Note: The AMI QT Devotionals for November 21-26 are provided by Pastor Yohan Lee of Radiance Christian Church in San Francisco, CA.
Devotional Thought for Today
Hebrews 11:13-16
These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. 14 For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland.15 If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.
On Thursday, I shared how we implemented chores and rewards for my seven-year-old, Simon. From that system, Saturday became his payday. In his first week of work, he made a whopping $3. Small oversight on my part, I only had $2 in my wallet. So, I gave my son the two bucks and told him that I’ll give him the rest later. I figured no big deal, right? Not so fast… for some reason, my son did not believe that I would’ve made good on my IOU. (I don’t know why Simon doesn’t trust me; perhaps it’s because whenever my family gives him money, Dad puts it away for “safekeeping”.) Anyway, the next day Simon asked me for his dollar, but of course I didn’t have it, because I wasn’t about to go to the bank for one dollar. This went on for a few days until I found a convenient time to come up with a buck—I think it was the following Wednesday.
Here’s the funny thing: Instead of demolishing his faith in me, the fact that I eventually paid built up his trust in me. Because my son knows that I will eventually pay up, he is fine with letting things slide here and there. Now when I tell him I’ll pay him later, he’s good, knowing that later will eventually come.
Similarly, when the writer of Hebrews says, “These all [faithful patriarchs] died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar…”, he means that they did not have to see every promise of God fulfilled with their own eyes to believe in God’s future faithfulness because they had seen God “pay up” on past promises numerous times. The principle we need to learn is that this: Past faithfulness fuels future faith. One of the examples the writer of Hebrews used was that of Abraham and Sarah. Technically, neither of them lived long enough to see their descendants grow to be as “many as the stars,” but they did see the miraculous birth of Isaac, new lands (in part), and other miraculous events. For them, since God had proven to be faithful, they could count on His future faithfulness even after their deaths.
What are the things you are waiting for? Do you have faith in God’s future promises because you have seen his faithfulness in the past? If you are having problems remembering God’s faithfulness, then I encourage you to keep a journal. You will see that God is faithful; seeing this will encourage your faith in Him tomorrow.
Prayer: Faithful Father, thank You that You keep your promises. Remind me of your past goodness toward me; let that fuel my faith in You for the future. You are the same, yesterday, today, and forever.
Bible Reading for Today: Proverbs 14-15
Being a father of “suspicious” children helps me, in some small measure, understand why faith pleases the Lord, and conversely, why lack of faith is so annoying. I feel like I am constantly trying to convince my children that I am not completely incompetent, or that I have learned something in my life. The other day, my seven-year-old looks at me like I’m from Mars because I tried to convince him that the platypus, despite laying eggs, is a mammal. Apparently his first-grade teacher taught him that one of the characteristics of mammals is that they give birth to their young. Sometimes, I want to shout, “Your dad is smart too! I went to an Ivy League university!” Pathetic I know. (Editor’s note: I know what you mean!)
My wife and I are trying a new thing with our seven-year-old son (Simon): chores with cash rewards. So, we give him a quarter for things like throwing out the trash, recycling or setting the table for dinner, etc. In a huge week, he can make about three to five bucks (that’s big money for the little guy). We are doing this for several reasons, but my primary motivation is that I want him to learn the value of a dollar and earn his next Lego set. My hope is that my son will look at his new set and realize that it took him three to four months of “hard work” and savings to get it; then, he’ll appreciate it more, and hopefully I won’t have to see Legos all over the floor.
My old youth pastor told a great story of how once, when he was jogging around the track at his local high school, some big guy jumped him from behind, put him in full-nelson, and began questioning/berating him about his ethnicity. Apparently, this person had lost a member of his family in the Vietnam War, and because he thought that my youth pastor was Vietnamese, he assumed that somehow my pastor was responsible for the tragedy (which happened over 30 years ago). After diffusing the situation by convincing him that there was a difference between Vietnam and Korea, my youth pastor, who was understandably very upset, went home and grabbed a wheat sickle from his garage and started to leave the house, determined to do something bad to his attacker. Thankfully, his mother cut him off (get it?) and was able to calm him down. At one point, his mom—trying to reason with him—asked him directly, “What about your Christianity? What would Jesus think?” to which he replied, “I don’t care!” His point in telling this story was that he was so angry and humiliated by what had just happened, he didn’t care about his actions, his faith, or anything else. I know the way the story reads, it sounds really intense and scary, but the story was meant to be comical, and all of us were laughing as he told it.
I never understood the fascination with gangster movies. Sure, movies like The Godfather or Goodfellas are entertaining, but I know people who think these are two of the greatest films ever made and just flock to the genre in general—maybe you are one of them or have friends who are. But I have a theory that explains some of the appeal of gangster movies: it has to do with this concept of loyalty. In every gangster movie there is a collection, group, or family to which all must pledge their loyalties. The expectation is that everyone must be willing to do or sacrifice any price for the “family,” and betraying it is the unpardonable sin. Of course, in the context of these movies, these loyalties are stretched to criminal levels; yet people are attracted to outrageous displays of loyalty—even if it is exhibited in a twisted manner. Deep down we all want to be a part of a group that is utterly loyal to one another; we want to be around people who would do anything for us; and we want to have friends for whom we would do anything. We are both fascinated and attracted to great loyalty.
Note: The AMI QT Devotionals for November 21-26 are provided by Pastor Yohan Lee of Radiance Christian Church in San Francisco, CA.
How does the phrase “fantasy football” make you feel? For the men (sorry to stereotype) who play it, you probably got a little giddy, because to you, FF represents your last bastion of childish fun in your otherwise mature, pressure-packed, overworked, and utterly responsible existence. For the wives, girlfriends, children, or people who like to have normal conversations with the men in their lives (again, I know women play FF), the term “fantasy football” makes you roll your eyes (or convulse violently), because you know that from mid-August to late-December, your men will be engulfed by this nerdy addiction (think of it like the 21st century’s version of “Magic, The Gathering”).
In college, after late nights of studying (or, according to our pastors, just hanging out), our church brothers would walk the sisters home to ensure that we made it home safely. I lived less than two blocks away from where we used to study; there probably would have been very little danger going home alone, but it was still a very nice favor. Now, as a more-grown person living far from my friends, getting home in the evenings can feel a lot less safe. I appreciate those memories more than ever – what a difference an extra presence can make in a dark situation!
Note: The AMI QT devotionals for November 19-20 are provided by Christine Li. Christine graduated from University of Pennsylvania and currently lives and works in New York City. She attends Remnant Church in Manhattan. 
In middle school, I gained a pen pal when one of my closest friends moved to Japan. For two years, we kept in touch by sending snail mail to each other. It was exciting to send a letter or a package to her, but the anticipation of waiting for a response was a nightmare for my insecure, teenage self. With each passing day of nothing in the mail for me, I would worry: What if she didn’t like what I had sent or shared? What if her letter to me got lost? What if she got tired of corresponding and didn’t want to continue?
When I first became a Christian in college, I had a faulty understanding of forgiveness. I thought it was conditional—meaning, I thought if I missed a sin to repent of, I would not be forgiven of that sin. So I lived in fear, thinking I had to repent from each sin I committed. This was quite a burden I carried! But then, God showed me just how deep His grace is. It took two years, but eventually I understood that I was eternally forgiven and justified before God; and even more, I was now called righteous! If only I had grasped that earlier.
Note: The AMI QT Devotionals for November 17-18 are provided by Doug Tritton, who is now a full-time staff at Symphony Church in Boston. Doug, a graduate of University of Pennsylvania, is currently pursuing a M.Div. at Gordon Conwell Seminary. He is married to Cindy; in fact, they just became parents! 
Now that we have a daughter, my wife Cindy and I were thinking recently: Do we need to make a will? It felt a bit weird (the prospect of your own death!), but then I got to thinking that this probably does not matter too much – we don’t have that much anyway! If I were a millionaire or had lots or property or possessions that would be one thing, but nope, my will would be quite small!