I’m thinking about dad this morning.  Maybe it’s because I preached on the Father Love of God this past Sunday.  Maybe it’s because my dad is here visiting us from the East Coast and I’m getting to spend a lot of time with him.  Maybe it’s because today is my dad’s 61st birthday.  Maybe it’s because dad has always been in my mind and my heart no matter the time or season in my life.  So today is his birthday.  I’m going to take him and the whole family out to a nice buffet for lunch to celebrate!  As I reflect, I can truly say that I’m very thankful for my dad.  Over the years, there were times when I wasn’t sure we’d make it.  I remember many moments of anger and hostility in our relationship.  I remember the many arguments, disagreements, and the many fights that we had.  My dad is definitely not perfect and he has made his share of mistakes.  But then, how can I hold that against him when I consider the fact that I’m not perfect and that I’ve made a ton of mistakes as well?!  My dad is a good man and sometimes that’s the best a son could hope for in a world full of bad men.  I’ve really come to appreciate him.  I’ve very thankful that God has blessed me with a good dad.

He’s 61 years old today.  That means that he’s in the latter stages of his life now.  I’m determined to make the most of the time that I have with him while he’s still here.  He’s truly a gift to me from God.  Sometimes I forget that.  I want to be like my dad as I now have a son as well.

Here’s just a quick note as to why we’re still in the hospital.

Virginia labored for over 38 hours.  She almost had the baby out when she developed an infection.

She got sick and developed a high fever, which caused the baby’s heart to rise.  Because of the prolonged labor, Virginia was so worn out and her uterus could no longer push.  She was experiencing a lot of pain.

In the end, b/c of Virginia’s sickness as b/c of the baby’s heart rate, we determined to go into c-section.

She did great!  But during the surgery, she experienced a lot of pain and lost a lot of blood.

She is still recovering in the hospital.  She’s receiving medication as well as a blood transfusion.  She’s going through a lot.

It’s been incredibly emotional and tough for me to see my wife go through all of this.  Our first birth with Tabitha was traumatic as well.  We really thought it wouldn’t happen again.  But God has been good and faithful.

Virginia is recovering.  Please pray for her.

Barnabas was exposed to the infection so for precautionary purposes, he’s under observation and receiving some preventative antibiotics.  But so far so good.  He’s responding well and seems healthy.  He’s under observation for another day.

We will be here in the hospital for at least until Wed. afternoon.  Then the docs will evaluate.

Please pray for a speedy recovery for Virginia.  She’s simply amazing!

Thank you everyone for your support and prayers.

We hope you can visit us once Virginia is healthier and once Barns is a little stronger.

Praise God!  He is always good, no matter what happens.

- justin

Our second child was due this past Tuesday.  He is three days late.  My wife says that the baby has “dropped” but that she feels no contractions at all.  All throughout this second pregnancy, we’ve been told that the second baby always comes a few days earlier than the due date.  Obviously, that’s not the case with our second baby.  He’s late and there are no signs of him coming tonight or even tomorrow.  So what do we do?  We just wait I guess.  I asked Virginia if she thinks the baby is going to come soon?  She doesn’t know.  All she knows is that she’s feeling no contractions but she feels the baby moving.  We went to see our doctor yesterday and we were told that everything is fine.  So I guess we’ll just keep on waiting.

We’ve decided to name our son, “Barnabas.”  With our first child, Tabitha, everything was so new.  Everything about the pregnancy and about the baby felt so “new” and wondrous.  But with our second, it didn’t feel like that.  Because we had already gone through the experience of having a baby, our second pregnancy was just normal.  But when we found out that we’re having a son, the newness and wonder came back to us. A boy!  A boy is not a girl.  A boy is different from a girl.  It will indeed be a new experience.  From dolls and pink colored shoes and clothes… now, it’s car toys and blue colored shoes and clothes.  What a big difference!

So the name “Barnabas” was chosen because the name means, “Son of Encouragement.”  I’ve always wanted to have a son and name him “Barnabas.”  The name is also a strong name.  Barnabas in the Bible was a great character who encouraged the church leaders to accept Paul into fellowship and also encouraged and helped Paul in his ministry.  Barnabas was a self-less and generous man and like Tabitha, he’s found in the Book of Acts.  He’s a minor character who has a major role in the expansion of God’s Kingdom and God’s Church in the Book of Acts.  We know people will be tempted to call him “Barney.”  I’m okay with that.  I prefer people to call him, “Barns” or “Bas” or simply “B.”  His middle name will be “Justin” so people can also call him, “BJ.”  I think it’s finally hitting us that we’re actually having another baby and we’re actually having a son.  Wow, wow, wow!  I can’t wait to meet the little guy and to hold him, love him, and teach him.  I can’t wait to lead him spiritually and to pray with him.  I can’t wait to teach him how to shoot a basketball or to throw a baseball.  It’s going to be great!

Barnabas, hurry!  Come out and meet the world!  I want to see your face!  Hurry!

This coming Friday, I have the opportunity to address our college students on the very important topic of sex.  Sex is a subject that definitely makes some people feel uncomfortable.  But it definitely gets people’s attention.  I’ve heard that some pastors put on a big campaign on sex and when they do, their church attendance rises.  I’ve also heard that if people are bored and falling asleep during a sermon, the preacher should just shout, “SEX!” and they’ll all wake up and pay attention.  I guess that’s the power of Sex!  It’s got a powerful grip on the world.

Sex is all around us.  You can’t watch television for more than a minute for some sexual innuendo to come about and you can’t go to the mall without seeing something that’s very suggestive.  The world is talking about sex all the time because we live in a seemingly over-sexed society, but not in the church which is ironic for me since it’s God who created the gift of sex.  Therefore, the church should not shy away from talking and teaching about sex.  You see, God isn’t afraid to talk about sex because sex is His thing.  He created it.  It’s His gift to us and He gave it to us to enjoy in the proper boundaries set forth by His Word.  But here’s the truth.  We need to hear what God has to say about sex because we aren’t doing a very good job enjoying this gift in the way God intended.  The misuse of the gift of sex isn’t just the world’s problem.  This is OUR problem.  To say that there is a crisis of disobedience in the church today is to dangerously understate the problem.  I have read the books and magazines and I have seem the statistics numerous times.  Born-again Christians divorce at about the same rate as everyone else  and they also justify and engage in sexual promiscuity (both pre-marital and adultery) at an alarming rate!  Again, it is clear that the misuse of the gift of sex isn’t just the world’s problem.  This is our problem.

So we need to talk about sex.  We need to hear what the bible has to say to discover how God intends this wonderful gift to be used.  Here are some real quick thoughts about sex:

1) Sex was created by God.

2) Sex is good as declared by God.

3) Sex should be enjoyed properly within the covenant relationship of marriage.

4) The World has twisted God’s gift of sex.

5) To overcome sexual temptation, be like Joseph: Make a pre-determined decision to RUN!6) Learn from David’s sin with Bathsheba.  Because David crosses a line and because he misused sex, it led to adultery and to cover-ups, and eventually to murder.  Bathsheba suffers.  David suffers.  David’s family suffers and we eventually know that the entire nation of Israel suffers.  What’s what happens when we misuse God’s gift – we experience pain and suffering.

When my wife and I meet with young couples in our pre-marital counseling, we deal with sex.  We think it’s funny that the church says, “No, No, No!” before marriage regarding sex.  But after marriage, we say, “Yes! Yes! Yes!” to sex within the marriage covenant. So much more to say.  But you’ll just have to come to conneXion on Friday night!  

New Life Congregation Retreat starts tomorrow.  For those that are attending, please come to the retreat by 5:30 pm.  Dinner is at 6 pm.  Keep in mind traffic time as you make your way down to the retreat center.  For those that are not attending, please go to the KM worship service on Sunday or visit another local church that’s Christ-centered.  We will have our Lord’s Day worship at the retreat center.  We’ll see everyone in Vision Hall, 9:30 am the following Sunday.

Let’s pray for God to do some great things this weekend at the retreat!

More info. regarding the retreat…

When: This weekend! 9/3-5/10

Check in time is 5:30 pm at Mt. Hood (we’ll be having dinner on Friday at the retreat center)

Check out time is 11:30 am.



Where: Black Lake Bible Camp (6521 Fairview Rd SW, Olympia, WA 98512

Theme: Christ Center

Speaker: Dr. Steven Lee

Things to bring:

+ Bible + Writing utensils + Toiletries + Clothes for games; warmer clothes for the evening + Swimsuit (optional) + Flashlight + Sleeping bag

there will be limited snacks available, please provide additional snacks for your children

Things to note:

Transportation services are not provided to and from retreat.  However, if you have transportation, please contact retreat@seattlenewlife.org and we’ll make sure that you get to the retreat!

If you can’t make it by the check in time, please let the ministry lead know.</span>

child care is provided!

We’ll partake communion together on Sat. night.

We’ll take up offering/tithes on Sunday. morning.

Any questions/concerns regarding retreat?  Please email retreat@seattlenewlife.org.

Watching my parents and seeing them for the first time in 7 months, I was shocked to also see how much they have aged.  I guess when you don’t see someone on a regular basis, you can accurately gauge what Father Time and age does to a person.  It reminds me that life is indeed short and that time never stops for anyone.  All the more reason for us to make the most of the life that God has given to us.
I write this to encourage myself and to you to keep living each day for God and His glory.  Let’s not hold back.  I’m reminded of our One Month to Live campaign earlier in the year and how helpful it was for me to live life each day to its’ maximum potential to glorify Christ.
Let’s do this together!

If you are a baseball fan, then you would know who Cal Ripken Jr. is.  No disrespect to Ken Griffey Jr., but the Oriole junior is better than the Mariner junior and it’s not just because of the playing skills, but it’s because the Oriole junior is a Hall of Fame family man.  I’m not implying that Ken Griffey Jr. isn’t a good family man… far as I’ve read, I hear he is.   But I’ve read recently that Ripken Jr is thinking about taking a position with the Orioles again.  I was so excited to hear about this news since my favorite team has stunk for more than a decade now.  I live in Seattle now and I definitely root for the Mariners but my favorite team will always be the O’s.  My first baseball game was at Memorial stadium watching Eddie Murray, Billy Ripken and then when they moved to beautiful Camden Yards, I loved going there to see my O’s play.  What a beautiful stadium to watch a ball game!  So hearing about Cal Ripken possibly coming back to the O’s was rejuvenating.  But what impressed me all the more was his desire to not compromise his family life.  In the article in ESPN, Ripken was adamant that he not compromise his family life and that he wanted to wait at least until his son, Ryan, graduated from high school.  It’s ironic to me that a guy who loves the game and broke the all time record for consecutive games played (“The Streak”), the Ironman of baseball who no doubt would’ve worked just as hard in a front office role with the birds would want to make sure he doesn’t work so hard so that his family isn’t neglected.  To me, he’s the Iron Man of family.  He’s going against the culture.  He’s the Hall of Fame family man because really, not a lot of people think like that today.  If you have an opportunity, you throw yourself head first into that work or that pursuit because you want to do your very best and because you want to succeed and be known to be successful.  These things aren’t bad.  But the priority seems to be misplaced.  Family number one!  Cal Ripken Jr, maybe because he spent so much time away from family during his playing days has decided for once and for all that his family is number one.  He’s made a decision that he won’t compromise his family life.

I respect that.  All the more reason why Cal Ripken Jr. will always be my favorite player of all time.  As a husband and now as a father, I often fail at the family life.  I spend way too much time at the church, at meetings… just doing “ministry” when my number one ministry with my wife and daughter is neglected.  I remember when Virginia and I were courting… we took a lot of walks.  On one of those walks, I shared with her of my convictions to make sure that I not neglect her and our future kids ever.  That my first ministry and priority would be to her and our family.  I think I’ve not done a good job of staying true to those promises that were made a long time ago.  I’ve not done enough to talk with her and to listen to her.  I need to change.

Fathers, spend more time with your kids.  Play with them.  Love them.  Turn off the television.  Shut down the computer.  Look at them.

Husbands, look at your wife.  Talk to her.  Listen to her.  Appreciate her.  Affirm her.  Love her.  Let your unspoken and spoken message to her be, “I see you.  You are not invisible to me.  You are lovely.  You are wonderful.  I love you.”

Pastors, remember your number one ministry is to your family.  How can you even focus on ministering to others if your family is falling apart?  Remember that the church will have many pastors that they can go to, but your kids and your wife has only one husband.  Remember that at the end of the day… when you are old and gray… when you are no longer an young buck pastor, but now a old, seasoned man of God… when you walk away from the pastorate, you have no one else to walk to except to your wife and family.

God, give me the grace to be a godly husband and a godly father… God, give me the grace to be a pastor who knows his priority well and it ain’t the ministry to the church.

ESPN Article: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=5380774

Oh how i want New Life to be a success in God’s eyes. I don’t give a rip if New Life grows to be a thousand or ten thousand in number. I don’t care! I want success in God’s eyes. I want New Lifers to love each other deeply and to dig deeply into one another’s lives. I want New Lifer’s to share their possessions and to share the gospel with others. I want New Lifers to be fully devoted followers of Christ! I want New Lifers to be a community that prays and that studies the Word of God. I want New Lifers to be seeking transformation!

God, make it happen! I pray for revival and spiritual awakening!

“Jesus wept.” What a powerful verse! Just two words… probably the shortest verse in the Bible and yet, it must be one of the most powerful. To conceive that God could and would weep for people is hard to fathom. And if I understand this correctly, this isn’t just crying or sobbing or whimpering. The word here is “wept.” Wept is a past tense of the word, “to weep” and weeping is wailing and sobbing and whimpering and crying all put into one and it’s done uncontrollably.

Lazarus has died. Jesus sees Martha and Mary and others weeping, verse 33 says that “he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled.” What does this verse mean and what does it tell us about Jesus? Plenty! Jesus, the Son of God, who came into the world is emotional. He has a heart! And He is moved by humanity and it’s need for Him. He cares! He cares for people like Lazarus, for Martha, and for Mary and because He cares, He wept. Verse 5, earlier in chapter 11, the text makes clear that Jesus loved Martha, Mary and Lazarus. And Jesus wept in such a way that others who witnessed this weeping also said in verse 36, “See how he loved him!” I have seen people die and I have seen people weep for their loved ones. In most cases, the weeping is truly a wailing. It is uncontrolled crying out for their loved one who has just passed. It is sad. And there is this sense that this should not be right… that this is not right. Death is not right. Jesus was not only deeply moved, but he was greatly troubled! Why was he troubled and what does it mean for me to be “troubled?” Can God be troubled?

I believe he was troubled because death is not right. He saw the hurt and the agony and the pain that death brought to them. He saw the sting of death and it wasn’t right. Or maybe, just possibly… seeing death, it reminded him that one day, soon enough, that day will come for him as well.

In any case, God was moved and troubled. He wept for people. Do I do that much? Am I ever deeply moved for people? This means, do I care? Do I love people? Am I compassionate?
And am I deeply troubled by the pain and hurt that I see in people’s lives and what I see in the world around me? What am I going to do about? It doesn’t have to be something incredibly stupendous? It can be something small to begin and then see where that leads. But I must do something. Lastly, do I weep for people? Do I care that much for people to cry for them and cry with them.

Jesus resurrected Lazarus from the dead. Could this be a portrait of what he would do in the future? Jesus would die, but unlike Lazarus, he would die a criminal’s death… beaten savagely… scorned and spat upon like he was nothing but a pig. He died a horrific death, murdered on the Cross. But he too would rise again and defeat death. And in this death and resurrection, we have faith and we have hope and we have life.

No more pain? No more tears? We will experience that in glory if people place their hope and lives in the Great I Am.

“The lover of money will not be satisfied with money; nor the lover of wealth, with gain. This also is vanity. When goods increase, those who eat them increase; and what gain has their owner but to see them with his eyes?” – Ecclesiastes 5:10-11

I preached on money, wealth and finances not too long ago.  It’s not my favorite subject or theme to preach from the pulpit. I’ve seen too many churches get jacked up because of money issues and I know that talking about money in the church is always a sensitive thing. Three subjects that I’ve noticed to really put people on the edge of their seats and make them feel uncomfortable are the subjects of sex, politics and money.  But regardless of the responses and whether people like it or not, the Bible has a lot to say about these subjects. So I tackled the subject of money & finances. I know that these are tough times economically. I know of folks in my own church who are dealing with joblessness and struggling to make ends meet. But I think it is imperative that the Church, the people of God, understand that we must not allow money to be the source of our hope, our security, our identity, our significance… to be a god in our lives.

Now, I don’t want to write my whole sermon here… it would be too long for you to read and you probably don’t have all the time in the world to be reading blogs anyways. But here’s what I’ve got to say about money.

Money is relatively a good thing in the Bible… especially in the book of Proverbs. We all need money to make it in this world. The Church needs money to do ministry and so on and so forth. There is a strong connection between hard work, originality, creativity, self-control, discipline with prospering… prospering materially and economically. Proverbs like “Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth,” or “He who gathers crops in the summer is wise, but he who sleeps during harvest time is disgraceful.” Proverbs 10:22 says, “The blessing of the LORD brings wealth.” So money and wealth are incredibly great gifts from God. But money also has incredible spiritual danger attached to it. For example, money has the power to destroy integrity according to Proverbs 11:1. Secondly, money has the power to destroy community because you become self-absorbed according to Proverbs 11:26. Thirdly, money has the power to distract us from what is really important in life. Proverbs 11:4 says, “Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death.” This verse is talking about judgment day. Questions like “What is my life amount to?”, “What am I really doing with my life?”, “What difference am I making in the world?”, “Who am I really helping?”, and “What contribution am I making?.” Wealth blinds us to judgment day questions. Wealth instead pulls us away and sucks us into a frantic cycle and a frantic life of consumption.

Lastly, money makes us proud and over-confident according to Proverbs 30:8-9. When people have money, they often tend to say, “I don’t need God. Why in the world would I need God for? I have everything I want and need.” Who’s the LORD?” There is nothing like economic success to make one feel over-confident. The more money a person makes and the more successful he or she becomes, the more the person will think he or she got it because they were so smart or so disciplined. And this makes the person feel over-confident and proud. Bernard of Clairvaus once said, “To see a man humble under prosperity is the greatest rarity in the world.”

I don’t know about you but integrity and character, community and humility are all important to me. I don’t want the might of money to destroy these things in me. I don’t want money to control me and how I live my life. My wifey and I are not rich. We don’t have anything saved up for the future but we are hoping to start very soon. We only have one car. We don’t own a house… we rent. We live off of one income so that my wifey can stay home and be a mom to our daughter… it’s been tough at times. We’ve had to dip into our savings and learn some hard lessons along the way. Budgeting and staying true to our budget has been equally difficult especially for a guy like me who’s not as detailed oriented. But with all of this, still I feel that we are incredibly rich and wealthy. We’ve always had food on our tables and a roof over our heads. We’re not living for this world or trying to be comfortable. We’re trying to be more “Christ-like.” This world is not our home. We are just passing through. We are resident aliens in this world. We have a Father who owns a thousand cattle on a thousand hills. My Father is rich! We know that there are people all over the world that can’t eat like we do and don’t have anything near what we have in terms of shelter and just basic neccesities of life. So what God gives to us, we accept and we are thankful. I know that others who read this will not like what I’ve written. But it’s safe to say that all of us (including myself), whether we know it or not, or whether we like it or not… have too much love for money. It has become either our significance or our security. Money either makes you feel important and proud or it makes you feel safe and secure. Instead of God being our significance and security, money is. It is the alternative to God and it has enormous spiritual power over us.

We need to be aware of this. Now if you are someone who is struggling to make ends meet… or maybe you’re not even doing that… I know that our country is in recession. But God is still God and He is still in control. He’s sovereign over the affairs of men. He knows what He is doing. We can trust Him for all things. And even if God doesn’t do what we’d like for Him to do concerning our money and finances… let that not change our commitment to live for Him and our devotion to Him. Even if He doesn’t save us from this economic crunch, “Blessed be His Holy Name!” You have a wealthy Father and you are truly rich beyond all measure.

Habakkuk 3:17-18, “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on teh vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there areno sheep in the pen and no cattle in teh stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.”

If God has given you wealth, that’s great. More power to you… or I should say, “more money to you!” But with wealth comes great responsibility to be a great steward of what God has given you. Use it wisely. Apply the scattering principle, which is that the more you scatter your wealth, the more you’ll gather wealth in a different form. It’s called “Agricultural wealth.” Proverbs 11:24 and Psalm 112 pretty much says that he who scatters gathers and he who gathers scatters. It’s a paradox, but it works in God’s economy. In agriculture, you scatter seed and the more you scatter, the more you gather. The more you sow, the more you reap. But if you hold onto your seeds and won’t scatter them, you’ll starve. But if you’re willing to scatter your seeds and give it all away, you’ll gather. Now when you gather, it comes back in a better form. The only way for you to turn your wealth into real riches is by giving it away. I’m not talking about the wealth and health prosperity junk that’s out there. I’m not saying that if you give it away, God is somehow going to make you richer in the end… no. I’m saying God will give you wealth in a different form. Also, you will have broken the power of money over yourself.

In 2 Corinthians 8, St. Paul is trying to get people to give to the poor. And in doing so, he doesn’t go after their will. He doesn’t say to them, “You better give or God is going to punish you!” He also doesn’t go after their emotions. He doesn’t say to them, “You have to give because these people are so poor and look how much they’re suffering…” He goes after their hearts! 2 Corinthians 8:8 says, “No! Listen. You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. That though He was rich, for our sake He became poor. So that you through His poverty might become rich.” He’s talking about Jesus. Jesus Christ on the cross was literally broken into pieces. On the cross, he was broken. On the cross, he was distributed. On the cross, he was scattered. Why? So that we could be gathered. Paul is calling us to see that Jesus on the Cross became the ultimate scattering to gather, the ultimate example of agricultural wealth. The cross is the picture of the ultimate act of generosity, the ultimate act of wealth distribution, the ultimate place of becoming poor in order to get real riches. Jesus gave up heaven and glory because He valued us more than those things. Jesus Christ is the ultimate treasure who died for us. Give your wealth away and you’ll receive ultimate joy.

I think the church needs to learn how to tithe. How a church gives is a reflection of how the church is doing. Proverbs 11:24 says, “One man gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.” The part about “withholds unduly…” is talking about a stingy person who is not giving away what is required. What would be required? In the Bible, it says 10%. In many places in the Bible, it’s says that if you’re not giving away at least 10% of your income to charity and to ministry every year, then you are disobeing God’s rule for generosity. But I think it’s more than that… tithe is the rule, but the Cross is the wisdom. Jesus didn’t save us by tithing His blood. Jesus didn’t save us by tithing His glory. We are alive by His giving of everything! Jesus’ Cross means sacrificial giving. Don’t you dare think you’re being wise about money if you only tithe! If it’s not making any measureable difference in the way in which you live, in the way in which you do things, in the way you take your vacations, in the way in which you buy things… you’re obeying the rule, but you haven’t brought the cross into your economic life. Everything already belongs to God… He’s just letting us keep most of what He’s given to us. An authentic believer who is striving to live in obedience to God, who is loving God will tithe faithfully to his or her church, but on top of that… they will give sacrificially to charities and to missionaries and to other ministries. This is hard, but this is God’s wisdom for His people.

Jesus Christ gave himself away and look at his harvest! It’s you… it’s me… it’s the people of God!

“No one can sever two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” (Matthew 6:24)

“Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” (Joshua 24:14-15)

As for the Kim Family… we will serve the LORD!