come and rest at My feet
And be, just be
Chaos calls but all you really need
Is to just breathe"
--- Breathe, Jonny Diaz

Sometimes we are too caught up in the busyness of our own world that we forget to look up to Him. We forget that in the world of endless demands, He's always opening His arms for us to rest at His feet. After all, it's never about what we do, but what Christ has done for us. When He died for us on the cross, His blood has covered all our sins, from the ancient days, and the days to come.

I'm still excited to uncover the rest of my journey here in Columbus and beyond. But the next time before I ask myself, what could I do, I will remember to ask God, what would you do through me.

I'm thankful He has a plan more amazing than mine. But I'm more thankful that He has me as part of it.

Make disciples that make disciples

In high school biology class, I learned that two types of animals are the same species only if their crossbreeds can reproduce by themselves. For example, donkeys and horses are different species because their offspring mules cannot reproduce anymore. Back then, I got a vague idea that if a species is to flourish, current generation need to not only reproduce the next generation, but also reproduce the next generation that can keep the reproduction going for the future.

As a corollary, recently in Perspectives class, I have been learning that as Jesus’s disciples, we need to make disciples that can make disciples, so that faith in Jesus can grow exponentially and be passed on to the future.

So far this semester, I have not connected much with my university friends and old small group members. But surprisingly, just as I was learning about making disciples that make disciples, two of my old small group members came to visit during Thanksgiving break, and one of them used to be in a discipleship with me. My old disciple found a job from Google, a position that almost all the new students I reach out to this semester eagerly wish to achieve. A typical student this semester would skip Bible studies to study for their courses at OSU. I thought my old disciple would be a good example of both a Christian and a technology expert. So I told my old friends beforehand to share how spending time with God doesn’t interference but improve academics and career, and then I arranged a meeting with my old friends and a new student. We chatted over dinner, and when a new student learned that me and my two old friends met through a Christian fellowship on campus, he had a pensive look on his face, as if living a Christian life could really be fruitful. Of course, faith in Jesus shouldn’t be treated a means to an end. The new student might not yet know how it feels to have a relationship with Jesus. I pray that he will keep getting Godly influence from those whose career he aspires to attain.

The event I just talked about does not sound like something very noteworthy, but to me, it was a vivid experience of seeing my old disciples making their own effort for the generation of Christians. I am deeply thankful for God arranging their visit to me and deeply proud of what they did here. Right now I want keep in touch with the two friends who just visited me and reconnect with some other people. I will update on the next post. 

A Wonderful Reunion

Hello everyone, hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving! In this November, my wife and I fly back to Tucson to celebrate the 70^th birthday of our dear spiritual grandfather Jon Heine. There are many memorable moments happening there, and I want to share the most wonderful one with you.

On November 14^th, together with Jon, we go to Scott and Nancy’s home for dinner. Both of them are pastors in our fellowship who have a very deep influence on our way to Christ, and we even got baptized at their home last year. So it’s definitely a wonderful reunion.

Actually, I knew there will be a super moon going at that night several weeks ago, but I could never imagine what an amazing night God has prepared for us. Sadly, there is a forest fire on the mountain happening that day as well, and there is a very long line of smoke in the sky because of that, but God utilizes that in his unique way.

After we finish the dinner, we go to the roof top of their home together to watch the sunset and the super moon. Since their home is located far away from the city, there is almost no light pollution there, and it’s also very quiet and peaceful. Looking at the sky, the long line of the smoke turns into a very beautiful spectrum under the light of the sunset. There are different colors in the spectrum that gradually changes from one color to another, just like a rainbow, but much longer. What an amazing scene! On the other side of the sky, the super moon is rising at the same time. It’s so big and bright that there is no darkness under the sky at all. 

Before such astounding views, what actions can I take except praising the Lord, the creator of all of this? Besides that, I’m also with the people I love the most on this planet, what emotions can I express except joy and gratitude? Besides that, I didn’t plan for this to happen at all but God prepared them all even before I asked, what words can I say except “I’m loved and I love you”?

After I come back to Columbus, I keep thinking of that night. In my life, there are not really many opportunities like that to be with the persons I love the most under the most beautiful background. That night will always be a shiny pearl in my memory no matter how many years have passed, and it will keep reminding me of how much God loves me. Lord, thank you!

However, as it is written:

“What no eye has seen,
    what no ear has heard,
and what no human mind has conceived”—
    the things God has prepared for those who love him. (1 Corinthians 2:9)

God answers my prayer

Hi everyone, this is Cindy. If you read my post before, you may notice I am a new believer. I am still learning how to pray. Most time, I feel my pray is very raw, so I do not want to pray in front of other Christian. I always think their prayers are much better than mine. They use a lot of biblical words and ideas. Their prayers are always very beautiful and motivating. I think my prayer is more like a child has a talk with her father. I was struggling with this for a long time. Now I feel much better, because I know God is always listening to me. And God cares about how I trust him and rely on him. God does not care the format. As long as I pray in faith, God will take care of me. No matter how I pray and where I pray, I just need to trust God and love God.
I guess some of you may have the same question as I did before. Will God respond me if my prayer sounds simple and plain? The answer is Yes as long as you pray in faith. I pray everyday before sleeping. It is a conversation between me and God. It is simple and straightforward. I alway tell God what happened to me and ask God for help. God is mercy and loving, he always answers my prayers.
About two month ago, my husband bought a new iphone7 from a person. And that person promised my husband that phone is an unlocked phone. But later my husband figured out that phone was a locked phone. So my husband tried to contact the seller and ask his money back. The seller disappeared. Then my husband went to the apple store and tried to get help. However, they refused to help my husband. They even threaten my husband. They said if my husband kept staying in the store, they will call the security. My husband was very angry and upset. I was very worried about him. I could not help him. The only thing I could do is pray. My husband is a non-believer, but I know God loves him. God loves everyone. My husband had two choice at that moment: One is using the locked phone with paying service fee every month. The other one is trying to sell the phone to another person. But if my husband tell the truth about the phone, people will not pay what he paid for the phone. That means he had to lose money no matter either way he chose. I was anxious, because I was afraid my husband would be tempted by Satan. Satan could make people filled with anger and hate. Satan could tell my husband to cheat another person. I was hoping my husband could make a right choice. I did not push him to make any decision. I talked with God and asked God for help. I know our God is almighty. God is taking care of us all the time. I prayed that God could show his mercy and love to my husband. Finally, my husband wrote a post in craigslist honestly. At the same time, my husband went to the police office to report this scam. I did not expect people would buy that phone at the price my husband paid. I also did not expect the police would finder that scammer.But again, God is loving us and taking care of us. God gave me a surprise. The next day, someone would like to buy the phone with the same amount my husband paid. And two days later, the police office called us, and told us that they found that scammer. I was so thankful and so joyful.
This is the short version of my long story. This is not the first time God answer my prayer. I will share more of my story with you in my future post. I just want to say, please be faithful and patient. God will answer your prayer. Below are some verses I want to share:

John15:7  If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
Matthew 21:22  If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask in prayer.
Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

Hello Readers,

Time really flies by! This is my last week working as an ISEED intern. It is shocking that I almost ready to leave the program to go back home in Thailand in January 2017. My awkward feelings is like I just got into the program few weeks ago then I’m done this week? Although it’s kind of sad to leave many friends, host families, churches here in Ohio but my joy to meet my family overwhelms me. Moreover, God made promises through His Word in Jeremiah 29:11 to me and all of his followers so I feel secure that His “plans to prosper (me) and not to harm (me), plans to give (me) hope and a future”. I will be exciting to see His plan for me back in Thailand.

Submit to God and praying with faith is one of the important lesson to me that I learned during ISEED program. To me our God is a just in time God. He never fails to provide and respond to my needs (that are according to His will) in perfect timing. For many instances what happened to me this year taught me how to pray and wait and submit all of my concerns to Him. Also I learned that even when someone mistreated me I can leave it to my Heavenly father and learn to forgive and move on. I feel like I’m not worrying and stressful as before. Isn’t it good that God is on my side? (If I do the right thing and according to his will)

Although I leave IFI and the U.S. soon but good friendships from IFI staffs and students will still remain and I’m sure they will keep in touch with me and I with them.  

I’m asking for you prayers for me for:

u  Pray for my trip back to Thailand

u  Pray for my long journey with Christ

u  Pray for my career direction back in Thailand

u Pray for wisdom to use or adapt our DBS and Master Life into Thailand’s small groups effectively

u  Pray for my families’ and Thai people’s salvation

Thanks for all of your support and love during my 10-month internship. May God bless all of you and keep in touch J

Tony

(Tanit Kriengsantikul)

What to post for blog post?

As an IFI intern, I am supposed to make a blog post every month about my relationship with the Lord. But since it’s a blog post-everyone could come read it-I was overly concerned with the quality of the post. I was overwhelmed by the efforts to come up with the most engaging story, perfect writing and grammar, and beautiful photos to company the story.  In my heart and mind, the blog post has become not so much a reflection and memoir of God’s blessings as a personal showcase of spiritual growth. For more than 15 days-the blog post was due on Nov 1^st-I have been procrastinating on making the blog post with the excuse that I have not had anything “good” enough to write about. God gave me many blessing and intimate moments last month, but surely, none of these Godly experiences was “good” enough to satiate an inflated ego posting to prove himself to others. 

               A Christian musician Matt Redman has a song called The Heart of Worship,in which he sings that “For a song in itself is not what You have required. I'm coming back to the heart of worship. And it's all about You. It's all about You, Jesus.” Identically, a blog post is not what Jesus has required, and when I write, my writings should be all about Jesus. Lord, I confess I didn’t treat your blessings seriously enough and had thoughts about using the blog post to impress others with our relationship. Would you forgive me and humble me to write blog posts out of thanksgiving and awe of your goodness? 

               A verse from Psalm 84 recently sticks in my mind: “Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. Yes, Lord, your presence is more fulfilling than anything else. It’s all about you. Please ingrain this in my heart. 

How do I become an ISEEDer?

About five and half years ago, I came to Columbus from China. I had never thought I would become a Christian some day. But my journey indeed started since then. Before coming to the United States, I only heard about “Christian” once in my whole life. So when I came to Columbus, I did not apply for a Christian host family. Most of my friends had a Christian host family at that time. Or at least a Christian picked them up from the airport. And then when school began, I met my two roommates. One is a boy; he had a very nice Christian host family. And the other one is a girl who had been a Christian for five years. Both of them kept inviting me to the bible study or church. I always said: no, I had other things to do, I don’t wanna go. But they did not give up asking. Sometimes, they said: you can go to eat or make friends. Finally, I went to a bible study a couple of times. Not because I was interested, but because I did not want to disappoint my friends. But I remember, after eating, when they had bible study, I hid my face behind the bible so no one could tell I was asleep. To be honest, at that time, I thought I would never ever be a Christian. I was super confident that nothing they said or did for almost three years would change my mind. So after graduating from school, I still did not believe in God. But I had a feeling that Christian people are different, they are warm-hearted, nice, and peaceful. Then I went to Los Angeles for work, but before I left Columbus, I got to know a girl who had been a Christian for a long time through my old Chinese classmate. She gave me a Christian bookmark. When I got back home, I put the bookmark somewhere. Life in Los Angeles was quite different as in Columbus. While living in Los Angeles, I had not heard anything about God and Christianity. Instead, there were so many temptations. I still maintained I would have nothing to do with Christianity. After working half of a year there, I lost the only chance to get my working visa. I decided to come back to Columbus, to be with my boyfriend (Bill). When I moved back to Columbus, I stayed home while Bill was still studying in school. I thought the reunion with Bill could bring me a happier life. But we started fighting with each other. After half a year, we got married. I thought marriage could bring me a happier life. But we kept fighting with each other more and more. We used to be a happy and sweet couple. We have lots of good memories. I did not know why everything changed. I tried many things to fix our problem. I talked a lot with my family and friends. I read some emotion control books. None of them helped. So I fell into a deep despair and agony. I had A lot of anger, hate and regret. I wanted to save my life, to save my marriage, but I didn’t know how. One day, when I was organizing my home, I saw that Christian bookmark my friend had given me. Instead of rejecting Christianity as before, at that moment, I really had a strong feeling that I should try to know more about Christianity. Maybe this is the last thing I should try for life. So I called my friend (who gave me the bookmark) and told her I was interested in knowing more about God. She was very surprised. And then she started reading bible with me. But I still did not believe God yet. I just wanted to have some Christian characteristics like Peace, patience and kindness. Then I went to a Christian activity with my friend and that is where I met a girl whose name was Sunny. Sunny introduced me to the IFI wives group bible study. In wives group, we share our life and read bible together every week. I learned more and more, and I also got lots of support from other wives. Their behaviors influenced me, and their stories inspired me. Our wives group leader Rebecca shared with me a lot of things about love and Christian marriage. She encouraged me to pray and ask God for help. Then I learned that love is patient, love is kind. Instead of fighting with my husband, I should fight with myself. And I started praying to God, especially when I was controlled by anger, impatience, selfishness and all the things from Satan’s world. 

While I already believed God, my faith was unstable. And then I met more friends through IFI. We get together to share our life and talk about bible verse. I remember my friend explained the meaning of “asking Christ into your heart” to me. Then I asked Christ into my heart. And I confessed I am a sinner and asked forgiveness for my sins. I also asked God to work on me and my marriage. I was expecting fewer fights and more peace. But sometimes, after I had a big fight with my husband, I started doubting God. But with the encouragement of all my Christian friends, I did not give up. I continued reading the bible and having conversations with Christian friends. I always feel very thankful and peaceful after I meet friends. I have learned that my acceptance, security and significance can only come from God. I have learned that God does not always make my circumstances easy, but he will give me love to live. I am so thankful God is talking with me through all my Christian friends. One of my friends also shared with me about how God helped their marriage getting better and better. It really inspired me. I realized I should rely on my Lord; I should place my life in his hand. I should fully trust him and let him be my master. So with the help of all my brothers and sisters, I am growing a lot. And my life is changing through God’s Grace. Sometimes, I still have arguments with my husband, but I am willing to apologize to my husband and come to God asking his help. Sometimes, when I have negative opinions, I also ask God to help me to get rid of them. I clearly remember, about one year ago, I did not like praying. Especially when I was mad, I always forgot God. I even said “ go away God, don’t talk to me, leave me alone”. But God is with me and loving me all the time. He keeps talking with me and helping me. He is always showing me his grace and forgiving me. I always talk with God, and I always pray that I can be more committed to God. Then in this August, I finally got baptized after my long and hard journey. 

So when I look back, I always feel very amazing. I even cannot believe this miracle happened to me. Then I realize God can make anything impossible to possible. God is seeking me all the time. I want to tell my story to more and more people. I want to abide in God's words. And I have a strong feeling I should help other non-believers as my friends helped me. So one day when the leader of our wives group introduced ISEED program to me, I was very excited. Through this program, I will learn what it means to be a disciple of Jesus, how to apply biblical principle in all areas of my life and how to tell others about Jesus. I applied this program and I became an ISEEDer. I am growing in this program and learning more about God. And my life becomes better and better. I really want to share with you about my exciting life. But I will tell you next time.:)