Coffee anyone?

stockfresh_2030188_various-colorful-cups_sizeS

A group of young adults got together at a friend’s home.
They talked about a lot of things but soon the conversation turned into complaints  about politics, stress in work, trouble in our country & life.

The host offered his guests coffee.  He went to the kitchen where he had already prepared the coffee.  He picked out a number of different cups and mugs, as he had a good collection.  Some were porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain-looking, some expensive, and some exquisite.  He brought it into the room with sugar and cream telling them to help themselves to the coffee.

 

After everyone had chosen a cup, and began to drink their coffee, the host remarked to the group.  “If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is but normal for us to want only the best for ourselves, that is the source of our problems and stress.

 

“Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee.  In most cases, it’s just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup.   But, subconsciously, we go for the best cups…and then we began eyeing each other’s cups.

 

“Now consider this: Life is the coffee, and the jobs, money and, the politics, our position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain life, and the type of cup we have does not define nor change the quality of life we live. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee God has provided us.

God brews the coffee, not the cups.  Let’s enjoy our coffee.”

 

When a family suffers a devastating fire in their home a number of things transpire.  There is the immediate shock followed by the sense of loss when you start to realize all that was destroyed.  The task of sorting through the rubble, is often a very painful task.  People often have to move out of the house right away due to health issues or safety problems.  That change in itself can be very demoralizing.

 

At some point you begin to focus on what is really important in life.

It always comes down to loved ones and relationships.  You realize that your life was not the house of the things in it.  Job, in the Old Testament, experienced this in a major way that. God forbid we will ever have to experience such a nightmare.

 

The house the clothes, the possessions, were just the cups that hold our lives. God is most concerned about His beloved children.

The cups they come and go.  Sometimes in life the cups are beautiful and precious.  At other times they are downright disappointments.

But through it all, it is the “coffee” that is important, what God is brewing in our lives.

 

Fortunately, we know the end of the story.  These cups here are only temporary.  Jesus is preparing a new cup for us, that will be glorious and it will carry this precious gift of life into all eternity.
401d25f7ffcdce8cc4a4662483cb4588

 

Mike Samarkand 1024x768
Enjoy your coffee,
Pastor Mike


It is good to be home from South Korea

Somehow, coming home always feels so good and right, no matter where I have been or whatever I have experienced.  My experience in South Korea was incredible.  I saw some beautiful sights and had wonderful experiences.  But nothing could compare with the inspiration of meeting Believers from all over the 10/40 Window.

The 10/40 Window is a rectangle on the globe from the 10th to the 40th Northern Latitudes from China to West Africa.  It is here that 2 Billion of the worlds unreached peoples live.  They have never heard the Good News of Jesus Christ and New Life that He brings to those who place their faith in Him.  These are mostly Muslim Countries, Communist Countries or Buddhist

Countries, with a smattering of Hindu’s here and there.

In most of these countries it is either illegal to be a Christian or it is persecuted regardless of any “freedom of religion” statement made by the government.  As a result, these leaders find themselves in the delicate situation of expressing and sharing their faith where the cost may be severe. It may even cost their freedom, torture, or their very lives.

It is because of this cross that they bear that makes their faith so powerful and real.  Prayer is often not a luxury, but a necessity for survival.

Their understanding of Jesus two great commands;

  1. To Love others has He loved them &
  2. To spread the Gospel into all the regions of their country demonstrates their tremendous love for God and His Glory.

It was a humbling experience to be in their presence.  Some 3,000 people gathered to share, pray and inspire one another.  Just to be in their midst was a great honor.

In order to get a sense of what some of them go through let me recommend a book to you.  Joseph Kim is the author of Under the Same Sky: From Starvation in North Korea to Salvation in America (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt). His story of being stripped of the love of his family and left as a child begging in the streets of North Korea is eye opening.  Then he tells of the miracles that God did in his life (even before he knew about God) miracles that eventually led him through China, South Korea and eventually into the United States where he was to meet His Savior, our Lord Jesus.

More than anything, my time in Korea was a confirmation of my hearts’ desire.  I truly believe that God is opening doors for us in the 10/40 window where we will be able to join these saints in fulfilling the great commission, completing the task that Jesus has given to us at Pathway.  Once that task is completed, then the door will be open for the return of Christ, the resurrection of the saints and the ushering in of His great Kingdom.May 2015

Marantha, Pastor Mike,
Matthew 24:14.