The Substitute Players

God Spoke to Me Over a decade ago, a well-known TV evangelist claimed that God told him to raise one million dollars; else God would call him home. Many believed him and made contributions toward his ministry. It was very hard for me to believe that kind of story because the Bible does not back it up, and there is nothing to verify the validity of his statement.. Today I’m going to tell you that the Lord did talk to me, because the Bible did support it, and a sermons confirmed what He spoke to me. One Sunday morning like others, after the congregation finished worshipping with songs of praise, the Lord told the Senior Pastor to prophesy over a couple of members. He checked with his associate about that unusual experience. His associate gave him the names of one woman and two men, and he gave to each of them the special words of the Lord. I’d be embarrassed if the Pastor called me and prophesied over me. However, I coveted God’s word. Just a few minutes later, the associate Pastor interviewed a member of the Church and through her, the Lord gave a word, that was “Passion,” and Luke chapter 2: 46-49. I knew that the Lord spoke to me, because I don’t have passion for anything. When I was young, I tried to play guitar; now I can’t play because I did not take time to play or to practice. I played pingpong, soccer, and even poker. But I didn’t have passion for none of the above. So I was not successful in what I was doing. Now, after walking with God for 25 years I started to receive His blessing when I serve Him. I’d not say I have a passion for what I’m doing, but I enjoy what I’m doing. Today the Lord spoke to me again during Sunday service. This time His message was confirmed by a sermon I heard over the radio broadcast, just two hours after the morning service. During the worship, a member who was in front of us, prostrated before the Lord when I stood up with all others. The Lord drew my attention to the story found in Luke 7: 36-47, and especially verse 47: “Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgivenfor she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little." I thought I didn’t have to kneel down and bow down, but raising the hands was good enough. But the Lord told me that He accepted the worship of the member who prostrated before Him today. I thought I didn’t do anything bad that I need to repent. The Lord told me, “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” I must agree with the Lord who is always right. I ask Him to forgive my many weaknesses. I didn’t not literally prostrate before Him, but I humbled myself, and He forgave me, for He is faithful and just. An Huynh

TheAntidote for Flu Bugs The Bird flu is almost over—we hope. Now the Swine flu makes us worry. It came as a thief, without warning. It attacked like a roaring lion, seeking whom he can devour. That is the scheme of the devil. I’m not trying to prescribe a miracle anti-flu medication. I’m trying to write about spiritual disease. What we can do to protect ourselves from flu bugs, we can prevent sins from controlling our souls. In the book of Deuteronomy God warned His children of the danger of disobedience to His commandments. He said, “However, if you do not obey the LORD your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you... The LORD will plague you with diseases until he has destroyed you from the land you are entering to possess” (Deuteronomy 28:15, 21—NIV). It is true that God does punish sins, but we should be careful when we say that all natural disasters are acts of God. It’s more likely that many natural disasters come from the devil. The apostle Peter asserts that “The devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8—NIV). Like people, lions must work hard to have something to eat. They have to hide in the bushes, and wait for hours before they can spot a prey.And at the right moment a lion jumps out of his hiding place, and chases his prey until he can catch his prey. The devil uses the same tactic. He patiently waits for the right time to attack a carnal Christian.And at the moment when a believer is the weakest the devil jumps on him and devoured him. To protect ourselves from such unexpected attacks Peter teaches us, “Be self-controlled and alert.” We must be prayerful and spiritually awake. Else, we would be an easy prey for the devil. Paul also gives us a good advise for our self defense; he said,” Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes” (Ephesians 6:10-11). What those advices have anything to do with flu virus? We know that Swine flu broke out without warning. Health experts could not predict its outbreak. Pharmacist can’t make medication the can cure the disease, or even prevent the disease. What people can do is to take precautions such as avoiding the crowd that may carry flu virus, washing hands often, avoiding eating pork strengthening their immune systems. What we do to protect ourselves from flu bugs we can do to protest us from sin bugs. First, we can protect ourselves from the world’s influence. Do not confirm to the philosophies, to the worldview, to the standards of the world because they are spiritual flu bugs. Avoid the crowd that gets together to indulge themselves without giving God the glory that is due to Him. Secondly, Doctors advise us to wash our hands often to prevent bugs from invading our bodies.At the same token, we need to wash our spiritual hands often to avoid spiritual infection, as the apostle James teaches, “·Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you

sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded’(James 4:8—NIV). To come near to God, we must prepare our heart, and get rid of any impurities.Agood housewife keeps her home clean, in order to be attached to God we must keep ourselves clean by confessing our wrong doing and asking Him to forgive our trespasses. James also tells us to confess our sins to each other so that we may be healed. Thirdly, we need to spiritually keep ourselves in good shape. Our daily exercise includes adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and service. We should worship the Lord our God, thank Him we what He’s done for us, confess our sins to Him and to each other, and to serve Him with the gifts He’s given to us. The flu or any natural disasters such as earthquake, flood, tornadoes, sunami can strike any time without warning. We must be prepared. Peter told us to be self-controlled and alert. We need to be on guard because the devil will launch his attacks when we fall asleep or when we party. The apostle Paul reminds us to be “strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.” One of the preventive measures we can take is to strengthen our body through exercises. We can maintain our immune systems by taking vitamins. Our spiritual exercises include studying the Bible, fellowship with believers and prayers. The writer of Psalm 119 says, “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119: 11). God’s word works as flu shot that reinforce our immune system. When our immune system is strong enough, it can fight back the bugs, or at least, the flu cannot knock out our body. Today, when the influenza epidemic is at our doors, what children of God can do is to humble ourselves and pray. The antidote for influenza is found in the book of II Chronicle: “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (2 Chron 7:14—NIV). An Huynh Cinco de Mayo, 2009

The Substitute Players They are stars, but not super-stars.Afootball team or soccer team has 11 players. However, in any games, a team needs more than 11 players, maybe twenty. While 11 team members play, the others just sit to watch the game, and wait for the coach to call their names.At that defining moment, a substitute comes into the game, and replaces a player who is tired, injured, or does not meet the expectation of the coach. Even the coach does not expect a lot from the substitutes, they have to practice as hard as the others. Many times they have to wait for hours before the coach calls them to enter the game. They have been trained, practiced just for that very moment. They can use the techniques they have learned, and play the best they can. From time to time, they are called the last minutes of the game.

However, the coach calls them in the right moment, and they make a difference and bring victory to the team. The book of 1 Samuel told us the story of David. He was the youngest son of Jesse. The Lord told Samuel to go to Bethlehem because the Lord had chosen one of the sons of Jesse to be king of Israel. After Samuel had arrived at Bethlehem, the prophet consecrated Jesse and his sons, and invited them to the sacrifice. “Samuel saw Eliab and thought, "Surely the LORD's anointed stands here before the LORD" (1 Sam 16:6—NIV). But the Lord told Samuel, “Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart" (verse 7). After seven men had passed before Samuel, none was chosen. “So he asked Jesse, ‘Are these all the sons you have" (verse 11)? Jesse forgot that he had one youngest son. David was kind of a “substitute player,” who did not play an important role in the family. While attending the family’s sheep, David had time to think of the Lord, to practice his skill, and to be equipped for fighting against Goliath . The Supreme Coach sent David in the game at the right moment, and he scored big for the Lord’sArmy. In the 80’s, not long after I was saved, the Pastor of a Vietnamese Church invited me to join his Church. My wife and I served the Lord with him over ten years when he decided to move on. He gave the church a year to look for replacement.At the beginning of 1997, he terminated his responsibility, and the church had not found any one to take care of the church.At his suggestion, the Church Board reluctantly agreed to let me take over the responsibility of the Pastor the Church. I did not ever wait for my turn; I just did what I could to support the Pastor’s ministry. But I had been trained all along for that moment. Dear Christian friends, wherever you are, whatever you do, you’re trained to take over whatever God has in store for you. Keep in touch with your Lord and He will reveal you his will.At that moment, when He calls you into a ministry, be ready to say, “Yes Lord, not my will, but your be done.”

Watching and Doing “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” James 1:22—NIV My wife and I try to walk 2 miles a day to keep us in good shape. We prefer quality—to be healthy-- to quantity—long life. When the weather is not cooperative, we play videotape and exercise at home. On one exercise while a team is working out on Waikiki Beach, a group of tourists is watching.

Which one of the two parties enjoys life better? Maybe those who are watching are entertained, and those who exercise work hard. I think the question we should ask is: “Which one of the two parties benefits by what it does?” The answer is obvious. Those who invest their time and energy in the work out will eventually have a quality life. On the other hand, those who enjoy watching will not be as healthy as the others. unless they exercise afterward. I’m thinking of Christians. Many are believers of the Lord Jesus, and some are His disciples. The majority if Christians meet the minimum requirement to be saved and have eternal life as the Lord Jesus has promised. They do not do more than attending Sunday services, weekly Bible study, and do not get involved in other ministries. They are watching and not doing. In a ball game, thousand are watching a few players competing. Is it better to play than to watch? Maybe watching is easier, and playing required a lot of work. The Lord Jesus teaches, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit-fruit that will last” (John 15:16). He saves us so we can serve Him and our neighbors. To be His disciples does take hard work, but it will give us a sense of fulfillment.

Skunk Cabbage (Lysichiton americanus) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Western Skunk Cabbage (Lysichiton americanus), sometimes called yellow skunk cabbage, is a plant found in swamps and wet woods, along streams and in other wet areas of the Pacific Northwest, where it is one of the few native species in the arum family, together with the duckweeds. The plant grows from rhizomes that measure 30 cm or longer, and 2.5 to 5 cm in diameter. The leaves are the largest of any native plant in the region, 50-135 cm long and 30-80 cm wide when mature. Its flowers are produced in a spadix contained within a large, bright yellow or yellowish green spathe 30-40 cm tall; it is among the first flowers to appear in spring. The skunk cabbage also produces heat. During the Winter the heat it produces melts the snow around it so that it is able to survive. Although similarly named, the plant is easy to distinguish from the Eastern Skunk Cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus), another species in the arum family found in eastern North America.

Scientific classification

One time we walked by a swamp and smelt something like a dead animal. We told our son, and he said that was from skunk cabbages. It does look pretty, isn’t it? But, on a nice sunny day, a funny smell of the flowers pervades the air. My wife commented, “We cannot judge someone or something by his or by its appearance.” I agreed with her on that truth. There was another time when we took a walk with our six year-old granddaughter, we picked pretty wild flowers for her. When we took the flowers home, our daughter told us that they were poisonous. When most flowers are pretty and smell good, some either stink, or are poisonous. We cannot judge them by their beauty.

The book of First Kings recorded the story of Queen Jezebel. She found a wicked way to kill and take the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite. The book of Mark recorded the story of Herodias, Philip’s wife whom his brother Herod married. John the Baptist told Herod that was not lawful. Herodias who was beautiful, I think, hated John and had her daughter ask Herod for John’s head. Truly there are many beautiful women all over the world who are very dangerous, and who can do unimaginable things. The Lord Jesus Christ can see not only the appearance, but also the heart of men. While the religious leaders of His time focused on the outside cleanliness and tradition, the Lord was more concerned about the cleanliness of the heart. He teaches, “What goes into a man's mouth does not make him 'unclean,' but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him 'unclean...Don't you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man 'unclean.' For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander” (Matt 15:11, 17-19—NIV). The Lord did not mean that we don’t need to wash our hands before meals, but He wants to draw our attention to a more important truth, the cleanliness of the heart. Asinner can be defined as someone who has an unclean heart. The Lord Jesus is the one and only one who can help us to clean our heart. When we invite Him to enter our hearts, He will gladly clean it and come in and dwell there. The writer of the Psalm says, “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened” (Psalm 66:18—NIV).

The Bible also asserts, "There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God” (Rom 3:10-11—NIV). In other words, all of us have unclean hearts, and the Lord Jesus is theAnointed one who can clean our heart. The one who has an unclean heart cannot be accepted into the Kingdom of God. Jesus is the Christ, the Savior. That means when we accept Him as our Savior, his blood will make us spiritually clean and we will meet God’s requirements for His sonship. An Huynh April 8, 2009

Captain Richard Phillips Last week theAmerican flagged ship MaerskAlabama was attacked by pirates off the Somali’coast. The Media reported that Captain Richard Phillips told his crew to lock themselves up in the cabin when he offered himself as hostage. The pirates took him captive and let the boat sail to its destination. Also according to the Media, the pirates asked for a ransom of 2 million in exchange for the life of Captain Phillips. When the negotiation is still going,, on Easter Sunday, the US Navy Commandos succeeded in freeing Captain Phillips from the hands of the pirates. Three of the pirates were killed, and one was captured. From this event we can draw some spiritual principles. First, Captain Phillips didn’t have to offer himself as hostage, but he did in order for his crew to be free. Only he went through the ordeal while his people were safe. He knew that his life was in danger, but he accepted it. We consider him as a hero. The Bible tells us the story of a greater man of all times. His name is Jesus of Nazareth. In the evening when a large crowd armed with swords and clubs came to arrest the Lord Jesus, Peter tried to protect his “rabbi.” But the Lord told Peter that God the Father would put in his disposal more than twelve legions of angels when he needs to be rescued. However He chose to offer himself as a living sacrifice. While Captain Phillips offered himself in exchange for the safety of a few men, the Lord Jesus offered himself as a living sacrifice for the sins of all mankind. The Bible informs us that before Christ, the high priests offered sacrifices day after day, first for their own sins, and then for the sins of the people, but the Lord Jesus, unlike the other high priests. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself (Hebrew 7:27—NIV). Secondly, Captain Phillips can only be freed when his employer or his family pays the pirates who kept him captive a ransom of 2 millions dollars.After the “Fall of man” all human beings sin, and are slaves to sin, and the wages of sin is death. Before Christ, the blood of animals was required for the forgiveness of sin. But that was a temporary atonement before the final ultimate atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ who alone can pay a spiritual ransom for all mankind.

Thirdly, Captain Phillips attempted to escape, but he was recaptured. Many religions that did not accept the atonement of Christ, have tried to avoid paying the ransom or the penalty of death by human works such as holy living, routine prayers, fasting and so on. They cannot escape the wages of sin that is spiritual and eternal death. The Bible asserts, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12—NIV). The Lord Jesus, God’s Son alone is qualified to atone for the sin of all human beings. On Easter Sunday, the US Navy rescued Captain Phillips after sharp shooters shot three pirates and captured another. Captain Phillips could not save himself, someone else did. We cannot save ourselves from sins and death. The Lord Jesus can and would do it if believe in Him as the word of God promises: "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).