missions baby!

well - i finally found some inspiration to write something. it's funny cuz i was thinking about all the stuff i could rant and rave about, but i don't think i'm going to!

my life right now is so busy (much like 97.8% of all hong kongers over 23). work is increasingly getting more and more challenging, despite me not really picking up anything new. ministry is always challenging. home alone time with the wife is definitely not enough. sleep seems to be a luxury these days. but u know what? PRAISE GOD for it!

i was thinking about wat i was thinking about when i read the prayer of jabez book... and what came out of that was pretty startling for me. here's the prayer:

"Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain."

i mean - here was a guy barely worth mentioning in the bible, only in 1 chron 4:9-10, but yet, this request was honored by God, who granted this request to Jabez. I remember that i really wanted that in my life too, to ask God to bless me and enlarge my territory, to have HIS hand with me to keep me from harm. the bible says that jabez was more honorable than his brothers, implying that in a Godly way. i would assume that to be blessed by God is not necessarily an easy time for us here on earth! God indeed has blessed me! He has given me a purpose to be here in Hk, and he certainly has given me opportunities to serve Him. I have a beautiful wife who loves God just as much as I do. i have a great job that i can only confess to be God-given, if only because it allows me the flexibilty in time to spend on all my other ministry areas, while giving me a great career. He has allowed me to be a servant in 180, my church's young adults ministry, pastored by my younger brother and his wife. back in 1998, november, 24th, i was the only on in my family (direct family) that believed. i prayed, and prayed... i got the prayer of jabez book a couple years later, and prayed and prayed thru that. now - by the grace of God, half my family (direct family) now believes! 7 years ago, if one woulda asked me, i would not have been able to agree to that faithfully. now, however, the territory has been enlarged. i just read thru the pentateuch, and that's exactly what God left for joshua and the israelites - the memory of all His great works - so that when things get tough, they can just look back and read of how GOD has ALWAYS been faithful to those who love Him.

So, despite the busy-ness of business, despite the lack of sleep, the tiring work of ministry, who am i to complain? has not God provided me with manna, that i should then ask for quail? i asked that i can be an effective servant - and has not God honored that? i asked that He start to dominate in the Ma clan -and has he not honored that? i asked for that special someone that will make me complete, and has he not honored that a hundred-fold?

i guess i refuse to have the attitude of complaint. i've asked for much, and i've gotten much more than what i asked for. i've been begging for missions trip to happen again - and now that they're here - it's made life even more busy! poor janabanana ruptured her achilles tendon the w/end before the trip. ironically, she was jumping and dancing around, worship God with the planetshakers band! now she'll have surgery on the day we all leave. so our leader has been held back, but i know that God has full control. i refuse to take satan's bait and be dejected.

but yah - this time has been a good reminder for me about just how good God is. the vine's live worship album recording is coming up in 3 weeks, and i am SO PSYCHED! we'll be back fresh from missions, and lin and i will be off to shanghai the week before to visit her folks. the past 7 months have been pure awesome.

so yeah - i'm tired. i'm physically drained. mentally exhausted. but PRAISE GOD! it's exactly what i asked for, and much more than i could have expected in return!

i'll be back after the trip to beijing/inner mongolia w/more praise reports and pictures!