Rescued by Jesus. Rebuilt by the Spirit. Responding to God's grace.
But the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort. (1 Cor. 14:3 NIV) << Previous episode As part of the process of applying to be missionaries with our denomination, our entire family would have to spend two weeks in Chicago in order for Soo and me to attend mandatory missionary […]
<< Previous episode God provides and redeems one of my failures. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the […]
<< Previous episode A little bit of encouragement goes a long way. Soo, the boys, and I traveled north from Tokyo and headed towards Iwate on Thanksgiving weekend of 2011. It would be our very first visit to Ofunato as a family: Soo had been curious to finally see the city we were being called […]
<< Previous episode When God calls, resistance is futile. The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, […]
<< Previous episode Fear kept me from trusting God. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do […]
<< Previous episode Filled with faith or just plain delusional? “Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will […]
<< Previous Episode Learning to trust God as He leads us into the unfamiliar. My friend Jack, who was on that first mission trip to Japan with me, suggested that we return to Japan together and visit Ofunato, since God went through the trouble of showing me a map of that city in my dream. […]
<< Previous episode If God can speak through a donkey, could He speak through a child’s toy? It was a Tuesday morning. I was making the 20-mile drive to work. The radio was off. I needed some silence. I was praying. “God, it’s been nearly a month since my mother passed away. The memorial service […]
<< Previous Episode Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.” (Luke 10:61 NIV) In the last episode, I had just received confirmation of my family’s calling to Japan– the sign being that of a family of ducks crossing the street. Though I […]
I haven’t posted anything new in nearly a month now. My apologies to my dear readers who have been awaiting the next episode in the story of my Ransomed Life. Three things have kept me from posting: 1) I’ve just been busier than usual lately; 2) it has been difficult for me to write the […]
<< Previous episode If God could speak through a donkey, could He speak to me through some ducks? Gideon replied, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me” (Gideon 6:17 NIV) June, 2011. It had been three months since my missions trip […]
<< Previous Episode Was this the end of my mission to Japan or just the beginning? Our ten-day mission trip ended on March 27, 2011. I accompanied the rest of the team to Narita Airport to send them off on their flight back to Los Angeles. My plan was to fly to Seoul the next […]
Hey everyone, In honor of Holy Week, we’ll take a break from posting and resume next Monday, March 28th. Thanks for following! By the way, you can receive new blog posts directly in your email by signing up in the subscription box on the right side of the website. Pray on, Stephen
<< Previous Episode One of the original objectives for our 10-day missions trip had always been to encourage missionaries and Japanese Christians by meeting with them and praying for them. The triple disaster of March 11th didn’t change this, other than to cause us to allocate more of our time in Kyoto than originally planned, […]
<< Previous Episode The wind blows where it will. During our preparations for the trip, we reviewed guidelines on what would be culturally appropriate for short-term missionaries in Japan. For example, it isn’t common to walk up to strangers to strike up a conversation, especially if we couldn’t speak Japanese. Prayer in public would be […]
<< Previous Episode Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.” (Acts […]
What do you do when uncontrollable forces array against your sense of God’s calling? << Previous episode In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps. (Prov. 16:9 NIV) Sensing the go-ahead to proceed with this missions trip to Japan, I began the morning of January 2, 2011 by praying about […]
When you commit to following God, you never know where He might take you. << Previous Episode I had just experienced a pivotal moment during my week-long retreat in the mountains: forced to confront my identity issues, I was able to work through them, find relief from the things that weighed me down, and quiet […]
<< Previous Episode I know my story is crazy. I just wanted to remind y’all before we keep going. The next episode of my story marks the beginning of my family’s calling to Japan. It’s an entirely new chapter of my life– it’s almost as though all the episodes leading up to this point are […]
You can’t serve well unless you first know who you are (and aren’t). << Previous episode After receiving my ministry license, I was required to complete four orientation courses, each one a week long, usually in Chicago or Denver. These were not easy for me to pull off at the time, as Soo just had […]
Yet another post about surrender, trust, and obedience. (Are we sensing a theme here?) << Previous episode Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God. (Psalm. 20:7 NIV) I have this thing about titles and diplomas. I love them. I covet them. But I could […]
Why cling to bitterness when you’re the only one who tastes it? << Previous Episode After my initiation into deliverance ministry, I began to meet with more people to pray for them, and while most people never manifest spiritually the way Jordan did, I did notice how many people were oppressed due to lingering bitterness […]
When I was faithful with a little, God gave me more– way more than I ever imagined. << Previous episode That night, I went to work at the weekly prayer meeting we held every Friday. My job title was “director of prayer ministries,” but I felt more like the “prayer team gopher.” On a typical […]
The journey towards humility can be excruciating. << Previous Episode Many martial-arts films feature a student seeking to learn from a master, who won’t teach anything until the potential student first demonstrates humility, patience, and obedience; only then will the master work to develop the student’s full potential. Think Daniel-san waxing Mr. Miyagi’s cars, or […]
What does it mean to serve out of love, not fear? << Previous episode Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” (John 21:16 NIV) I’d grown up believing that church staffers were naturally “holy” […]
Hearing God is like GPS: when you don’t get any instructions to turn left or right, you just keep moving forward. << Previous episode Tony and I spent the rest of that summer working on the screenplay that we’d been hired to write. I still wondered how this would jibe with my calling to ministry. […]
I thought God was speaking to me. But was He really? << Previous episode I was on fire for Jesus after returning from Bangkok, telling anyone who’d listen that God is bigger than any of us could comprehend, yet He loves us and is with us in our day-to-day lives, even when we don’t notice […]
It’s not what you think. << Previous Episode Tony and I arrived in Bangkok a little over one week after my mind-blowing “jackpot” answer to prayer. A movie producer had sent us there to do some research for a script that he had commissioned us to write. You’d think I’d be excited to be working […]
<< Previous episode When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. (Acts 16:7-8 NIV) April 16, 2006. It was the day of our big premiere. The network marketing team hustled […]
<< Previous episode It takes a supernatural work of the Holy Spirit to help us overcome our bad habits. Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. (Rom. 12:1 NIV) I learned […]
