tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72868926167151663702024-03-19T04:07:19.621-07:00Fla less in HimFrank Lahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07996343115589244498noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286892616715166370.post-86536405468403726402010-02-02T14:40:00.000-08:002010-02-02T15:13:12.919-08:00Beatitudes: Happy Are the Humble<span style="font-weight: bold;">Series on Beatitudes</span>: "<span style="font-style: italic;">Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven</span>."<br />Matthew 5:3 (ESV)<br /><br />I have decided to start blogging again. These are merely notes that I've jotted from listening to John MacArthur. None of this is my own material. May this be an encouragement of any sort to you who read.<br /><br />To understand the Beatitudes, we must understand the meaning of <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">blessed</span>ness. Being poor in spirit is not in the context of being poor in physical possession. But it's actually the attitude of being poor in spirit that we cannot attain our salvation by our own strength. This is what the pharisees and the workers of the law tried to do. (<span style="font-style: italic;">unfinished: I'm at work. I'll finish later.. :))</span><br /><br />There's one thing about a beggar. A beggar is always asking. Ask for a poor spirit.<br />"Lord be merciful on me, a sinner." - Thief on the Cross<br />Happy is the beggar, poor in spirit.<br />Why does it start with poor in spirit? Because it is the foundation. You cannot be blessed without being poor in spirit.<br />What does it mean? It means to be spiritual bankrupt and know it<br />What is the result? You become a possessor of the Kingdom, here and now. And forever.<br />How do you become poor in spirit? Look at God. Starve your flesh. And ask. Beg. He doesn't mind a bit.<br />How will know if I am poor in spirit? How do I really know?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">7 Principles of being poor in spirit</span>:<br /><br />1. <span style="font-weight: bold;">You will be weened from yourself</span>: Psalm 131:2 "<span style="font-style: italic;">My soul is even as a weened child</span>."<br />One who is poor in spirit loses a sense of self. Self is gone. It's gone. All you think about is God and His glory, and others.<br />2. <span style="font-weight: bold;">You will be lost in the wonder of Christ</span>: 2 Corinthians 3:18 "Gazing in His glory"<br />Psalm 90:14<br />3. <span style="font-weight: bold;">You will never complain about your situation</span>: You know why?<br />You don't deserve anything anyways.<br />The deeper you go, the sweeter the grace.<br />The more you need, the more abundantly He provides.<br />When you lack everything, you're in a position to receive all grace.<br />You will suffer without murmur, because you deserve nothing.<br />And yet at the same time you'll seek His grace.<br />4. <span style="font-weight: bold;">You will see only the excellencies of others and only your own weakness:</span><br />Poor in spirit, the truly humble, is the only one who has to look up to everybody else.<br />5. <span style="font-weight: bold;">You will spend much time in prayer</span>: Why?<br />Because the beggar is always begging. He knocks on gates of Heaven and he doesn't let go until He's blessed.<br />6. <span style="font-weight: bold;">You will take Christ on His terms, not yours</span>:<br />The proud sinner will have:<br />Christ and his pleasure<br />Christ and his couvetness<br />Christ and immorality<br />The poor in spirit is so desperate he will give up anything and everything just to get Christ!<br />Christ is the ultimate end.<br />7. <span style="font-weight: bold;">You will praise and thank God for His grace</span>:<br />If ever there is a characteristic of someone who is poor in spirit is an overwhelming gratitude to God. Why? Because every single little thing you have is a gift from Him.<br />1 Timothy 1:14 "<span style="font-style: italic;">The grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus</span>."<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">"Nothing in my hand I bring,</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Simply to Thy Cross I cling."<br /></span><br />May we know true poverty in spirit that we may know blessedness.Frank Lahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07996343115589244498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286892616715166370.post-67980540034180414052009-11-09T02:28:00.000-08:002009-11-09T02:29:01.192-08:00BloggggggggggHow do i make this blog look cooler/hipper? Any tips any one, if anyone still follows? Praise the Lord!Frank Lahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07996343115589244498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286892616715166370.post-58499768496105874822009-10-22T16:52:00.001-07:002009-10-22T16:54:58.009-07:00Christlikeness Begins and Ends with Humility<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.yorkblog.com/faith/feet.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 336px; height: 444px;" src="http://www.yorkblog.com/faith/feet.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" border-collapse: collapse; font-family:arial, sans-serif;font-size:13px;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">First entry in forever! yayyyy. Something I wrote to my servant team regarding humility</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Humility is a tricky thing. It's an attribute unlike anything else in<br />this world. You can never proclaim it, nor can you ever achieve it<br />through works. The minute you proclaim your humility, you've<br />ultimately nullified your statement because the statement in itself is<br />not a true reflection of humility. No one in this world could ever<br />proclaim that they are humble, because once they do, they've just<br />become prideful. Instead, it's a change of heart and attitude. It's<br />looking at the reflection of Christ and His 33 years of perfect<br />humility to the Father in this prideful and sinful world, and being<br />utterly amazed that we can never in our greatest efforts or strength,<br />be as humble as our great Lord Jesus. Reflecting on Christ's life and<br />His humility, is humbling in it of itself. So let us not beat up<br />ourselves to obtain this humility. But rather, let us rely on the<br />Spirit daily to conform us more and more to the likeliness of Christ,<br />let us daily examine intently to the life of Christ, and let us look<br />to God and understand that "He mocks proud mockers gives grace to<br />humble." (Proverbs 3:34) No other religion seeks to achieve humility,<br />but our God is the most humble King of all. He is the GREAT I AM, the<br />King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, Alpha and Omega, Beginning and End<br />but He humbled Himself to become like man and became obedient to<br />death, even death on a cross.<br /><br />Christlikeness begins and ends with humility!!<br /><br />Reflect on the wonders of the cross of Christ! Humility truly is a<br />natural ORGANIC response to the close examination of Christ's<br />obedience and our sinfulness and how God imputed onto us Christ's<br />perfect obedience and righteousness!<br /><br />Even as I write this, I can't help but sense the pride of it all. How<br />humble our Father truly is that He would use someone as prideful as<br />me. Crazy! Just wanted to encourage you guys with that. Hope that<br />helps you guys in anyway!</span></span>Frank Lahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07996343115589244498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286892616715166370.post-20993385267143521262009-07-19T02:17:00.000-07:002009-07-19T02:36:55.245-07:00500 Days of Summer<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Lz8H21dt_rmCMyr8SyQRZUwJV5rU7M8RyBOMGFL7iy0xCPBJL1Kd1ux9mWrMoxB09iU-3KKKRe4_KoRwSdDEEwNrcZjXmxEd4pmUynno2unlAOXrpIGJpAu6Kx8S2iUgFKktQw0t20hU/s1600-h/500days.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 166px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Lz8H21dt_rmCMyr8SyQRZUwJV5rU7M8RyBOMGFL7iy0xCPBJL1Kd1ux9mWrMoxB09iU-3KKKRe4_KoRwSdDEEwNrcZjXmxEd4pmUynno2unlAOXrpIGJpAu6Kx8S2iUgFKktQw0t20hU/s320/500days.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5360102883424646434" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">So, it's 2 in the morning, I'm in front of my computer. I should be getting ready for sleep, for church, but I'm not. You see, I came back home about 2 hours ago from watching, well for me, probably one of the most compelling and moving movies I have watched in my short life time. Granted, I have only watched maybe a yard short of say what, 100 movies, a rough guesstimate; However, this movie is a film that I have been raving about and "commotioning" about for the past two months. I think I watched every possible trailer and snip bit out there about 500 Days of Summer on the world wide web. There are a multitude of reasons for my obsession with this movie, an obsession that started even before I had actually watched it. <span style="font-weight: bold;">First reason</span> being, I have had the hugest crush on the main character Summer, Zooey Deschanel, for the past year or so. She's almost everything I look for in a girl: Uniquely gorgeous, but also cute in her personality. Possesses a voice angels envy over. Dresses impeccably beautifully: simple but captivating. And has those eyes that are almost dangerous. Dangerous because you can sink in them. Okay really though, all the cheese balls and dandy lions aside, she's simply <span style="font-style: italic;">beautiful</span>. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Second reason</span> is because I have always been a sucker for romance. Ha, the cheese balls are back. </span></span><br /><br />(to be continued...there will be a point to all this, i promise)Frank Lahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07996343115589244498noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286892616715166370.post-8889816641047706642009-06-23T10:18:00.000-07:002009-06-23T11:30:20.987-07:00Summer Plans<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcQkmjHBiXDcdS2z4tE2CnWS61ulIEQ0zQ69wf6n0BPf3p2Mp-_Ni7x0-h61ABOH9Ure0JlAtb_ZwlcUorSM_5OuI_-LupTqeO0zeWGkH6FPpW8nC6mLcuqEOLfdyIbRdx7C_HpFo1OB31/s1600-h/ucr-image.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 160px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcQkmjHBiXDcdS2z4tE2CnWS61ulIEQ0zQ69wf6n0BPf3p2Mp-_Ni7x0-h61ABOH9Ure0JlAtb_ZwlcUorSM_5OuI_-LupTqeO0zeWGkH6FPpW8nC6mLcuqEOLfdyIbRdx7C_HpFo1OB31/s320/ucr-image.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350592155569238706" border="0" /></a><br />Yay! Second Entry! Well just to share with you, this summer is actually pretty filled for me. Currently, I'm in Riverside for summer school, the worst place you could possibly be during the summer. I'm also helping out with KCM STSM training, teaching skits and body worship. It reminds me of all the good times I had last year with my Cambodia team. Well I'll only be taking one session of summer school, so it's not too bad. Our house will also be moving this year to Victoria, also known as KCM Row. Pretty excited because the house is super nice and it's cheaper than what we're paying for right now. And I'm cooking for a retreat this coming Friday, which should be cool. That's pretty much the first phase of my summer break.<br /><br />The next phase will be all fun fun fun. I'll be going to Hawaii this summer with my family. I've never been so I'm pretty excited about it. Soon after that, I'll be going on a three and a half week long road trip with SteveO and David around America! We have a rough schedule down, but some of the key places we'll be stopping by are Arizona, Dallas, New Orleans, Missouri, Florida, Atlanta, Virginia, N. Carolina, Maryland, Washington D.C., Boston, New York, Chicago, Colorado, Seattle, Oregon, and possibly Toronto. That's just a rough schedule. I'm soo excited for that trip!<br />Here's a rough <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=I-10+E&daddr=Phoenix,+Arizona+to:dallas,+texas+to:new+orleans,+louisiana+to:orlando,+florida+to:atlanta,+georgia+to:washington+dc+to:Philadelphia,+Pennsylvania+to:new+jersey+to:Manhattan,+New+York+to:Boston,+Massachusetts+to:Chicago,+Illinois+to:Minneapolis,+Minnesota+to:Seattle,+Washington+to:Berkeley,+California+to:Los+Angeles,+CA&hl=en&geocode=FdBYBwIdZovy-A%3BFUdh_gEdo-NR-Q%3B%3B%3B%3B%3B%3BFRedYQIdYBeF-w%3B%3B%3B%3B%3B%3B%3B%3B&mra=ls&sll=38.134557,-97.207031&sspn=36.975179,91.142578&ie=UTF8&ll=38.410558,-97.822266&spn=18.525171,45.571289&z=5">route</a> that we'll be taking. We're also hoping to do ministry along the way, passing out bibles and praying for people. Things of that sort. I'll be blogging and tweeting along the trip!<br /><br />When all is done, I'll be starting my journey as president for UCR KCM. Please pray for me. Updates to come soon later!Frank Lahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07996343115589244498noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7286892616715166370.post-66397598658065292602009-03-11T17:05:00.000-07:002009-03-11T17:21:49.381-07:00<span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;">Hello. Wowwwwww. The last time I actually blogged was in high school. I used to have a xanga and if you guys read it now, most of it is filled with me complaining and ranting about my life. People are starting to create their own blogs and I think I want to join in on this. This time around, this blog will be dedicated to expressing to you guys what God is doing in my life. I've come to realize that God continues to work in all of our lives. I tend to forget the lessons that God teach me, but I hope that through this blog, I can be able to remember and share with you guys how glorious and beautiful our God is. </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;">Now many of you guys are probably wondering, why is your blog name FlalessinHim? You mispelled flawless. Well the reason why is many ppl call me Fla. Short for Frank La. Now, what I've come to understand is that I am truly flawless in God. I'm trying really hard to grasp and live out the understanding that God loves me regardless of what I do. To Him, I am perfect, not because of anything I've accomplished or done. But because of what Christ has done, because of His obedience to His Father, and because even though He was tempted in every way, He still lived a perfect life for US! That is the reality of our salvation. There is nothing I can do to reward myself righteousness and salvation, but it was Christ has ALREADy done for us. So now I'm trying to live my life understanding that there is no amount of sin that I can commit to make God love me less, and no amount of good deeds that I can accomplish that will make God love me more. His love is perfect, his love is constant, and everlasting. It is unconditional. That is His love for us. That is why I am flawless in Him.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;">I hope throughout my blog writting I can continue to grow and learn and share with you guys how amazing our God is.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;">May you daily recognize His love for us.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;">By His grace alone,</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;">Frank La</span>Frank Lahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07996343115589244498noreply@blogger.com2