It’s that time of the year once again.  

You’re back in school.  There’s new blood, fresh faces w/ skimpy, next to nothing wardrobed girls that are ambitious not only to make new friends but garner as much attention as they possibly can.  Not only are they friendly but they re-define friendly by rubbing and flirting against your hormone-saturated soul.  Against such flesh that spikes up your primal, raw, primitive animalistic passion - you feel utterly helpless to drown in your lust fantasy and “cravings”.

When living in a day and age where sexual is the new spiritual - you’re an easy prey to the ‘prowling lion’ to be devoured in passionate 5-7 minute ecstasy with the adulteress only to regret the short-lived 5-7 minutes for the rest of your life.

You up there, leading out in worship, playing that guitar and singing your heart out w/ your hands lifted high during week of prayer - while scanning the room for faces and bodies that will lubricate your lust-craving soul.

Sometimes the lines blur between a spiritual-high and a sexual-high.  There’s always an attempt to “catch two-birds with one stone”.  You find yourself motivated go to that prayer meeting, bible study or that outreach - only because there’s a boy/girl that gets you high both spiritually and sexually(?).    

What does God have to say about this?

Ephesians 5:3 

But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people.

Not even a hint.  Nope.  Can’t have it both ways.  She can’t be both your sister and your sexual fantasy.  That’s disgusting.  

What is impurity?  What is sexual immorality? 

It’s poison.  It’s what destroys us. It’s what destroys our purity and our marriage/future marriage.

It’s like humongous chunk of booger in our mushroom soup. Or a cat diarrhea masquerading as sauce on top of our chicken salad.

That is nasty.  You don’t ever want to eat a salad with a cat diarrhea in it.  

In like manner, being in a spiritual environment w/ a horny soul is nasty.

Keeping the Sabbath only to watch porn or read 50 shades of grey to lust over its characters is like eating a mushroom soup with a huge booger dissolved in it.  

In God’s economy and in His book, there aren’t 50 shades of grey. 

There’s black and white.  Right or Wrong.  Purity or Impurity.

What God forbids is often the booger or the diarrhea.  

God isn’t anti-sex or anti-pleasure. He’s simply anti-poison, anti-booger and anti any kind of diarrhea entering into our pure souls.  

According to 1 Cor. 6:18, God has one word of advice for waging war sexual immorality.  

Flee from sexual immorality!

That is, Run Forest Run!

Don’t ever think that you can handle a little flirtation and a little rub on your skin.

Run.

Don’t ever linger or pause in your gaze or fantasy down or up a girl’s shirt/blouse/skirt.

Run.

Prov. 5:8  ”Keep to a path far from her (adulteress)

As leaders, you need to remember that you can’t build a life of purity on a foundation of sin.  

Statistics say that 40-50% of young spiritual leaders out there are sinning sexually while trying to be spiritual.

Don’t be a statistic.  That’s a losing battle.

Determine run and flee from sexual immorality.

Have godly men and women in your life to keep you accountable.  

Give access codes to your computer or phones to your parents or people you trust to keep you accountable.  

One moment of weakness is all it takes for satan to utterly destroy you.

Don’t give him that chance.

Instead, Run to Jesus!  

If you’re in college or are a twentysomething and you have attended a Korean-American church in America you know that there is this seemingly cool stance and distance you need to keep to make sure that you are viewed as somone who’s not all emotional about anything that’s going on.  You need to have the look of ‘aloofness’ & ‘detachment’ where you’re plugged into your ipod or look just plain tired to let everyone know that you’re someone that can be trusted to remain cool, indifferent, bored and tired. 

This of course applies to only church.  When you’re not at a church but at a football game or simply anywhere else but church, you’re granted the freedom to get all emotional and passionate with just about anything.  You no longer have to be objective.  You can get fanatical because people know & understand (and you need to make sure they know) how hard-core you are about your team or that game. 

Some collegiates and twentysomethings would purposely show up late for church or any type of gathering or event to just avoid being one of the first ones there.  You obviously don’t want be known as that someone with ‘no life but church’ and don’t want to be the awkward one to ask the no-brainer question ’where is everybody?‘ 

And when asked about something that’s been announced 5 minutes ago, you can’t be all eager about it and give a point-blank clear answer.  For example,

• Announcement:  On wednesday evening at 8 pm, there will be a small group bible study at pastor Kim’s house. 
• At this point in time, even if you heard that announcement loud & clear, if someone comes up to you and asks you if you can make it, there’s all of sudden this need to ask “what was that?  what’s happening?“ 
• And if the person that asked is kind enough to repeat what they’ve asked, even though you know you have all the time in the world to make it to that meeting, you know you just gotta say, ‘um, I don’t know.  maybe.  I got this project or this test …’ and the excuses can be endless. 
• And of course you gotta add in that punch line to make sure you’re not ruled out as someone that won’t be there (in case that girl you kinda like will be there or in case there will be good food) so you say, ”I’ll try to make it but I don’t know.“   

Where is this coming from? 

Why are so many collegiates & twentysomethings so unsure and almost guard themselves from becoming 100% emotional about God, church and the mission to save souls? 

Why do they run from churches and its problems when it’s them God’s calling to man-up and woman-up as leaders to transform the church from the inside-out? 

It’s easy to point fingers and run.  But it’s more honorable to stand up and stand your ground. 

The answer hasn’t been and won’t be running from your church.

The answer will always be found in staying and remaining passionately in love with your church and with your God!

술의 문제는 사랑의 문제이다.  

The problem w/ drinking is often related to love. (or what feels like love)

Some people drink because it literally gives them a “warm sensation’. They no longer afraid, rigid or nervous.  They depend on its power to release them from fear and intimidation.

With a couple drinks it seems as though you miraculously ‘transform’ into more of an easy-going, out-going, humorous, confident, fun-to-be-around kind of person.  

Other people drink because of the ‘atmosphere it creates’.  When everyone is drinking and is in the process of getting drunk, people seem to open-up and speak from the heart.  

They no longer have mastery over themselves.  Thus they lose the power to inhibit themselves.  So, without fully realizing what they are doing, they naturally reveal whatever is going on in their minds.  

And still others drink to simply forget stuff or to fill their void.  Many are forced to keep drinking because they lack the power to cope and live through life without intoxicating themselves.  Because life is painfully empty without fermented liquid.  

In the end, drinks substitute real, authentic and genuine relationships.  What you’re really doing when you’re drinking yourself to death is crying out for love.  

The craving to get drunk is often directly related to how empty, stressed and meaningless you feel at that precise moment.

And drinking never solves the fundamental problem.  It may temporarily help you feel all warm inside and spill your guts.  But that’s about all it does.  It never fills you up.  It often drains you.  It drags you down.  And ultimately, it shuts you down.  It takes you to the point where you can no longer function without its aid.  

This is why God tells us: 

Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.  (Eph. 5:18)

Because the Holy Spirit basically does everything that drinking does for you.  It warms you up, sets you on fire and everyone filled w/ the Holy Spirit speaks from their hearts.  The atmosphere in which the Holy Spirit reigns is just about the best atmosphere you’ll ever experience in your lifetime.  

It also helps you forget what you need to forget and fills you with every good gift from heaven above.  Then it goes onto equip you and empower you to help you overcome the battles you need to face and man-up-to in life.  

So next time you’re tempted to drink, why don’t you kneel and pray for the Holy Spirit?  Because simply, it’s so much better.  

Cracked jars.  

Broken glasses.

Empty cisterns.

An endless blackhole in our soul that drains all our passion, energy and zest for life.  

We feel it all the time.  

Which kind of explains all the “busy-ness” & “entertainment” we stuff our lives with to somehow avoid dealing with it.  

With food, music, movies, games, social media, & one night stands - - - we try block that big ole’ “blackhole” in our souls.  

What are you exactly looking for on tumblr?

What are you trying to fill through facebook?

What are you really doing when you’re on youtube?

What role does games, sports and media play in your life?

Then, there are those times, very rare, but those times when we come face to face with something or someone real.

A real conversation.

A real encounter.

A real heart to heart.

A real catharsis & waking of the soul.

Maybe through a book, through a person, through an event, through solitude, through accidents, through crisis, through real life-changing relationships … 

it finally dawns on you, and you come alive.

Why is it that we often make the mistake of trying to find that which we need in everything else but God?  Our families?  Our loved ones?  And through real engaging and serving relationships?

It’s time you ask that question to yourself.  

Before you go to sleep or … 

go through yet another insomnia while surfing through endless contents on the web to keep your mind “busy” from thinking about what really matters.  

1. Select a habit you want to change.

2. Identify the cue that triggers the behavior (stress, boredom, loneliness, insignificance, etc.).

3. Understand the need the habit meets (the reward).

4. Now, without changing the cue or the reward, replace the routine with a new, healthier behavior.

Contrary to what you and others might think, you don’t necessarily have Bad Habits because you’re a Bad Person.

Every behavior or habit meets a need!

What need are you meeting when you’re facebook-ing, tweeting, youtube-ing, tumblr-ing, drinking, smoking, gambling, gossiping or complainin or TV/Drama watching?

This is a question you desperately need to answer in your twenties, if you want to get anywhere in life.

**You can get the details of each process in the book “The Power of Habit: Why we do what we do in Life and Business” by Chris Duhigg. A book I would highly recommend for you to read while you are a twentysomething.