You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head.     (5)

I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence!     (7)

Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous - how well I know it.     (14)

You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.       (16)

How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! I can't even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me!       (17,18)

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!       (6)

***

In my history and my shadow, He was there.

He is here and clearly knows what I need.

I truly know He will be there. He is faithful and loves us forever.

Thank you Lord, I begin to know what the purpose of my life is. Please keep it and let it burn ever. Amen. 

When I read the below verses in my devotion hour, I wondered what David had written was the things God did the same on me. These verses briefly describe His mightiness, miraculos acts and mercy on a christian's life. As for me, so many memorizable scenes, that they are almost forgotten as the time passes, are suddenly rewinded in my mind. When I look back, You really turned my life full of sorrows and fears into the one full of blessings and peace. How wonderful You are! Thank You, Lord. 

I will exalt you, Lord, for you rescured me. You refused to let my enemies triumph over me. O Lord my God, I cried to you for help, and you restored my health. You brought me up from the grave, O Lord. You kept me from falling into the pit of death. Sing to the Lord, all you godly ones! Praise His holy name. For His anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.           Psalm 30 : 1-5

***

You have truned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever.         Psalm 30 : 11-12

'(Jesus said)... Don't worry about such things (eat and drink). These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers all over the world, but your Father already knows your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need. So don't be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.'                      Luke 12:29-32

Forgive me, Lord, I have not put my whole faith to you even though I know that You, the Creator, have already known my needs.

I still hold some areas that I don't allow You to touch or handle. Please loosen my hands on those areas and hand them to you completely. This is what 'Seek His kingdom FIRST' means.

'That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life - whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn't life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don't plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren't you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?'                               Matthew 6:25-27

*****

At the moment I am thinking about which seminaries / universities is the most suitable one for my study, I sometimes worry about my future career / ministry. After reading the above verses, Your Words enlighten me again. Thanks Lord, You teach me to hand all my worries upon your shoulders since You are faithful. Lord, You clearly know my heart so much that I am not striving for the one I like the most, but the way You think the best for us (Joey and I) or the place You desire us to serve. I trust You very much since You never make me disappointed in the past years. Um ... I believe that I have already distinguished the difference of two words,'worry' and 'concern'. May Your peace, wisdom and strength overwhelm my negative thoughts ever. Amen.

'In everything give praise: for this is the purpose of God in Christ Jesus for you.'                 1 Thessalonians 5:18

*****

Any my blessings come from the Lord. At the end of 2008, when I count my blessings one by one, I wonder His works and genuinely thank Him for ...

1. getting closer to me and recognizing the importance and enormous joy of fellowship with Him;

2. sending my little angel, Joey, to me, building a christian family and witnessing Joey's baptism;

3. letting me free from the fatal disease and other minor diseases;

4. giving me a confidence to fulfill His calling and getting a chance in listening needies' voice;

5. awaking me from unconsciousness to consciousness in self and tackling sinful matters; 

6. lighting up the inner neglected dark room with His Words;

7. building a closer relationship with family members and friends;

8. leading Joey's sister to the cell group and building her faith to You;

9. giving me a chance to study a diploma course in christian study and knowing very kind classmates; 

10. delivering a close and loving relationship among cell group's members.

*****

My dearest Lord, what can I do for you ... ? What kind of offerings should I give? I remember a verse ...

'No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.'                              Micah 6:8

Lord, please inspire me, teach me and guide me to be your faithful servant. Amen. 

In 1 John Chapter 1

 "... and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ."      Verse 3

"So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness ..."       Verse 6

" ... we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.:       Verse 7

We have fellowship with the Creator, the Holy God. Thanks for giving me this precious chance to be your Son and talk to you personally.

But innate sinful thoughts, deeds and tendencies always restrict us to get close to Him ... Thanks God! He gave us a precious promise.

"But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness."         Verse 9

Every time I feel frustrated in dealing with guilts and shames, this verse enlightens me a lot and reminds me to commit not to do it again. Thank you, Jesus.

Joey, my lovely Joey.

You are the angle quietly coming to my heart.

When you smile, all stormy clouds upon the sky would be gone away.

When you cry, my heart would be torn apart.

When you hold my hand, swing our arms and walk along the river, I find this is what I am longing for.

Then I know you are the only one who accompanies my life ever.

***

Joey, my sweetie Joey.

When counting the things you did and knowing what changes you made for me,

I am deeply touched not by your deeds but by yourself.

May our Jesus bless us in the road of our marriage.

Amen.

"Awake, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will give you light."

So ...

1. be careful how you live.

2. make the most of every opportunity in these evil days.

3. understand the Lords wants you to do.

4. be filled with the Holy Spirit (continuously).

5. makemusic (or other art forms) to the Lord in your hearts.

6. give thanks for everything to God.                              Ephesians 5:14-20

There is a stack of stuffs to be learnt in my future classes. With Him, the Greatest Teacher and Heavenly Father, I will be taught and trained to be a 'better' son. I TRUST YOU, LORD. 

( ) added by me

But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, 'O God, be merdiful to me, for I am a sinner.'                        Luke 18:13

The Lord says, 'Then I will heal you of your faithlessness; my love will know no bounds, for my anger will be gone forever.'                           Hosea 14: 4

His endless and unconditional love always awakes me from the guilt and shame. How can I pay the debt? I guess what I can give ... is simply ...

... That's the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is EVERYONE'S DUTY.                 Ecclesiastes 12: 13

How my Lord responded to those who were rebellious towards Him? Two verses in Chapter 11 of Hosea described Him as a father, particular the latter one, we can see there's a struggle to show His righteousness and His love.

I myself taught Israel how to walk, leading him along by the hand. But he doesn't know or even care that it was I who took care of him. I led Israel along with my ropes of kindness and love. I lifted the yoke from his neck, and I myself stooped to feed him.                             Hosea 11:3-4

Oh, how can I give you up, Israel? How can I let you go? ... My heart is torn within me, and my compassion overflows. No, I will not unleash my fierce anger. I will not completely destroy Israel, for I am God and not a mere mortal. I am the Holy One living among you, and I will not come to destroy.                  Hosea 11: 8-9 

Love and Justice are the very foundation of my heavenly Father. I experienced His anger but His tremendous love was always followed. On the whole, His every act can be concluded as the salvation of me (us) from the endless dark hole. I can't image how's my life going if He did not intervene in my critical moments in time.

Dear Lord, I am not smart enough to understand your act on us and always misinterpret your kindness and love. Please forgive me. Amen.