Editor’s Note: The AMI QT Devotionals from July 24 – 31 are provided by Pastor Yohan of Radiance Christian Church, San Francisco. Yohan graduated from University of Pennsylvania and Cairn University, where he studied theology. He is married to Mandie, and they have four children: Maggie, Jonathan, Abigail and Simon.
Devotional Thought for Today
John 3:19-21
This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
In a recent commercial promoting the low-light camera feature on the Samsung Galaxy S7, advertisers made the claim that, “All the best stuff happens in the dark.” They gave these examples: dancing happens in the dark, people are younger and better looking in the dark, food becomes more expensive and romantic in the dark, and my personal favorite, “If you are well below average-looking, your only chance of kissing an attractive person is in the dark.” Obviously, the commercial was meant to be comical, but it does hit on some truth; namely, that we enjoy the literal darkness because we can hide in it, and our imperfections are not as pronounced.
But here is another problem with darkness (or lack of light) — it hides true beauty. Think of all the beautiful places that you’ve been to: beaches, mountains, Hawaii, Yosemite, New England in the fall, the Grand Canyon, etc. You want to visit these places in the daytime, because the light reveals their beauty. In low lighting, you may see forms and shapes, but you cannot pick out the details that make these places breathtaking.
Spiritually speaking, living in the fear of being exposed and hiding in the darkness is a terrible and disfiguring way to live; on the other hand, living in the light of the truth is beautiful and freeing. People who live with a big secret—such as drug addiction, adultery, or involvement in an illegal business, etc.—are always weighed down by the fear of being caught. And they cannot be healed or be free until they confess and disclose their sins. The beauty of being made in the image of God and being a child of God is hidden by the darkness they are trying to hide their sins in. Only after allowing the light to reign can their beauty be revealed.
Is there something in your life that you are keeping in the dark? Is that secret bringing you into the dark as well? Does it need to be confessed and brought to life? Won’t you consider sharing it with someone?
Prayer
Heavenly Father, I want to live in the complete radiance of Your light. Help me to confess any hidden sins and seek forgiveness, restoration, and renewal. Remind me that Your light is always good.
Bible Reading for Today: Psalm 121
Lunch Break Study
Psalm 121
1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
3 He will not let your foot slip—he who watches over you will not slumber;
4 indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The Lord watches over you—the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
6 the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord will keep you from all harm—he will watch over your life;
8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.
Questions to Consider
- What was the psalmist trying to convey about God in this Psalm?
- How does the psalmist highlight the characteristics of God’s protection?
- This Psalm (especially vv. 6-7) implies that no harm will befall a child of God. What does that mean?
Notes
- The psalmist praises the Lord as our guardian or protector.
- In verses 3-4, we see that God is ever-vigilant in His protection—there is never a time when we have escaped His watch, and He never sleeps. God protects us from harm (vv. 6-7) and has a plan for us. He watches over our lives, both our coming and going, now and forever (vv. 7-8).
- The psalmist is not saying that bad things will never happen to God’s children. History tells us that many Christians are persecuted and have been killed for their faith. But what we need to understand is that God’s protective hand and care does not leave His children; meaning, those who suffer are not abandoned by God or out of His loving will. So we must see our sufferings as given by God and have the grace to ask, “What is God trying to accomplish in this suffering?”
Evening Reflection
This morning we talked about getting out of the darkness; and in the afternoon Psalm 121 talked about the ever-vigilant care of the Lord. Believe it or not, these two ideas are not unrelated, for the statement that “God sees everything about me,” is true. In Psalm 121, we see that this is a beautiful and comforting idea (if you generally live in the light). However, if we are trying to hide in the darkness, this can be a terribly uncomfortable idea for us. In your life, how do you react to the idea that God sees everything about you?
Editor’s Note: The AMI QT Devotionals from July 24 – 31 are provided by Pastor Yohan of Radiance Christian Church, San Francisco. Yohan graduated from University of Pennsylvania and Cairn University, where he studied theology. He is married to Mandie, and they have four children: Maggie, Jonathan, Abigail and Simon.
Several years ago, I was on a mission trip in Beijing. One of the activities we did during that trip was to go and share the gospel out on the streets. I speak no Mandarin or any other Chinese dialect, so I left the sharing up to the locals and missionaries. After one particularly engaging conversation that ended with a declined invitation to accept Christ, I asked the missionary with whom I was partnered what he said and how things ended. Basically, he told me he shared the Gospel and asked if the hearer wanted to accept—this person declined. So the missionary responded, “Thanks for listening; I believe in heaven and hell, and I hope to see you in heaven one day.”
In high school and college, I never had periods where I “fell away,” nor do I have fantastic stories of my BC (before Christ) days. Even in college, I didn’t drink, never went to frat parties, smoked or used drugs; and because girls were not that interested in me, I didn’t get into too much trouble there, either. I’m pleased to report that from my teenage years through my twenties—and even now—I was/am pretty boring. Of course, I didn’t start that way. I know it sounds silly, but even young kids can be bad, and that was me. Before my twelfth birthday, I had already been in multiple fights, busted for shoplifting (twice), and set the record for cumulative hours of detention at school (I’m not even sharing the stuff I’m truly ashamed of either). I didn’t know it at the time, but the trajectory of my life was pointing the wrong way. I truly believe that I was only a few years away from getting into drugs and a slew of bigger problems. Thankfully, the grace of God was (and is) upon me, as I moved to a different neighborhood, state, school, and eventually started going to church regularly. Every once in a while, I will search for some of my old teachers from elementary school on Facebook. I’d love to connect with them and tell them that I turned out all right—I’m sure they’d be shocked to learn that I am a pastor.
I used to lay in bed as a kid with my legs propped up on the wall. This was my thinking position. And I would spend hours just thinking about some of the weirdest things. When I would think about God, I would often pray, “God, if only You would show Yourself to me, then I wouldn’t struggle as much believing that You are real.” I think we’ve all prayed that prayer before. I have met countless number of people who have gone to amazing conferences and incredible mission trips, bringing back stories of how they had witnessed God’s unbelievable power at work. I, too, have had those experiences.
When you study the history of the Jewish people, you might be surprised to find that the often criticized group of the New Testament called the Pharisees had God-honoring intentions when they were first formed. During what is called the intertestamental times (in between the Old and New Testament) or the 400 years of silence, the Pharisees began as a group that sought to maintain the purity of the Jewish faith, while the Jewish people were scattered and under foreign oppression. However, by the time Jesus enters the scene in the New Testament, what started as good intentions soon became religious stubbornness.
I was on a flight early in the morning, and all I wanted was some sleep before I landed. Being a “larger-than-the-average” Asian man, the worst thing on a plane is to sit next to another “larger-than-the-average” person. The gentleman who sat next to me was this “larger-than-the-average” dude. He looked like a bouncer that stands in front of clubs. Turns out he was a bouncer that stands in front of clubs. I just wanted to sleep, but God kept pressing me to talk to him.
In a recent episode of the podcast Invisibilia, a woman recollects on her life where she struggled in relating with others. Although she was a highly successful physician, she had issues when it came to reading people’s emotions, body language, or other social cues. It wasn’t until at the age of 54 that she realized she had been living with Asperger’s Syndrome, a disorder that prevents someone from recognizing emotions or cues within a social context. She recounts how she underwent an experimental treatment that temporarily stimulates a part of her brain, allowing her to pick up on these senses that she had been missing. “This is so much more alive, so much more real… so much deeper, more meaningful. It’s like black-and-white to color,” were her words describing the experience.
I was meeting a college student at a Starbucks. He had struggled with his faith early on but recently started to deepen his relationship with the Lord. In the midst of prepping for his dental school admission test (DAT), he wanted to share something that God had been teaching him through his studies. He said, “I’m starting to understand what Paul meant that we are a body. A body functions rightly when all the parts of the body, all the cells play the role that they are designed for.” I nodded in agreement. “But do you know what happens when a cell does whatever it wants to or grows in a wrong way?” he asked. “Cancer.”
Editor’s Note: The AMI QT Devotionals from July 18-24 are provided by Pastor Joshua Kim of Church of Southland. Joshua, a graduate of Emory University and Columbia Theological Seminary (M.Div.), serves as the pastor of Access group (singles). He was recently married to Christina. 
Take one quick look at the headlines, and you will find yourself wondering how to take in all the things that are going on in the world today. As a Christian, where are you to stand on things like who to vote for in the elections, how we are to view the various “_______ lives matter” movements, and the list goes on. It’s often hard to find proper methods of measuring whether or not you are being faithful to what the Lord commands of us.
It was freshman year, first semester Philosophy 100 class. I was sitting there half nervous/half curious about what was in store for me, because I had heard countless stories of people denouncing their faith while studying philosophy. It was in the midst of this tension that an unexpected connection was made: logos. Many know that logos is the Greek word for word. What we may not realize is that this term represents more than the words that we read or speak. It describes a transcendent wisdom that orders the world accordingly. When these philosophers looked out in the world and saw how everything was ordered, to them, the only rational explanation was a Divine Wisdom that held all things together.