The U.S. Supreme Court nomination debate heating up since Justice Anton Scalia’s recent death is a historical moment for all Americans, especially Christians. The next Justice joining the Supreme Court will be a member of a very exclusive group whose decisions they make about our country will have far-reaching effects.
A law professor once made a comment about the U.S. Supreme Court that the individual justices on that court have a greater impact and influence on our society’s daily lives than either the President or any member of Congress. When you consider the full spectrum of cases they make final decisions on that shape our culture and society this is so true. One well-known example of this is the Miranda case. Everyone knows Miranda from movies and TV. But did you know that it originated from a Supreme Court case out of AZ in 1966? Ernesto Miranda confessed to a crime but the Supreme Court decided police must first advise a suspect of the constitutional rights against self-incrimination and the right to a lawyer. And thus to be Mirandized is to be advised “You have the right to remain silent, if you give up that right anything you say . . .” well, you know the rest.
Miranda was a 5-4 majority vote decision (so only 5 of 9 justices are needed to decide the law of the land!). Furthermore, the justices decide which 100 cases or so that they will even consider each year which is less than 3% of the thousands of possible cases filed for review. They’re influence throughout U.S. history is tremendous. They decided desegregation in public schools in 1954. They decided the 2000 presidential election. Recent cases involved issues of free speech, voting rights, campaign contributions, race-based college admissions and death penalty laws. All lives are touched, regardless of socio-economic class.
But in the Christian context, they’ve decided many controversial issues such as gay marriage, prayer in the school, creationism vs. science in education and abortion. You may be frustrated with the way the Court has seemingly decided against Christian values. God has been systematically removed from our culture and educational system. I think what has been occurring is that the American public is realizing for the first time that Christian traditions such as prayer in the school are technically unconstitutional under the doctrine of separation of church and state and that a vocal minority of non-Christians can successfully challenge these traditions in court and win. But did you know for the first time in the 225 year history of the Court, none of the justices are Protestant Christian? All are either Roman Catholic or Jewish and all are Ivy League law school grads.
The Republican controlled Senate is attempting to block President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee until after the presidential election in the Fall (although, the thought of a President Trump making his choice for Supreme Court is probably a shock to their senses). Judge Scalia’s replacement may very well turn out to be the pivotal swing vote to break the tie between an equally divided conservative and liberal Court. It’s likely in the coming years the Court will re-visit the landmark cases such as abortion as well as capital punishment to name a few. So I hope you see just how influential these Justices can be and take notice of the judicial process whose decisions ripple and reverberate across our entire country for generations. Does that make you sit up and take notice with a greater sense of urgency to vote in the Fall? I hope so. This is both our civil right and responsibility as Christian Americans.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
March 20, 2016

Spiritual giftings such as prophetics, healing and speaking in tongues are always amazing to encounter. Our God is a mighty and awesome God and so naturally we’re drawn to actual manifestations of the works of the Holy Spirit. But is there more to what we merely see on the surface level? In the last several years we’ve had the opportunity to witness and experience these kind of supernatural displays of God’s power during the various conferences and retreats.
Hearing the message over the last weekend when Pastor Stephen and his wife Ann spoke was another reminder of what we’ve learned from previous retreats/conferences about the timing of the impartation of spiritual gifting. Pastor Stephen and Ann shared not only of how God speaks to us through visions and dreams and Scripture, but more importantly of their deep relationship with Abba Father as their Lord and Savior. Pastor Stephen shared that we are all promised the fullness of the Spirit but as followers of Christ where is our hunger and desire for this anointing? Apostle Paul tells us we should want and desire these spiritual gifts. But at the same time we ought not expect them to simply fall into our laps out of random coincidence. Much discipleship and discernment is needed.
There were two common themes I observed from these various pastors speaking about developing spiritual gifts. One was that they first and foremost pursued a deep and intimate love for the Lord. And it wasn’t until then that spiritual gifting began to flow from that relationship. According to my notes, when Pastor Shin spoke at the church retreat last September he shared that his physical healing ministry didn’t come about for 10 ten years despite the fact he fasted and prayed for up to 5 hours daily and even then he humorously shared that his initial gift of healing others only started out healing minor allergies before progressing to an ability of greater physical healing. Can you imagine waiting on the Lord for 10 years!?!
A second theme that struck me about developing spiritual gifting such as speaking in tongues and prophetics is that one would need to continue to work at them in order to fully realize this gifting. Even Pastor Jamie had made comments in years past that one would have to practice speaking in tongues in order to fully develop this gift. And Pastor Shin also remarked that one should spend time in discipleship with those who have these giftings in order to get better at them. I realize developing this kind of supernatural gifting isn’t exactly a hard science but it came as somewhat of a surprise to me to hear that one would need to continue to work at developing and refining spiritual gifting. I’m pretty sure these are all very simple matters for God and that He didn’t have to “practice” them like one would have to practice scales to learn a musical instrument. But perhaps that’s the very point about our having to work at these miraculous works- our physical human minds and bodies are but crude vessels to be used as divine instruments of God. So it may very well take years of devotion and intimate pursuit of God in order for the Spirit to refine and align one’s mind and body with God in order to be used in this way. Pastor Stephen stated that spiritual giftings and the power of the Holy Spirit are not limited to only a chosen few but are for all who believe. But the message was also that these giftings are not merely a superficial display of God’s power pleasing to the eye but rather they flow from a place of deep commitment and intimacy with the Lord in ways that strengthen, encourage and comfort others. Maybe that’s the kind of lifelong relationship God intended all along for each and every one of us amen to that. Otherwise, as Pastor Stephen put it, we might just become spiritual body builders with all of this muscle but with no real greater purpose.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
January 31, 2016

It was a wonderful family gathering for Thanksgiving this year in WA thank God. No angry outbursts or pent up frustrations boiling over from anyone. That's gotta come from God believe me amen to that. Don't holidays with the family have the classic potential of starting out well but breaking bad into petty quarrels and hurled insults over un-settled payback? My family has never had an all out drag out showdown but we've had our share of ongoing skirmishes through the years haven't we all?
I have two older sisters and an older brother. Earlier this week I found out my brother was invited to Thanksgiving and that he was actually going to come from out of town. I was excited but also anxious about that. This would be the first time all of us would be together since my wedding in 1999! My son has actually never met his uncle. There's a bit of sad history there. My brother was once married and they had two daughters. However, the marriage failed and their parental fitness was in serious question. (The only court case I ever did in WA was representing my mother in family court in 2004 to get custody of the two granddaughters. Let's just say the devastating ravages of alcohol and drug abuse are pure evil). It severely strained family relations to say the least.
The two estranged daughters were also going to be at Thanksgiving. In addition I hadn't kept in touch with one of my sisters for about 5 years over petty matters I shouldn't have allowed to affect me. My mother's health is an issue plus my other niece is engaged and was going to be bringing her girlfriend/fiancee to Thanksgiving (gulp).
So there are all of these ongoing issues I pray through for reconciliation and forgiveness for myself and for this family. I'm not one to publicly air the family dirty laundry but I believe exposing darkness to light takes away it's power over us. James 4 says "Mock the devil and he will flee from you." So this whole week I had been making snarky remarks in jest about how bad things could get by Thanksgiving. We had a good laugh about that. When we confront our fears we don't allow them to manifest and build up in even unhealthier ways. Why try to ignore or tiptoe around the elephant in the room. This is the one rare instance I think where my sarcastic directness was actually appropriate.
But thank God for answered prayers. My brother and I both broke down in tears when we saw each other but there was joy and relief as brothers and as friends. We were each other's best man at our weddings. But the whole evening was filled with laughter and reminiscing for everyone. So for at least one evening this family was able to set aside our differences and simply enjoy each other's company after so many years apart. That's a start and so I'm very thankful to God for such an unexpected blessing.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
November 29, 2015

The news about the Kentucky county clerk who, despite the recent landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling permitting gay marriage,  refused to issue marriage licenses to gay couples has garnered much attention across the entire political and religious spectrum.  I normally prefer to avoid the political/religious rhetoric but my Bible reading of 1 Peter this week touched upon this very topic of Christians submitting to every authority instituted among men whether king or governor, so I felt it was more than just coincidence. There is an important distinction between one’s personal religious beliefs and our government. The county clerk in Kentucky held fast to her deep Christian conviction against gay marriage despite being held in contempt of court for defying a federal court order to comply with the law of the land. She chose to go to jail rather than betray her conscience and she was praised in many Christian circles as a hero because of it (this Protestant even had a private meeting with the Pope last week!). For that she may very well be in good standing before God on that big Judgment Day. But from a legal standpoint her actions were misguided to have crossed over from the personal into the public political arena.
She has absolutely every right to her personal religious beliefs and the government cannot infringe upon that right whatsoever. However, as county clerk she took an oath of office to “ . . . faithfully execute the duties of my office without favor, affection or partiality so help me God.”And so therefore as a public servant she gave her word to follow the law of the land. If she no longer can do so her option is to resign from office rather than renege on her oath. There are many examples of public servants who forego their personal beliefs while serving in office. For example, capitol punishment is still carried out in some states despite the respective governors’ personal objection to death penalty laws. Indeed, the federal judge who ordered this county clerk to be jailed for defying his court order to issue marriage licenses  is apparently a devout Christian. But he even stated at her contempt hearing that his personal opinion is not relevant and to allow it to supersede his judicial authority would set a dangerous precedent.
Similarly, all of the U.S. Supreme Court members who rendered the gay marriage decision are either Christian or Jewish. My point about this is that Christians are constitutionally protected from government infringing upon their right to worship Christ Jesus and conversely they need not attempt to implement their freedom of religion within government with such short-sighted methods. I’m not sure what this county clerk thought she hoped to achieve ignoring proper channels and acting outside of the law. She certainly drew a lot of attention to herself but she won’t have succeeded in overturning the U.S. Supreme Court decision. No one would’ve imagined gay marriage even five or ten years ago and yet here we are in a secular world that not even the framers of our constitution would ever have contemplated. But personally I’m not threatened by a society and government or a hostile world in general no matter how turned around it appears.  No contemporary trending social mores will ever cause me to feel otherwise. Isn’t this what we’re warned about in Scripture to begin with?

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
October 4, 2015

Happy Father’s Day

Boy, it’s Father’s Day again it kind of crept up on the Summer.  It’s a nice idea to honor dads but as a holiday compared to Mother’s Day we are a distant second, an afterthought. Last month when the church Mission Support event was scheduled for this afternoon none of the 3 pastors (all fathers) even realized it was on Father’s Day. I think my wife pointed that out to me later, oops. So not even the Dads are paying attention to our own special day either.
I joke of course. But we fathers don’t necessarily need that kind of outward gesture of appreciation and affection. Unlike mothers we don’t automatically relate to or identify with the emotional bonds that exist, or ought to exist, with our children. It’s complicated. We’re not comfortable with the emotion of it. We were raised by a generation of fathers of a past traditional paternal role where all this touchy feely kind of close relationship was not expected.
So the modern role of the father has changed for the better but we struggle with it. Our own fathers were not that relational or affectionate and so we’ve had to find a path to our children’s lives on our own. It’s especially challenging for a father and son to be close. I love being a father to my 11 year old son Julian but I struggled early on with my own issues before he and I had a stronger relationship. I wasn’t close to my own father growing up. Oh sure I have fond childhood memories of doing lots of fun things with my father like on family vacation at the beach and going salmon fishing together.  But later on as I grew older it was more difficult to find common ground between us. And as a young adult I didn’t want to listen to my father or anyone else for advice and so my relationship with him became even more strained. So after high school and even college he and I were distant, even though I still loved him but we had no way of expressing it.
But there comes a time as we grow older that we start to know and appreciate our parents as adults and so the relationship evolves to a mutual friendship. Of course the Bible says for us to honor our parents and I think it’s a challenge for the guys especially to honor their fathers. But as time goes by we age and mature and all of those obstacles that held the relationship back before hopefully fall by the way side and what remains is the love and appreciation for one another.

Happy Father’s Day!

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
June 21, 2015

Moms love unconditionally.
Moms are patient.
Moms know what’s best.
Moms know how to make skinned knees feel better.
Moms have eyes in the back of their head they know what you’re up to before you do.
Moms forgive.
Moms encourage.

I started to make this list of things Moms have a great knack for doing. I know Moms aren’t always perfect but we remember them with fond memories of our childhood of always being there when we needed them the most. Moms have a special relationship with their children more so than Dads I think when it comes to nurturing and caring for their children.  Children will always seem to turn to the Mom. The bond is strong between them whether she’s the traditional stay-at-home Mom or if she works outside of the home. Moms really can do it all. They just seem to find the inner strength to juggle all the roles of mother and homemaker. The children still yearn for the kind of maternal affirmation only a mother can provide. I recall that with my own mother and now see it between my wife and son. And so Moms will always carry that role of providing the emotional support their children need in order to face the challenges of life as they grow older.
The list of things Moms do well for their children may seem to just apply to childhood, especially the part about them having eyes in the back of their head. But as I look at the list I realize the mothering instincts didn’t stop once we grew up. As we grew older and then left the home hopefully we started to appreciate them more for the ways they continually encouraged and supported us. As we matured into adulthood our relationship also matured as we interacted with our Moms as adults and the relationship went from mother/child and became something of a mutual friendship as well. That friendship was a new dimension that I always appreciated with my Mom. She’s always supported and encouraged me even when I haven’t always kept in touch on a regular basis.
But we never want to let go of the nurturing our mothers provide us even as we age. It’s a lesson of grace and love passed down to us that we can strive for ourselves. Amen to that.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
May 10, 2015

“Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” Mark 10:14
There is a documentary movie in theaters now called The Drop Box. It’s about a South Korean pastor who has constructed a specially made drop off receptacle at his home entrance in Seoul where unwanted babies born with special needs or to unwed mothers can be anonymously dropped off. Day or night, when a baby is dropped off a bell tone sounds and this pastor and his staff rush to gather the infant child in their arms to pray over and begin the long and arduous journey of providing a lifetime of care and love. It’s both beautiful yet heart-breaking to see.
A month ago I had seen a news clip on the internet of this extraordinary Christian and the saga of his amazing devotion to these children. I didn’t realize it was a documentary movie that would be released in the US until it was mentioned at church staff lunch last week that people had recently seen it. My wife and I had already talked about this story because it has somewhat of a connection to me personally. When I had visited Seoul for two months back in ’96 on a law school internship it was the first time I had returned there since being adopted when I was about 2 years old. My wife (whom I had met that Summer!) had accompanied me to the Red Cross facility there in Seoul where I was prior to adoption to the US. To my surprise they actually had a record of me in their archives from 1969 (wow, I’M OLD!). There wasn’t a lot of information but it did indicate that I had been dropped off at the Red Cross station by a grandmother.
Many of the unwanted Korean newborns aren’t afforded at least this consideration. They are often abandoned on the street by the birth parents or simply disposed of. So much so that this Korean pastor felt compelled to devise this doorway drop box to rescue these precious lives. By grace he did not seek to condemn others but to simply save lives. Every nation struggles with this challenge of providing for unwanted pregnancies, including the US (for example, laws in many jurisdictions allow unwanted babies to be dropped off at police/fire stations without threat of criminal prosecution). However, these Korean children have very little support domestically. Furthermore there have been more than 150,000 international adoptions of Korean babies over the years.
There is obviously something about the culture and social mores that makes it difficult if not impossible for these children to survive and be accepted in their own country, by their own people. The strict adherence to family honor and bloodlines no doubt contributes to this tragic dilemma where lives deemed unfit by the very society that produced them are rejected outright. But there is hope. God’s will cannot be denied. Could it be that the steadfast unyielding work of faithful servants of the Lord such as this pastor will witness to a nation? There is still work to be done. Slowly but surely in God’s own timing may there come a day when God’s unconditional love will prevail over every tribe and nation. Lord willing, hearts and minds will be transformed to transcend cultural identity to an identity in Christ Jesus. Amen to that.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
March 22, 2015

So the Superbowl is today, the biggest sporting event in the U.S. by far. A billion sports fanatics and casual sports fans all over the world will watch not only for the game itself but also for the funny commercials and the entertaining halftime show. I’m not necessarily a huge sports fan but I am loyal to Seattle teams having grown up with the Seahawks, Mariners and the Sonics (I don’t want to talk about it until Seattle gets another NBA team). This season I realized I was getting a tad obsessed with the Seahawks’ bid to repeat as champions when I found myself yelling at the TV during their games. Go Hawks!
The constant Superbowl media coverage is massive to say the least and the players are fully aware every little thing they say and do will be heard round the world. Some of them choose to share their Christian faith, which certainly seems to be the admirable thing to do and a pleasant contrast to the blatant corporate commercialism swirling around the event. Seattle’s quarterback had a terrible game in the NFC championship two weeks ago until he pulled out a win at the end to get to the Superbowl. Exhausted and emotional, his immediate post-game comments were the familiar “God is so great, all the time.” He went on to comment that God had “orchestrated all of this to bring him to this point.” Hmm, now don’t get me wrong I have no issue with someone sharing their Faith on the big stage and I think this person has a sincere love for the Lord. However, his comments seemed to imply that this sports contest victory was a result of divine intervention. The various public reactions to this were amusing if not predictable. The opposing quarterback for the Packers remarked “I really don’t think God cares about football.” Sports radio ran with it: “So did God lay the 7.5 points or did he just go with Seattle winning straight up?” Another prominent media person commented he had a serious issue with a god that has a rooting interest in a football game. There’s a fine line between one witnessing his/her genuine Faith and coming across as self-righteous entitlement. If the Seattle QB is saying God is allowing him to be the best darn person he can be even in his athletic vocation and he gives all praise to God regardless of the outcome then so be it. But to assert beyond that invites skepticism and ridicule from Christians and non-Christians alike making wise-cracks about God and the point spread, which is an impression of the Gospel he certainly did not intend, and one God most certainly did not intend.
This kind of proselytizing draws unwanted attention and I dare say even spiritual battle. I recall years ago, a former high-profile Seattle player was playing in the Superbowl and he made the foolish prediction that his team would win because of his superior Christian faith. The night before the big game he was arrested by undercover police for soliciting “dates.” His team lost the game and no one ever wanted to hear from that guy again. The current Seattle QB holds out his Christian faith for all to see but will also draw scrutiny for having filed to end his 2-year marriage last year coincidentally right after he became famous. Even solid character guys like this one will be subject to forces of this world that want to see him stumble. It’s a dangerous game to attach God’s goodness with wins or losses. What I would love to see is that players on both sides of the final score and in life proclaim “God is good, all the time!”

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
February 1, 2015

So I had attended a church Promiseland PTA meeting a few weeks ago since my son Julian is a 5th grader and I wanted to try and support the ministry as a parent if I could. One of the topics discussed was ideas for fun field-trip events to plan for the future. Snowtubing was one of the ideas for example. So there was conversation back and forth among the group but then I noticed no one was able to volunteer to merely look into the costs and dates etc and report back to the group. I’m a typical guy so therefore I’m sorely lacking in the children’s event planning/detail department. But nevertheless it’s something that needed to be done so I thought why not and raised my hand and volunteered to look into it. I naively wondered to myself what harm could that do to offer to just look into things?
So a short report of several different fun things to do (like glass blowing!) was prepared and submitted. Not long after that I get an email from the group thanking me for volunteering to lead the field trip. Whaaaa? Hey what just happened here I had merely offered to look into it and next thing I know I’ve been “volun-told” I was leading. Very smooth of them that’s for sure.
Of course I’m only good-naturedly complaining about getting deftly roped into further involvement. This is not the first time I’ve tried to be involved. I think it finally dawned on me as a parent that it’s not enough to just expect others to provide these experiences for the kids. The church staff and volunteer Sunday school teachers and other parents have continued to invest in these younger generations so faithfully. And I’ve been blessed not only in fellowship meeting the other KC congregation parents and but also in my relationship with my son. Julian still occasionally recalls the last Promiseland retreat when our 12-bunk cabin had a late night pillow fight of epic proportions. Our cabin was the “cool” cabin. The kids in the other cabin even wanted to join our cabin. I told my son I was pretty much a band geek growing up so I had never in my life ever been considered in the “cool” crowd. So even though I’m not personally thrilled about these overnights sleeping in bunks, or campground tents, or on the Playstation floor upstairs (my back is not crazy about it either) it’s worthwhile to be part of our kids lives and maybe also score some Dad points too along the way.
Our church ministries across the board are relying more and more upon individual participation in order for the ministries to continue their good works. No doubt there are opportunities for each and every one of us to be more involved and quite honestly our participation is becoming essential. We can’t take for granted that the same parents or same church leaders should bear the full responsibility for this congregation’s spiritual well-being. The excellent examples our young adult and high school leaders have set investing their time, energy and heart into the youth over and over again is humbling. How does one say no to making an effort in the name of the Lord? And all this time God is watching.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
December 14, 2014

When we engage others with our Christian faith, speaking from the heart says more than the words we use. By that I mean when we share our personal experience with God there is a sincerity present within the content of our words that speaks of an unconditional love and grace that can only come from God. I’m convinced no theological debate or head knowledge of God will ever witness more effectively than that. Two recent occasions I’ve had illustrate my point.
I was recently sitting in court waiting for my case to be called and so I happened to be reading a bible passage. Another attorney sitting beside me, whom I am not necessarily personal friends with but have known over the years, noticed and asked me what I was reading. So I told him I was reading the bible (NIV translation).
So this guy then asks me what translation of the bible I was reading so I told him. And even though we were having what I thought was a polite conversation he proceeds to make a sarcastic dismissive remark about that particular bible translation. Now, I’m aware of the debate over whether the new 2011 NIV translation has taken too many liberties in order to make the Bible more inclusive. (I happened to be reading the 1984 NIV version but that’s beside the point). But this fellow Christian chose to not only dismiss that new NIV translation outright, but also any of those who choose to read that particular translation. He also proceeded to espouse at length his conservative political/religious views and how society was basically going to hell in a hand basket but for his efforts to protect God and the USA. Regardless of his religious and political ideology I couldn’t really perceive any love for the Lord that Scripture speaks of that I would’ve hoped he might have gained from his efforts. He was more inclined to draw lines in the sand over bible translations to further his own agenda rather than use actual Scripture to draw himself and others closer to the Lord.
I know we have congregation members who are attempting to reach out to their non-Christian family members or friends. Non-Christians often times want to debate God on an intellectual level where God must appeal to their sense of human logic before they believe or have faith in Christ. Sometimes a person is trying to reach out to his or her respective non-Christian spouse or family member and the conversation gets bogged down in argumentative debate about the Bible or the hypocrisy of other Christians behaving badly. My suggestion to them has been that they should simply speak from their heart when it comes to sharing their faith. Yes, Scripture is important for us to know and understand. We should strive to understand through Scripture how God wants to have communion with us through prayer and worship, for example, and to know what God did for us and now through us because of Christ. However, our interaction must begin first with how Christ Jesus has transformed our lives from a life of sin and darkness to a new life in light and hope. This is the Gospel message others will see in us. That we are sinful but forgiven. That we can love others unconditionally just as we are unconditionally loved by God. This is the undeniable Gospel message that disarms all hostilities and renders all intellectual debate as pointless rambling.
I’m a professional arguer by trade and I may know a thing or two about the Bible at this point. But I can honestly say when it comes to sharing my Faith with others, no amount of theological debate or self-righteous superiority ever instilled a love for the Lord in anyone. When we live a life in Christ filled with grace and mercy, as challenging as that might be at times, others will see and take notice. Amen to that God willing.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
November 2, 2014

There are certain darker, more uglier aspects of our society that as a parent I would rather shield my 10 year-old son Julian from for as long as I can. For example, we want our children to grow up in a healthy safe nurturing environment so naturally we’re careful about what movies and video games they’re exposed to. But I’m not naïve enough to think that I’ll be able to shield him from every little thing. My son loves sports and lately even with that ESPN is depicting some pretty serious issues of domestic violence and child disciplining. Even matters of subtle racism will rear it’s ugly head from time to time, which is unfortunately what we encountered a couple weeks ago.
We recently attended a summer camp open house down off the North Carolina coast. Families were invited to visit the camp over the weekend and partake in all the camp activities. There was a zip-line, archery, target range, tennis, golf, motor boating and sailing etc. It was pretty neat- lots to see and do and experience. (although having to sleep on bunk beds in the non air-conditioned cabins that time of year was brutal for us adults).
Although the interaction and conversations with other families during meals and activities were polite and pleasant enough, we couldn’t help notice that we were literally the only non-white family among the hundred or so families there. No other asian or black families whatsoever. Everything seemed fine though. But there was one particular incident my wife Jennifer later shared with me when she and Julian were standing in line for the zip-line. Ahead of them in line were a few girls, about 8 or 9 years old. They were all uttering “ching-chong-ching” loud enough for my wife and son to hear. Jen could hear them making this obvious racial gesture even though Julian probably didn’t notice or realize what they were doing. He’s still naïve and innocent enough at his age thank God.
Jen was pretty offended by this but to her credit she didn’t say anything or make an issue of it. But that’s pretty brazen for white kids to tease not just towards some asian kid but to also do that to an adult. When my wife later told me about it she asked me if I thought she should’ve said something to them or told their parents or staff. In my opinion it wouldn’t have made any difference telling their parents since I would assume this kind of attitude is fostered by the adults.
So now this minor little incident places us in a different context of enrolling Julian in the summer camp next year. We didn’t create that situation but now we’re confronted by it. I can’t be sure how far something like this could escalate when he’s in camp by himself. It could be potentially devastating to him. It’s the kind of thing that I know I’ll have to talk to Julian about. Not sure what he’ll completely understand about it. Part of me resents having to even bring it up in this day and age.
I have to resist my personal reaction from my own negative experiences growing up and the subtle racial undertones I observed around Julian even in MD. But as a Christian parent how do I discuss this kind of thing in such a way as to not embitter him and thus defeat him, but inform him as to the messed-up way the forces of this world seeks to tear one another down? Showing that level of grace towards each other is a major challenge for adults let alone children. I have to trust that God will continue to watch over his heart and mind and allow him to emerge as a light to this darkness. To that I say amen.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
September 21, 2014

Sometimes it’s the simple gestures that mean a lot. Last Saturday I went to get a couple bibles in my office that we keep for gifts. There weren’t any more there but then it dawned on me that we had last used a bunch of books from our shelves, including the shrink-wrapped gift bibles, for the Christmas Banquet decorations. If you recall the lobby ceiling was decorated with that sheer curtain drapery centerpiece. The delicate fabric was not pinned to the ceiling but was weighted down with books on the ceiling overhang. I had just assumed all of the books had been returned afterwards. But I still wasn’t sure if the bibles were still up there in the lobby ceiling.
So I just happened to see Kim Il Doo Jip Sa Nim (Deacon) in the hallway at church and I asked him if he by chance happened to know if the bibles were still up there in the lobby ceiling from the banquet. To my surprise he had noticed they were actually still up there from when he had changed lobby lightbulbs.
So once he confirmed they were still there I went off looking for one of the ladders to fetch the bibles on my own. I wasn’t able to track down a ladder and a short while later Il Doo Jip Sa Nim asked me if I got the bibles down from the ceiling. I told him no not yet. So at that very moment he dropped what he was doing and he and another KC (Korean Congregation) gentleman went and got the big 12-foot tall ladder and hauled it into the lobby. Then one of them climbed up the ladder and began to retrieve the bibles for me.
I really appreciated his gesture to stop what he was doing and go out of his way to do this for me. I wasn’t expecting nor even asking for his assistance and besides, it was odd and a little embarrassing to be asking him about stacks of bibles left up high. And yet he didn’t hesitate in assisting. This from a man whom, you may not be aware, sustained a serious back injury about 2 years ago as a result of a ladder accident at church. The three of us had a good laugh at how bizarre it was that they were climbing up a tall ladder to retrieve books still squirreled away in the lobby ceiling.
So I walked away from that incident last Saturday grateful to God (and Deacon Il Doo) fully appreciative that their gesture was not out of duty or obligation but simply because they had a heart to do it. It reminded me that gestures such as this, however large or small, make such a difference towards the greater harmony and cooperation of this local church body.
The English and Korean congregations are usually each busy tending to their respective ministries. I think it sometimes reduces the opportunities for meaningful fellowship and interaction between the two congregations. But even though there are differences in language and culture between KC and EC, nevertheless here in the midst of those differences there are congregation members who recognize that we all love the Lord regardless of culture and can work together as one body in Christ. It’s a comforting thought imagining how God will use us to further his kingdom when we have this perspective. Amen to that.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
August 3, 2014

So I just submitted a state mandated annual report to the Maryland State Bar Association about whether I had represented any court cases pro bono- that is, whether I had voluntarily represented any indigent clients for free who were in need of legal services but couldn’t afford to hire a lawyer. Most attorneys I know would grumble at the thought of doing cases for free (this is our livelihood after all) and the fact we’re required to report the number of pro bono hours has a bit of a forced charity to it that diminishes the gesture. Why do lawyers have to donate their particular expertise anyway?!? Whose idea was that? Why don’t other folks have to volunteer according to their occupations? For example why don’t mailmen have to volunteer delivering mail for free? Why aren’t street mimes required to mime for free?
This is just good-natured whining and ranting of course which is my wont to do (but don’t worry I won’t sue street mimes). The sermon today is on God’s desire to have an intimate loving relationship with us through the gift of his Son Christ Jesus on the cross. There is a profound sense of love we experience through Christ that transcends any human emotion. God’s love is unconditional. But nevertheless when we truly experience God’s love for us it calls us to action and releases us from our natural hesitation I described above in order to express our love for the Lord.
But it occurred to me that God’s “love languages” don’t all necessarily apply directly back to Him. By that I mean that yes God is pleased when we lift up praise and adoration to Him and give Him all the glory (eg Words of Affirmation and Quality Time). However, God does not personally need any of our tithing and gifts and He most certainly does not need any pro bono Acts of Service from me or anyone else whatsoever, mimes included. But the beauty of God’s exquisite grand design to his Gospel message of love is that we obey his second command, which is to love one another as He loves us. So each of us is gifted in God’s unconditional love. And so as God compels us to do, therefore we ought to be striving for ways in which to express that love unconditionally towards others through something as simple as a kind gesture towards another in a desperate time of need. It then becomes the natural flow from our desire to live in communion with God, regardless of our occupation or social status.
That kind of unconditional expression of love towards others transcends any state mandated requirement. Amen to that.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
June 22, 2014

So we approach the year’s end. Another year of life happening at even greater leaps and bounds especially as we get older. We face the ongoing challenges (and pressures) living out the “American dream” from an early age throughout adulthood- achieving academic excellence, advancement in our careers, acquiring material wealth, marriage, family and so on and so forth. We fret (and hover) as parents over our children’s development and well-being. As Christians at times we struggle reconciling those pursuits with what our Faith compels us to do.
This year NCFC endured profound change the likes of which it had never experienced before. Who could’ve ever imagined at the start of the year how different it would be for everyone within less than a year’s time? And yet despite the transition of such magnitude this congregation remains together steadfastly resolute as a local church body of Christ. Not all churches would respond to this kind of crisis in the same manner. But I would like to think God individually confronted us with this intentionally with a specific purpose in mind for each and every one of us.
It’s been my observation that it’s often in the times of crisis that we seek God. Whenever we suffer hardship- whether physically, spiritually or materially- we go to God in prayer. God loves to hear from us in all things- not only in times of need but also in times of thanksgiving and confession, for example. But as I have shared before, if God only hears from us in our time of need and crisis then perhaps indeed God obliges us with need and crisis in our lives as our means of communion and dialogue with Him. That is, until we realize and experience a better way. As we have discovered, being driven into a barren isolated “wilderness” in life is not a spiritual attack to be resisted. This may be God’s intentional way of stripping away the distractions of this world in order to get us to surrender to His will and purpose in our lives rather than our own.
Personally, the self-reflection and spiritual growth I’ve experienced in the last 6 months at church has been life altering for me. I am an argumentative realist/cynic by profession. It’s been brutally humbling but at the same time necessary and transforming for me in my pastoral ministry to have gone through these times in order to be broken to myself.
I wouldn’t wish stress and hardship upon anyone and none of you are as stubborn and foolish as I am to bring that upon yourselves. But if hardship is what it takes to bring about beautiful transformation God intends in your life then I applaud you for your perseverance. Amen to that.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
December 29, 2013

God has a way of leading us down new paths in life that were before unexpected and yet greater than what we could’ve asked or imagined.
I recall years ago when I had started my own solo law practice after working as an associate attorney at another law office. After I had gotten settled into my own practice I started to realize that it was best suited for my personality and general attitude to be on my own without anyone supervising me (or me supervising anyone else) or my having to learn to work with others as a team etc etc. I have shared in the past that admittedly I grew up socially awkward and lacked the normal social skills most people take for granted. And so with my law practice I felt I had found true balance of an occupation that fit my loner personality. I felt at the time, and still do, that it’s a sign of maturity for one to admit and acknowledge one’s strengths and limitations.
However, that whole self-reflection occurred well before I had a calling to go to seminary. Flash forward to 2010, when I was in my second year of seminary and was about to start serving at NCFC as an associate pastor. I had a mini anxiety attack once I realized that gee, after I had already settled the matter in my head that I was better off working alone without being supervised or being subject to annual job reviews or having to learn to work well with others and so on and so forth, that serving at church would require me to be supervised, subject to annual job reviews and having to work with others!
God seems to have an ironic sense of humor when He throws us these little curveballs in life. I have said all along that I would’ve been perfectly content living out my life as I had once known it to be as a husband, father and law practitioner. But if God hadn’t intervened and saved me from my dysfunctional self I wouldn’t have experienced the joys in my relationships as a father, husband and brother in Christ. I feel these types of profound changes can only come from God.
My calling to serve at NCFC is even different than what I had originally expected. I felt I had a lot to learn under the leadership and guidance of Pastor Jamie and Dr. Kim. And yet now I realize that God is the one in control of our growth and maturity not any particular person. In fact I’m convinced God can use any one of us within this ministry to teach and to learn from. So there’s a sense of eager anticipation as to what God will be doing at our church in future times. As for my general anti-social tendencies it’s been an ongoing process. I feel I still have much to learn in the ministry about leadership and people. But thank God for His patience and grace to allow us to strive to be a relevant ministry. amen to that.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
October 6, 2013

Today’s sermon passage in Colossians 3 talks in part about the relationship between parent and child. It directs not only for the child to be obedient to the parent but also for the parent to be loving to the child. It’s a very challenging role for guys because we have to resist our natural male tendency to be authoritarian in relationships and instead work towards also being loving and not embittering and discouraging as a father (and husband) as the Scripture passage calls us to be. It takes a LOT of patience and wisdom for sure.
A couple years ago I was at Chick Fil-A with my son eating lunch. It’s always really busy there and sometimes we get there but leave because the lines are so long. So this time I commented on how busy it was and I also mentioned to him that probably the reason Chick-Fil-A is so busy is that it’s a Christian-owned franchise and that most people have a high opinion of Christians so they like to eat there. But then, in some lame attempt at fatherly wisdom I tried to make a point about humility and I said to him, “But you know son, Christians aren’t perfect. They’re not always nice.” Without skipping a beat he says to me, “Yeah like you, you’re not always nice.” (Ouch, and I was a seminary student no less at the time).
Out of the mouths of babes goes the saying. I guess I deserve that. Part of my testimony is that for the longest time I had been blind to certain anger issues that were destroying my relationship with my wife and son. It had only taken 40-plus years and 3 years of seminary for a stubborn knucklehead like me to overcome my tendency as a guy to go be impatient and harsh. I acted that way under the guise of strong disciplinarian parenting. I thought I was doing the right thing for my son. But what I now realize is that it was because I didn’t know any other way except the way my flawed human nature caused me to be. And it was definitely discouraging and embittering my son unfortunately.
Thank God for the miracle of healing and restoration in my life and gradually I’ve been emerging from that dark place towards the light. I’m not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. Once in a while I’ll ask my son how I’m doing nowadays as a Dad and he’ll describe me as being “yellish” because I still raise my voice at him from time to time. But I believe there are appropriate times to be “yellish” with him in order to reinforce good parenting. It’s just that now I have a pretty darn good relationship with him so he’s much more well-adjusted. So for you men (and women) out there, I hope for everyone’s sake that your relationship with the Lord and with others aren’t suffering to a point of regret like it was with me.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
September 1, 2013

So my wife and I took our 9 yr-old son Julian to the airport last Saturday. He flew out to Seattle to visit my family and Jen’s family for a week each. This is the first time he’s ever been away from home for that long. I’m really glad he had a chance to go out there because I know he’ll have a great time visiting with family whom he doesn’t get to see all that often. But he will have been gone for two weeks before I fly out and join him. I kind of miss the little guy and I actually teared up as I left the airport (I know that’s a real shocker that I got emotional). I miss the little tender moments between him and me, like when we’d be in the middle of playing catch or something and then for no particular reason he’ll simply say “hug” and come over and I’d give him a hug.
I’m reminded of the Matthew 10 Bible verse where Jesus is sending out his 12 disciples and tells them “Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.”
At first glance that passage might give the impression maybe Jesus is trying to give us a guilt trip about loving our parents or our children too much. Far from it!
I think what the passage really illustrates is that it gives us a glimpse of the depth and scope of God’s love that exists for us through his Son. We all (hopefully) can relate to how at one time or another we have been loved by our parents and how as parents we have such a profound love for our children.
Jesus also wants to be loved by us and be in communion with us on a daily basis. But it’s not so much that as Christians we should start loving our family less as if Christ is demanding it all for himself. Rather, it should get us trying to imagine that as much as we have a deep capacity to love and be loved by others, how much greater is the Lord’s unconditional love that exists when we seek Him. This is what we have in Christ!
So when I think of how much I love that little guy and what a blessing he is to my wife and me it also reminds me of an even greater love from the Lord that dwarfs anything I could ever express. The idea of that brings about a profound peace and comfort to me. And that’s way better than even a hug.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
August 11, 2013

The George Zimmerman murder trial has finally concluded. Many people are frustrated by the outcome. The verdict is disappointing to me from a legal and Christian perspective in that even though the criminal justice system is not perfect it does not appear it was properly utilized and fairly applied to its fullest extent to begin with. The whole ordeal smacks of a local community in the South that probably resented the national outrage and pressure to prosecute Zimmerman later after they had already closed the investigation out. So the case was doomed from the beginning.
The authorities from the very start of this case did not appear to have conducted a very thorough investigation into the shooting death of a young unarmed black man. State witnesses were neglected and unprepared to testify at trial, which undermined their credibility. The fact that one of the detectives (a state witness) testified he thought the defendant was believable is unheard of and sums up my point about bias undertones. And so because of an incomplete and sloppy version of the facts presented at trial one of the jurors was later quoted saying that Trayvon Martin “played a huge role” in his own death. It seems pretty clear by all accounts that George Zimmerman went out of his way to escalate the situation and ended up pulling a gun when he was losing.
He’s the only person alive on this planet who truly knows exactly what happened on that day and he isn’t talking, which is his right under the law. At this point what he did on that night is between him and God. I suppose if the whole truth had been made known it’s possible he acted in self-defense but whether he acted justifiably or with criminal intent will never be known for sure.
That’s why I’m reminded of the fact that even though it’s well known in our court system that a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty, a “not guilty” verdict does not necessarily mean a person is innocent. Just because Zimmerman was found not guilty doesn’t mean he acted innocently during that violent altercation with Martin. There just wasn’t enough evidence to convict him.
This frustrates me in that in our American society we rely on the trial court system to mete out justice (although designating a judge to settle disputes among people has Old Testament origins). Compared to God’s sovereign judgment our trials may be a crude blunt tool but nevertheless the criminal justice system usually satisfies our sense of justice and fair play and is designed to do just that. Ultimately we’re all subject to God’s judgment but until that day we have come to expect people to be held accountable for their human actions while here on earth. But in this case it does not appear the whole truth was ever revealed making it impossible to prove the case, and thus, justice did not play out. That alone should be disturbing to all of us.
At least these types of polarizing cases where justice seems twisted don’t occur often. But this is not the first instance where an infamous case results in a controversial verdict. I guess it’s just another reminder of how imperfect and limited we are as humans when it comes to true justice, certainly when compared to God. sigh.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
July 21, 2013

While I was on the church website recently I made the mistake of clicking on the archived recording of my first sermon from last May. Ever done that? Ever reviewed a recording of yourself giving a speech or presentation? Ugh!! It's excruciating isn't it to see and hear yourself publicly speaking? You tend to be hyper-critical of every little mistake in your delivery and overall presentation and appearance. As I watched the sermon clip I cringed at how twitchy I was- lots of constant nervous movement, my hands flailing about and I paced back and forth too. With my day job I’m in court all the time and so one would think that form of public speaking would help a little here. I think I’m comfortable speaking generally but it’s enormously humbling when it comes to speaking from the pulpit. Pastor Jamie has even commented that all of one’s nervous ticks become even more evident when preaching.
What made me cringe even more while viewing my sermon was the fact that I spoke with a speech impediment- a lisp. A lisp is the inability to enunciate the letter "s" clearly and it comes out as a "th" sound. Jesus, for example, comes out like “Jethuth”. I know that I had to take speech therapy classes for this when I was in 6th grade. I don’t think it’s as bad now as it was then but I guess I just never realized that it was still audibly noticeable some 30 years later!
The ridiculous thing is that my lisp, which is obvious to everyone else, was new to me. I was so mortified that I even Googled local speech therapists and online speech impediment exercises to try and correct it. I’m so self-conscious now I even try to avoid speaking words spelled with an “s.” It’s embarrassing and I also think some people associate a person who speaks with a lisp with having low IQ. Oh that’s just great. How am I ever going to get anyone to listen to me if they already presume I’m some kind of a moron?!? (Although I assure you I might very well be an imbecile with or without a lisp.)
I dunno but just maybe this little self-revelation of mine is a metaphor for life and our self-image we think we project. When in actuality we’re blind to all these little peculiarities apparent to everyone but ourselves. Boy, I felt so much better about myself living in “blithful ignoranthe.” But as I’ve shared before as part of my testimony, perhaps this is yet another recent instance- albeit public and embarrassing- that God uses to humble and disciple me. I’m better off because of it no doubt.
Pastor Neil preached last week we shouldn't compare ourselves with others but be thankful for who we are. But I can't help it I envy and covet all you people who can clearly pronounce your “s”. I thought of suing every one of you. But then again, it occurred to me that God uses all of us either because of or in spite of our imperfections. Besides, better speech won't draw me closer to God or give me greater clarity of thought in the Word when preaching. My only hope (and prayer) is that the message within the actual spoken Word undeniably overcomes my own human limitations. As Apostle Paul wrote of his own weaknesses, “God’s grace is sufficient for me, for His power is made perfect in weakness.”
During corporate prayer at the Alpha retreat last weekend I spoke a prophetic word of knowledge to another for the first time in my life.  . . and whew, the particular word didn't have a single "s" in it to have to pronounce. Amen to that, God is good!

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
November 25, 2012

It's become something of a running joke about the fact that i break down in tears when I'm preaching or even just talking with others, whether it's during Saturday early morning prayer, staff Oikos or service. I've tried to make light of it in order to perhaps make it stop. I assure you that nowhere in my personal sermon notes do I have any notation "cry here for dramatic effect." My season of weeping has been going on now for hmmm, let's see - 5 or 6 years now! I can recall back then when things were starting to happen to me in my spiritual growth., I was in my car driving northbound on I-270. I didn't have any particular thing weighing on my mind but as I was on the highway driving past NCFC I started crying- bawling actually. Now that's just plain weird.
I'm not quite sure about what exactly is occurring when I get that emotional. It's definitely not as though I'm in grief but moreso because I'm relieved and touched that God would still bother to be present and at work in my heart and mind despite my many screwups. I guess it also has something to do with the fact that for 40-plus years I had been blind to certain anger issues that in the last two to three years since seminary I've had to finally confront for maybe the first time in my life. I won't bore you with the details of all of that but I think maybe it's God's way of breaking me down- breaking down a lot of hurt and dysfunction that had manifested over the years which were damaging to my relationships as a husband, father and brother in Christ.
It's embarrassing to be sure to breakdown like that in public. I don't mind the emotional part at all when I'm by myself or standing in the congregation anonymously but who knows, maybe a dose of public humiliation now and again is good for the soul too. I know most guys would prefer to be more stoic and non-expressive of emotions because we tend to associate emotion with effeminate weakness. And none of us guys want to appear as complete wimps. But I think the Spirit moves in that emotional realm. So when we build up those walls by denying this response I think we lose out on those transforming moments of love and grace that God wants for everyone, even the tough guys. Amen to that.

From Pastor Mark’s Heart
October 14, 2012