“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:32-36)

by Jin Lee

It has been my experience that when people are good to me, it is so easy to treat them well and be good friends. I don’t mind going out of my way to help since I know that they will respond with appreciation and thankfulness. I really enjoy treating a friend to a meal or a nice gift because first we are called to serve but also selfishly, I enjoy receiving their thanks and seeing them happy. The people I have a difficult time with are those who expect things from me and those who just don’t show appreciation or thankfulness the way I expect or desire. God has been teaching me a lot lately in terms of giving and helping with no expectation of anything in return. He’s been showing me how even the giving or helping I do is tainted with my selfishness and once again proves that my “good deeds” are like filthy rags to God. I really love the above passage. In Luke 6:32 – 36, Jesus is teaching his disciples what it really means to love. If I love those who love me back, how is this different from the world? It really isn’t. Even the world loves those who love them. In the same way, if we do good to those who in return do good to us, how is this different from the world? The answer is there is no difference. True love comes when we are able to love those who hate us or do good to those who revile us. This is the love that Christ is talking about. The same way Christ loved me when I hated Him. The same way He was generous to me with His grace while I had no regard for Him. This is the love that Christ expects from me. I can try to do this on my own but eventually I will fail because this type of love is not sustainable on my own. However, this love can only come and be sustained when we plug into the power of God and ask Him to help.

It’s amazing how God continues to reveal to me just the darkness of my heart in the midst of my “good deeds.” It’s a true blessing to know that even with my darkened heart, God continues to love me. Let not my love be like the world’s. Let my love be like Christ’s.

by Johnny Kim

With the start of this Fall season, I have the privilege of serving as the elder overseeing the Single Life ministry. Having been on the Single Life ministry staff years ago when I myself was single, I am excited to return to serving Single Life, this time joined by a ministry partner (my wife!). As I think about my own past experiences as a single adult and all the lessons learned that I could possibly share, one lesson about being single sticks out in particular because it seems I learned it only after getting married. Before I go any further (and before I risk getting into trouble with my aforementioned ministry partner), I can’t help but to say that I absolutely love my wife and being married in general. Though I would not trade marriage for any other life stage here on Earth, the one thing that marriage made me finally realize about singleness was just how precious singleness is.

Allow me to explain.

It just so happens that it’s the same lesson that the Apostle Paul was trying to teach the church at Corinth throughout 1 Corinthians 7. Throughout the chapter, we can see that Paul extols the virtues of being single as opposed to being married. Paul presents the simple and plain truth that, compared to their married counterparts, those who are single face less hindrances and concerns in the way of offering complete and undistracted devotion to the Lord. Opportunities for greater devotion to the Lord are definitely precious and no Christian, single or married, can deny that.

And yet, as single adults, we (I am also speaking for myself when I was single) can sometimes fail to see the preciousness of the single stage of life. We fail to see that our freedom as singles grants us a whole host of opportunities to serve Christ and His church; opportunities that would surely be harder to come by if we were married. Rather than celebrating singleness as a special stage of life, we can be prone to treating singleness as if it were an unnatural state. Some might even reduce this special stage to nothing more than a sort of waiting room in life where we sit around simply waiting for bigger and better things to come our way. Under the weight of those kinds of attitudes, devotion to the Lord is replaced by discontentment with our life and discontent singles then quickly grow tired of being single.

On the contrary, throughout 1 Corinthians 7, Paul paints a picture of singleness where the single person is not tired of being single, but more likely tired from being single. It’s the picture of a single person who without a wife or husband to be concerned about, is free to work wholeheartedly for God and His kingdom purposes. Without the various needs of a spouse vying for their time and attention, they are free then to devote all of their time and attention (and at all hours of the day) in service to God. The single person can completely tire themselves out in total devotion to the Lord without worrying that they will have nothing left of themselves to give to a waiting spouse at home.

Marriage is definitely a blessing from God as is singleness according to Paul. It is my desire that Single Life would be a ministry full of tired singles; singles who are absolutely tired and spent from being wholeheartedly devoted to serving God while in the single stage of life. In a society that offers singles plenty of other reasons to be tired, including the pursuit of career advancement, higher education, travels around the world, hobbies and the like, it is my hope that the Single Life ministry can be characterized by singles who are completely tired for the sake of Christ.

Singles, are you tired of being single or are you tired from being single?

by Julia Chen

I’ve been coming to Lighthouse for about two years now, and it has been a tremendous blessing to be a part of this particular church family. I appreciate the elders for their commitment to preaching God’s Word, and the members for continually seeking to build each other up in Christ. It’s true that there are many joys in life that I can attribute to my “Christian lifestyle” — I belong to a wonderful church community, and I have purpose in life, just to name a couple. But what if, hypothetically, Jesus Christ has not risen? Would the benefits of Christianity, outside of eternal blessing, be enough? These are some of the questions that Alex Ko raised in his sermon on 1 Corinthians 15:19 entitled “Most to be Pitied.”

In the passage, Paul argues that if Christ has not risen, then Christians would, in fact, be the people most to be pitied. In order to reach this conclusion, we must consider the implications of the idea that the dead cannot arise. Paul’s logic goes something like this: If the dead cannot rise, then Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our faith is worthless, since Christianity revolves around the historical event of Christ’s resurrection. All believers would still be in their sins and would be condemned to eternal punishment because our hope in Christ goes only as far as this life.

So then why are Christians the most to be pitied? In Luke 9:23, Jesus says “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” This is not something to be taken lightly, but it is a complete and perpetual commitment. If we are to proclaim ourselves to be Christians, then we are to be Christ to the world, to bear His name. If Christ has not risen, then wouldn’t our natural response be to avoid suffering and seek out what’s best for us—YOLO, as it were? Conversely, we are called to live a life that is counter-cultural, to invest in heavenly rewards rather than pursue worldly pleasures.

As a young single adult living a relatively comfortable life in sunny San Diego, it’s easy to get lost in worldly pursuits. It’s not that the blessings in my life are bad; moreover, I need to remember the gospel, and my testimony—that I once hated God and was hopelessly lost in my sin. I need to take responsibility for my personal disobedience and acknowledge that it is only by God’s grace that I am saved. As Christians, we have all experienced God’s grace and have been set free by the glorious truth of Christ’s resurrection. Therefore, we should live in a way that reflects this. What we do in this life should bring us closer to God. We should be wholly dependent on our Sovereign Creator, and we should actively seek to glorify Him in all that we do. We are the most to be pitied if Christ has not risen because we have been called to the narrow path—and this is the path that we must strive towards—but we can find comfort in the fact that Christ is indeed risen, and that our hope in Him extends into eternity.

by Larry Wu

As LBC members, we are required to follow the MVP statement. Our passion statement is Matthew 22:37-40, which says, “And he said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.’” The word “neighbor” in Greek means any other man irrespective of nation or religion with whom we live or whom we chance to meet. What does it mean to love your neighbor? We as Christian should be known by love, but what does this mean?

During the summer, we had the blessing as singles to spend time with collegians and youths. We also had the special privilege to listen to sermons from our singles staffers. The sermon by Kevin Tse “Loving Diligently” helped us understand what our passion statement really means. “Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord” (Romans 9:9-11). There were three points to Kevin’s sermon: 1) You must love genuinely; 2) You must love familial-ly; 3) You must love diligently.

To love genuinely is to love sincerely without hypocrisy. This means that you are not loving someone because of favoritism or expecting what they can do for you. This love means that we must self-sacrifice and put their interest above ourselves. To love familial-ly is to love between believers. This is where believers have a special relationship with each other by showing humility and grace. To love diligently is to love people you don’t socialize with. To socialize with the one that is difficult to love, one that doesn’t fit a friend mold or even totally the opposite of who you are. This love is the love Jesus showed the world, and we should strive to imitate this love to the outside world.

As we have opportunities to know other affinity groups, we should be asking ourselves: Do I only socialize with my own affinity group? Am I trying to know other affinity groups? As I deeply reflect in my soul and on the message, I am pushing myself to give that extra love to someone else that I don’t know right now or other affinity groups. As we meet difficult people to love, it is during these trials that we can find our love for God shining in the ways to love them. You will be surprised by the love you can provide and the spiritual growth you gain.

by Janet Shih

In June, the Singles ministry had the privilege of planning a Saturday date night for the Grace Life families ministry. Our church families were given the opportunity to sign up for a date night with food and entertainment fully provided by the Singles. Children’s programs were also available so parents were able to enjoy the night without distraction. Those in the Singles ministry were found throughout the church: playing with babies, talking and interacting with the older children, preparing food in the kitchen, serving food and drinks to the tables, and enjoying fellowship with the families in the sanctuary. Some of the highlights of the night included a video encouragement and musical performances from some very talented men and women in the Singles Ministry, who were able to portray marriage as the grace of life in song and lyrical rap.

I was particularly encouraged to see those in the Singles Ministry so willing to serve the families at Lighthouse. I distinctly remember many people asking what they could help with throughout the course of the night. As I reflect on how everything turned out, I am encouraged by the all of the efforts put into planning and all of the many hands that worked together to make the night a success. The night was not simply a time to showcase talent or run a program, but it was a creative and practical way to serve, love and encourage those in our church family with the resources, gifts, and talents that Christ has given to us Singles in this stage of life.

As the year continues on, I’m excited to continue to run alongside the Singles ministry. I am reminded of Paul’s encouragement to the Corinthians to “be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58). As a Singles ministry, my hope is that we would continue to labor tirelessly not just for big events like this, but in every part of our day-to-day life. I hope that we would continue to serve in ways that considers the needs of others more significant than ourselves (Philippians 2:3-4) and do so joyfully, knowing that our service is pleasing in the sight of our Lord.

by Brenda Hom

After almost two years, Single Life has concluded our study in the book of Colossians. Pastor Patrick’s last message from Colossians described “Team Paul”, which consisted of eight of Paul’s companions in ministry. From Paul’s final greetings in chapter 4 of Colossians, we see that “Team Paul” consisted of beloved brothers, faithful ministers and fellow servants in the Lord (Colossians 4:7). I am amazed at how much God has taught us through studying the life of Paul and his ministry. Thank you, Pastor Patrick, for faithfully walking us through the book of Colossians every Wednesday night.

The next topic we looked at after Colossians was on the topic of pride. In the Old Testament we see the Hebrew word “gobah”, which can be translated into “haughtiness”. Also in Isaiah 9:9 and Psalm 31:18, we see another word for pride “gaavah”, which means “swelling”. In the New Testament, Pastor Patrick gave many more biblical examples where pride is mentioned. One example is in Mark 7:22, where pride, or “huperephania” is when you are holding yourself above other people, trying to make yourself look bigger and better.

The topic of pride hit home for many of the singles, especially in our stage of life. I was reminded that Jesus Christ did not choose me to represent Him because I am wonderful, skilled or smart. “But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God…so that it is written, ’Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.’” (1 Corinthians 1:27-31) Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6)

We learned that every sin is ultimately rooted in pride. Pride can be expressed through self-exaltation, when we believe that we are the source of our own accomplishments, or even the benefactor of what we think we deserve in this life. Self-pity is also a form of pride, because you are still consumed with thoughts of yourself. While it has been really challenging listening to messages on the topic of pride, I am grateful that Pastor Patrick has taken the time to help the Singles examine our own hearts and thoughts with Scripture. Even questions such as “Why are they getting married and I am not?”, or “Why am I still working at this job?” reveal a sinful pride in my own heart.

At Singles’ bible study, we were able to look at and examine different manifestations of pride through selected Scriptures. Some reflecting questions to ask yourself are “Can you be happy for others when they are recognized or receive something that you want?” and “How often do you question God about your life?” Manifestations of pride can be very subtle in your heart. For example, a lack of biblical prayer in your life and a lack of gratitude towards God is a form of pride. More practically, do you voice your preferences or opinions when not asked? Are you impatient or irritable with others? Do you get annoyed easily? Ask yourself these questions and you will feel small and worthless compared to God ‘s perfect glory. You will see that you deserve death as a punishment for your wretched sins.

However, God in His greatness and mercy did not leave us to die in our sins. We as Christians are dependent on Him to deliver us from our sin of pride. God has given us help to move away from pride and move towards humility. He even commands it in Scripture to “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.” (James 4:10) How do we as believers pursue humility? Pastor Patrick shares with us some ways that Christians can pursue and cultivate humility.

1. PRAY that God would help you move away from pride and towards humility.
2. READ the book of Psalms or any of the Old Testament prophets. A really great Psalm to read and meditate on is Psalm 139.
3. STUDY the life of Jesus Christ because His life is an example of perfect humility. Once you study the life of Jesus, you will come to understand what sin is and learn to hate it.
4. GET accountability. Ask others if you come across proud in any way.
5. WORSHIP God all the time. Practically, fill your mind and thoughts of God.
6. PRACTICE the “one anothers” by focusing on other people. How can you be a blessing to others? Do you live a “one another” life?
7. WORK to put off pride and put on humility in your thought life, your speech, and with your deeds. (1 Peter 2:1)

With this in-depth study of pride and humility, we can take heart that there is hope in Jesus Christ to change wretched prideful sinners into humble God-fearing men and women who desire to magnify God and make Him big.

by Brian Song

I Do.

In a couple of months, I will be reciting those exact words in front of God and close family and friends. Those two words carry the promise of remaining forever faithful to my bride and loving her until “death do us part.” Unfortunately, this level of commitment is deemed too difficult by many in the world as many couples find it easier to co-habitate than get married. Yet as Christians, it shouldn’t be a novel concept, especially for those of us who attend LBC. Marriage should just be an extension of the commitment and love that we already show to God and His church. In the seven or so years that I’ve spent at LBC, especially my time in the Singles Ministry, God has taught me this important lesson and helped me apply the passion statement of LBC.

It all starts with God. In Matthew 22:37, Jesus commands us that, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” We are called to love God with our entire being. At LBC, we have a steady diet of preaching and teaching to help us learn about God and his character. In my small groups, I was constantly challenged to love God and make Him a priority in my work and grad school life. This experience is definitely not limited to those of us who are single. But being a single definitely freed me up to take advantage of all the opportunities to learn. I had more “free time” and was able attend as many church activities as I could and spend more time in prayer with Him.

Continuing on in Matthew 22, Jesus also commands us that, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Being committed to loving others was not always an easy task for me. Like many in my stage of life, I preferred to spend my free time doing things that pleased me. But over the years, I’ve learned that by serving others, my love for people, God, and His church grew. A couple of years ago, I was blessed with an opportunity to serve the Singles Ministry as a small group leader. Through this experience, God taught me that committing to love others often requires sacrifice. Again, being a single guy allowed me to fully commit to them and the needs of my other brothers and sisters in the ministry. Whether they needed me to counsel them through personal struggles or just wanted someone to hang out with, I was available for them.

As I get ready to transition out of Single Life, I know God will continue to deepen my understanding of these truths and help me apply them in marriage. As you live your life, have you said “I Do” to the Lord? Just like marriage, this is a life-long commitment. Let us all endeavor to passionately love God and people every day.

by Randy Tsuchiyama

Having been at Lighthouse for almost 9 years, I have been to many great retreats and have heard many fantastic messages. This singles retreat continued the trend. Pastor Jim Kang from Lighthouse Bible Church – East Bay titled the retreat theme, “How We’re Made.” Each message that Pastor Jim preached was from the first two chapters of Genesis.

The first message was titled “What God Reveals About Himself Through Creation.” In this sermon, Pastor Jim was able to expound on the some of the attributes of God that He reveals to us and how that ought to affect the way that we live. Having a background in science, I have always seen creation point back to the greatness of God. So this sermon resonated with me. Seeing God’s perfection through His creation and because of that perfection, I am able to trust more everyday regardless of how I may think various situations appear to be. God is worthy of all praise and this sermon helped me to render Him the praise that He is due.

The second sermon was titled “The Origin and Purpose of Man” and dealt with how God originally created us and what we were intended for as His creation. Pastor Jim was able to show us that we (mankind) have a special place in creation and have the unique privilege to rule over creation and glorify God and worship Him. The application of this sermon that Pastor Jim provided was extremely challenging and helpful. The fact that we have this special position in creation requires there to be a need for valuing the sanctity of human life, regardless of any other factors that may make us think otherwise, to be good stewards over God’s creation, and to trust God in salvation alone. I was incredibly challenged by being good stewards over His creation. By thinking I can treat creation in a way where I would selfishly obtain pleasure, I was not acknowledging or appreciating God through His creation. I am not the creator of everything around me and cannot treat it that way. I have been appointed by God to maintain it in a way that would bring glory to God.

The third sermon was about what God reveals to us about work in Genesis 1-2 in a sermon called “The Theology of Work”. Pastor Jim showed us from Scripture that work is not something that God provides in our life as a thorn in our side but something that we are predestined to do as Christians. This challenged the way that I think about work and my attitude at work. I need to think deeply about how I ought to be working knowing I am representing Christ in my workplace. Am I known to complain about everything? Am I known as a slacker? A clown? I am not working just for a check, and the way that I carry myself ought to reflect that as well.

The last sermon was titled “The Theology of Rest” and Pastor Jim laid out the biblical foundations for godly rest. When I looked at the title of the retreat, I thought Pastor Jim would talk about how we ought to rest in Christ while still doing the things in our daily lives. This was not what he preached on. Not even close. Pastor Jim explained to us that we need to understand that the ability to rest is an outpouring of God’s kindness and mercy in our lives. Pastor Jim also preached that we should understand that as Christians, our rest is different than the world. We are called to rest in Christ on Sundays by being expository listeners during the sermon and praying for the people in our church. The rest that we are called to do as Christians is different but still restful because God is kind and merciful to provide us with exactly what we need.

This is just a preview and one man’s reflections upon the sermons. I would strongly encourage you to (re)listen to the sermons if you have an opportunity. Pastor Jim does an excellent job of bringing the truth of God to the forefront of the sermon and how those truths ought to affect the way that we should live. Looking at who God intended us to be and comparing it to who we are now is an incredibly humbling, yet necessary, exercise. Praise God that we aren’t left to ourselves to change our hearts. The Holy Spirit will continue to grow us as we strive for spiritual maturity. I’m excited to see all of us as a church grow in our understanding of God’s truth and how that will be carried out in all our lives. As one slave of Christ to the other slaves of Christ, may Philippians 3:12 be our goal:

“Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.”

by Chris Tang

For many people this year, Valentine’s Day was a very painful day, reminding them of past relational failures and bringing to surface countless thoughts of unhappiness, inadequacy, and loneliness. Thoughts like, “I would be perfectly happy, if only…

• If only a certain person noticed me.
• If only I had a girlfriend or boyfriend.
• If only I had done things differently.
• If only we were still together.
• If only I was married by now.
• If only my spouse tried harder this year.
• If only I had someone to love.

If only then I could be happy. God is powerful. He could make it happen! Why not? Maybe next year…”

Others experienced a lot of happiness, whether it was in the form of chocolate and flowers from a boyfriend, having a special dinner with someone, or having time away from the kids with the spouse. Being treated in a special way on a special day fulfills a desire in us to know that somebody cares. The gifts aren’t very important, except they mean something: I am valuable. Somebody loves me.

February 13th happened to fall on the day of one of our Single Life Bible studies. Pastor Patrick took a break from our study of Colossians and took this opportunity to speak on love from Matthew 22:37-40, where Jesus discusses the two greatest commandments. I was very thankful for this message, especially since it looked to God’s word to define what love is. After all, God is love (1 John 4:7-8), so He is the foremost authority on love, and He is the one who defines what it is. Through His word we can know the true love which comes only from God (Romans 10:17). It is only through a genuine, saving knowledge of God that we can be equipped to love people. As Peter writes, “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence” (2 Peter 1:3). If Scripture was not sufficient to teach everything about love, we would be hopelessly struggling in the futility of human wisdom to figure out what love is. Thankfully, God shows us what it means, and teaches us how to love in every situation, whether in friendship, dating, marriage, parenthood, when it is easy and when it is hard.

The first part of Pastor Patrick’s message was spent on how we are to obey the greatest commandment: to love God. If there is any question as to why the teaching at Lighthouse places such a great emphasis on doctrine, it is because we desire everyone to be true worshipers of God, who worship God in truth (John 4:23). How to love God is the single fundamental question which defines everything we do as Christians, including how we love others, so this was a very important point. Pastor Patrick started in the place where all behavior begins: in the heart. Philippians 4:8 makes it clear that even the very smallest of our thoughts are to be pleasing to God, for it is in the heart that sin is conceived (Mark 7:21-23, James 1:14-15) . This means that loving God does not involve a list of external behaviors, of things to do or to not do. Jesus himself warns against the dangers of this kind of moralism in Matthew 12:43-45. Without God as Lord, attempts to put one’s own heart “in order” can only make things worse. It’s scary to think that our efforts at self-improvement could make us more abhorrent in the eyes of God. Instead we must first be committed in our hearts to God, clothed in the righteousness of Christ, and only then can we begin to do anything good. Without salvation, all of our “good” deeds are like polluted garments before God (Isaiah 64:6). On the other hand, our new life after repentance should bring about a corresponding transformation in the way we think (Romans 12:2). This was a good reminder for me to examine my own “thought life” (not a phrase that thrills me) and examine what I dwell on.

• Are these thoughts pleasing to God, or do they reveal idols in my heart?
• Am I stressed at work out of fear of my boss?
• Is my enjoyment of fellowship due to a desire to be accepted, or thankfulness to God for giving me a body of like-minded believers?
• What is the real reason that I am happy about that promotion?
• Should I be spending so much time reading about new gadgets?
• What am I excited to talk about?
• What fills my mind each hour of the day?

That is what I love, and it is depressingly rare that it is God.

If you read the first two paragraphs of this article again, you’ll notice how selfish and man-centered each of those scenarios is. Even a “good” Valentine’s Day can reveal the selfishness and idolatry in our hearts. For those who know God it is a comforting truth that His love has been poured out abundantly upon us in spite of our depravity (Romans 5:5, 8). Some days it may not feel like it, but truly the love of God is better than any Valentine’s Day celebration, either real or hoped for. It is more precious than life itself (Psalm 63:3). It is my sincere hope that we would all strive and fight to grow in our love for God. I barely scratched the surface of Pastor Patrick’s message, so if you have any questions about how these Biblical truths might apply to your existing relationship with God or with people, there are plenty of people at Lighthouse who would love to answer your questions. Thank God for His gracious love for us, and thank you Pastor Patrick for your very timely reminder of what true love is.

by Kevin Tse

Single Life finished 2012 with a Christmas party and gift exchange that saw people receive a variety of gifts including iTunes gift cards, movie tickets, and fancy headphones in addition to a number of other odds and ends. More than that, we had a chance to see our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ before breaking for the holidays, and were able to encourage one another to be bold in sharing the Gospel with whomever they see during the holidays and remembering the centrality of Christ in Christmas.

The past semester has been mostly spent in Colossians 3. Pastor Patrick preached through sermons focusing on the Biblical prescriptions for godly relationships between husband and wife, parents and children, and slaves and masters. We were refreshed continually with truth that often forced us to re-evaluate some incorrect preconceived notions, and reminded us several times of the authority of God as the giver of that truth. In particular, as singles, we focused on working as unto the Lord in our places of employment and schooling, knowing that our reward is not the approval of man but the hope of future grace from the Lord. I was personally convicted to go to work with joy and to see work as a ministry, not just a place to make money.

Our first Single Life Bible study of the year was on January 9th, 2013 when Randy Sarmiento shared about “Christian Discipline” from Hebrews 12:3-6. Randy blessed us with the reminder that the discipline we receive from the Lord is meant both for our correction as well as training in righteousness. Paralleling our comfortable lives here in San Diego, the Hebrews had to be reminded that the trials they faced paled in comparison to the scourging that Christ received when He went to the cross for our sins. Just as the Hebrews had to be reminded of the godly response they ought to have when going through trials, we too were reminded that the trials and hardships that we undergo represent discipline from the Lord, and that this discipline not only refines our faith but proves our sonship in Him.

Coming up on the schedule for Single Life Ministry are a series of events including a Broomball outing with College Life on February 1st (our second one in this academic year) and our annual Single’s Retreat from March 15-17th at Pine Valley. Also, we’ll be having a Table for 6 outing on January 19th.