WE DID IT! We finished our 17th Annual World Tour! And what a place to end â€" Dallas! I have loved being here for half of the month of December. It is been a wonderful time seeing the world in 2009, but as they say in the movies, I was able to produce TWO productions in one month, something I did not know I was cabable of! Yet, the Lord was faithful, and allowed many miracles to happen. Watch the video report.
VIDEO MESSAGE
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DECEMBER TEACHING
2010 Mission: LOVE
Someone asked me a few months back, If you could start your ministry over, what would you do differently? My response surprised him, and me. I said, I would love more. It was not a profound statement, and yet, it has made me take a second look at my ministry.
It seems to me that Christians all over the world are experiencing an increased longing for the presence of God in their lives. Everywhere I go, I meet Christians who are hungry to experience more of God. Yet, they (and I put myself in the same category) are feeling like something is missing.
As I have studied the Fruit of the Spirit, I have been realizing that more and more, love is the single most important key to becoming mature in God. I have seen that if we do not have love, we will not mature. Some think that love is so basic, it is something only for new believers to study. I think the opposite. The more mature you are, the more you have to emphasize love in your ministry.
As wonderful as the Gifts of the Spirit are, the Bible teaches in Galatians 5:22 that it is the Fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, gentleness, long-suffering, faith, goodness, meekness, and temperance that will show if a person is walking in the Spirit or not. So, if you want to see whether you are a spiritual person or not, do not look to see what anointed things you are doing. Look to see if the Fruit of the Spirit are evident…. especially…. love. You simply cannot walk in the Spirit or be spiritually mature without walking in Love.
How important is it? If you will read I Corinthians 13: 1-3, you will get a good idea. You see, to God, Love is the Litmus Test. Nothing counts without it. Without love, the gifts of the Spirit are not worth anything. Newsflash: neither is your money. You can give all you want, but without love, God does not count it. You see, love is not just the fundamental characteristic in Christianity, but it is the ONLY law we have! Jesus taught us, This is my commandment, that you love one another, as I have loved you. John 15:12
If you want to walk in love, then you will have to make some decisions to yield to work of God in you to love others around you. You will have to say no to your flesh, and choose to walk in the Spirit more. Of course, I am not talking about some phony love game that some Christians play on Sunday morning. They will smile all day at you, and act loving, but do something that they disagree with, and their sunny lemon-yellow smile turns to sour lemons. No, the love of God is not like that. It is ever-present and it comes without conditions. The love of God continues to love people whether or not it receives a response. It is not self-seeking, or self-giving, or selfish. It is self-less.
God does not just love the lovely. He loves the unlovely, too. That is the way He wants us to love one another, too. Read I Corinthians 13:4-7 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
According to His Word, that kind of love is the very thing that separates you from the rest of the world. You and I have a higher calling! Walking in love means that we lay down our own agendas, and follow His agenda. What is that agenda? To love those around us. To give of our time, our emotions, our finances, our experience, our blessings, our possessions, ourselves.
How can I switch from being self-centered to Christ-centered? You do it by maintaining a living contact with God. Fruit is the result of life. Jesus Himself taught, Just as no branch can bear fruit of itself without abiding in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you abide in Me. I am the Vine, you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much fruit. However, apart from me, you can do nothing. John 15:4,5.
The more we fellowship with God, the more we are changed by His presence and are able to walk in His Love. The more we walk in Love, the more intimate our fellowship with Him becomes. It is a wonderful circle of life! Are you longing for more of the power of God in your life? Then eagerly pursue and seek to walk in Love. Determine to live a life of LOVE, and you will surely shine with the glory of God!
VIDEO TEXT
In December, I flew back to the U.S. from Korea and was happy to be back in Dallas and my church, Covenant Church to work on our Christmas musical. I worked with the dancers on the angel dance, as well as worked with the featured dancer, Kenya Lockett, on her part. Lastly, I worked with the pas-de-deux with Matt Moulds and Brittaney Ray. I worked with the American actors, but also had a chance to see dear friends, Scott and Heather Garrison.
It was soon time for me to leave the U.S. and head back to Korea. With me were the Bells, who worked with the actors to get them ready, Ken with the men, and Marjorie with the women. The producer and my friend, Cho Il Hwan, took the actors through a staging orientation of this massive stage we would be using at the Anson Arts and Culture Centre theatre, and I ran the Korean actors through their staging. Once in the theatre, we set all the lighting, sound and curtain cues. Promotions were ready, and posters, banners and flyers were everywhere. I gave the actors some last minute notes, we prayed, and we opened our show, and it was anointed. The Korean actors did such a good job. Best of all, we had hundreds of people who were touched by the powerful message of the love of Jesus for us through this musical. We took cast pictures afterwards, and continued with several more performances. After the production, we had fun with American actor Tim Urban. Tim had accompanied me to Korea, and he had a chance to practice his English role of Joseph against the Korean actors roles of Josephs parents, which made for a fun time! Finally, it was time for me to leave and say good bye to all my dear friends, like Byoung Cheoul (who played Joseph) , Chang Ju (who played Mary's father) , Byoung Kwan, (who played one of the three magi) , and Hun Chang (who was Dream Joseph) . Most of all, I am thankful for dear friends and producers, Cho Il Hwan and Yang Jang Won.
I flew out of Korea for the last time in 2009, and I will miss my friends. I landed in Texas, and was happy to be back to work on my second show for December. We did not have much time, so we went right to work. My friend, Dima Shishkin arrived from Kirov, Russia, as he will be attending Christ for the Nations Institute here in Dallas. I put him also to work on our show! We had a few run throughs, notes and prayer, and then it was time for the show. The show opened, and it went off beautifully. The actors did such an amazing job, scene after scene. What was the biggest blessing for me, however, was the impact of the show on the audience. We had a chance to impact the lives of everyone who saw the show. Best of all, we had people who were born again, and others who re-dedicated their lives to Jesus as a result of the show. It was a blessing for me to work together with Pastor Ricky Texada to reach the city of Colleyville. Afterwards, the American cast and crew posed for the official photo, and we celebrated with a wonderful cast party.
SEE YA'LL LATER!
That is Texan for Goodbye! How was your Christmas? I was able to spend it with family, which I very much enjoyed. Like usual, I ate too much, but there was too much good cooking going on! So, really, it was not my fault! I hope that you are enjoying the newsletters, and getting something out of them. I have heard a lot of good comments from many of you, and I am blessed to be able to impart into your life for 2009. Please pray for me, as I begin my 18th Annual World Tour in January! May you and your family have a safe and blessed 2010! God bless you, and Happy New Year!
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