Good Friday

it's Good Friday. 

... but why is it good? well of course, growing up in the church, we know that answer is,

"Jesus!" 

... and yes, that is correct... but what about Jesus? and of course we answer, 

"it is good because He died for us on that day." 

... and again, that is correct... and why is that so important?

"because He died for our sins so that we may have eternal life!" 

... wow! such good students. you all get stickers. 

"yay!" 

but year after year we hear the same message... in fact, we probably hear that message of how much He loves us and died for us maybe every week. and we become numb to it. we forget how great that is. we forget the joy of salvation and how wonderful it really is. we often forget how much Jesus actually went through for us... like a new toy or that new trend that fades away in months, our thankfulness and true awe of what was done on this day so many years ago is forgotten...

we've all made mistakes. we've all failed. we've all done things we regret. i look back at my life and i wish i didn't do some things. i wish i didn't say certain things to people. i wish i didn't hurt people. hurt myself. hurt God... but i did. and i can't go back and change it... sometimes i wish i could go back in time. i wish i can go back and make better decisions. change those mistakes i made... but then again, i'm glad i can't go back. i'm glad that those mistakes are still burned within me...

why? why live with the guilt? why live with the painful memories? because they make grace that much greater. they remind me how much i do need God. they prove to me that i am nothing without Him... there is nothing that i can do to attain salvation. no work. no deed. nothing can completely make-up for my sins. i deserve death. i deserve to go to hell... but that is why the work that was done on the cross was so great. it is why that horrific tool used to kill someone, represents something so beautiful. the cross that Jesus died on, paid the price. only He, the one who didn't deserve to die, died so we may live... that's how great grace is. that is why the gift of salvation is so wonderful. because it is something we don't deserve, but it is something we all can have...

we also often forget that Christ was fully human as well as fully God. Jesus really went through emotional and physical pain. he cried out to God asking Him to remove the cup that He was to bear. He felt the pain of the lashes. he felt the pain of the mocking and seeing the people He loved, turn away from Him. He thirsted on the cross. He felt the nails being driven through his flesh. He breathed His last breath... yes, He was fully God and the resurrection proves that. but, He was fully human as well... and He went through all that for you... for me...

now, i don't sit around all day and mope and feel depressed and put myself down saying how great a sinner i am... and i don't try and go out and sin even more, so i can receive more grace... that's jus stupid. that's not the point of why Christ came to die for our sins. He didn't do that so we can sin more. He died, so that we can live more... we can live with hope. with joy. with peace. with confidence. knowing that He has completely forgiven us and that when He returns again, we will finally be made whole again... 

and yet, we live our lives for Him half-heartedly. we continue on our days living without passion for him. we immerse ourselves with the world and other things drive us. we forget the true awesomeness of salvation. we forget to live for Him in our thoughts and actions. and so i come before You Lord, and i humble myself once again...

thank You God. for sending Your Son to die on the cross for me. thank You for loving me and blessing me with so much more than i deserve. i know that i am weak and i often fail and disappoint You, but You always forgive me. You always pick me up when i fall and i know that although i am nothing, You can still use me. i pray that my life will be used by You and that i live in such a way that is pleasing to You. may You continue to guide me in all i do. i thank You and love You...

amen.

Warriors Game and Easter Weekend

Last Friday, our youth group went to the Warriors/Nets game at Oracle Arena. Even though the Warriors lost the game by 2 points, we had a lot of fun cheering for them and fellowshipping together. Also, since it was "Fellowship Night," after the game we got to sit in the lower section and listen to coach and pastor Mark Jackson give his testimony about how he came to know Christ. He gave an alter call at the end and a bunch of people went down to accept Christ.

This weekend, we will have a Good Friday Service, Joint Sacraments, and Easter Service. As Christians, this is the time of the season when we focus in on the cross and the life that is given to us through the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. We hope that each one of us would recommit and give our lives over to Him. This Easter, we are very excited and happy that Erika Ho will be getting baptized! She will also give a brief testimony during our Easter Service. We hope that everyone would be able to come out and celebrate with her!

Doing Something

On Friday Nights, we have been talking about seeing God's heart for the poor, hungry, and lost. The thing is, we don't want to only see God's heart, but to actually be apart of doing something for those who are in need. However, there is so many good organizations out there. How are we to choose where to give to?

So, this past Friday, we did some research on different humanitarian organizations. The one that many youths liked was Doctors Without Borders. That is why we are encouraging all of us to see how much money we could give towards this organization. We can save up by not going out and buying a meal or setting aside some of the allowance we get. Then we will pool the money together and give it to Doctors Without Borders. Not only that, but Elder Torence mentioned that we will be able to get a matching fund from Cisco (up to $1000), so we will essentially double what we give.

Another organization we liked was Habitat for Humanity. So, we will look to see if we can get involved somehow with them and possibly go do physical labor and help build houses or something. It's time for us to move our faith into action and share God's love to others in a practical way!

Bring Your Laptops to Church?

Yes! This Friday, we will be doing something different as we'll be using our laptops, iPads, smart phones and whatnot not during youth fellowship. So bring one, two, or all three devices if you have it handy. If not, no worries either. Simply come out and join us for fun, fellowship, and growing deeper in our faith!

Activity Night (03.30)

Our Youth Group will be going to a Golden State Warriors basketball game for our next activity! This is a special Fellowship Night as after the game, there will be a short message by the Warriors head coach, Marc Jackson, who is also a pastor. There will also be music and some activities for those who attend.

Here's more information about the night:
Date: Friday, March 30
Time: The game starts at 7:30pm, but we will take BART to the game. Either meet at church at 6:50pm to carpool to the Fremont BART station, or meet us at the Fremont BART station at 7:15pm. Since there is the message and other activities after the game, we won't get back to church until 11:30pm-midnight.
Location: Oracle Arena in Oakland
Cost: Tickets are $12 or $16 (depending on the seats we get) and BART tickets are $7.20 roundtrip.

Please RSVP to Chris Liu by this Friday (03.16) because we need to purchase tickets!

Social Justice

Last Friday, our youth group watched the Kony 2012 video that exploded onto the internet. In this video, the organization called Invisible Children called attention to the Ugandan Warlord, Joseph Kony, who has kidnapped and abducted thousands of children for his own personal army. It is a very well-edited and heart-tugging video.

After the video, we talked about social justice and how this group has the heart to do something about injustice. However, we also talked about how they were accused of not allocating their finances well and how only a limited amount of the money raised really goes towards helping the Ugandans themselves.

The main takeaway for our group was to first have a heart like God. God's heart breaks for the poor and needy and we too should have a heart like His. Second, for us to be mindful of what organizations are out there doing good, but to do our research as well. And finally, to actually do something about it. It's not good enough just to talk about helping the poor, but we need to actually do it.

We will continue talking about social justice and helping the poor this upcoming Friday and what we can do to get involved. We hope that you can join us!

Outside Our Bubble

"Learn to do good;

Seek justice,

    Correct oppression;

Bring justice to the fatherless,

    Plead the widow's cause."

-Isaiah 1:17

...

We often live in a bubble and don't really know what's going on outside of our own lives. We might see or hear a news article here are there, maybe read the 'Top News' from CNN.com, but that's about it. However, there is so much more going on in the world and I hope that we can get outside of our bubble.

Starting this Friday (03.09), we will be starting a new series that will lead up to 30-Hour Famine (which will be on April 20). We'll look at social injustice and poverty around the world and hopefully develop a heart for those in need. We'll also see what we can do to make a difference and take action steps towards helping those causes. 

We hope that you can join us!