to be, a friend of the King

A former criminal, Kozlov, converted to Christ and became a leader in the persecuted church. This talks about his life in the Soviet prsison:

Among the general despair, while prisoners like myself were cursing ourselves, the camp, the authorities; while we opened up our veins, or our stomachs, or hanged ourselves; the Christians (often with sentences of twenty to twenty-five years) did not despair. One could see Christ reflected in their faces. Their pure, upright life, deep faith and devotion to God, their gentleness and their wonderful manliness, became a shining example of real life for thousands. (Christianity Today, June 21, 1974)

This reminds me of Paul who had been compelled by the love of Christ to preach to many, to run the race despite the countless persecutions and questioning of his faith. Isn’t it meaningful to know that His love compels us to do extraordinary things? There is no need to spend our time searching His calling, His ministry and unrevealed plans for us, because as ray c. stedman says, the highest motivation should be to make yourself a friend of the King.

..the past days had been punctuated by so many events.. and they are indelible memories that matter to me..from being at equinox at westin, salivating at the breathtaking view, just wanting to embrace what is before me when the valves release so much of adrenaline, so much that it is hard to contain, to watching "u r my sunshine" with tired, constipated tears, and being slapped by extreme heat at east coast, just fighting to catch some wind on the bicycle and forgetting to gaze at the wide sea before me at the jetty to the exuberance of the dances, music and costumes in westside story..yet so often confronted by the lure of the flesh and the pleasure of sin.. as I questioned my motives and relieved to know that it has been right in His sight. When the ill-disciplined soul swings mindlessly between truth and error, my faith stemmed from fear and obedience has tipped the scale, for I am sober in this endurance race, and He is my greatest supreme motivation to live. Life as a Christian is radically different when it is one impelled by the fear of God and the love of Christ, it totally runs counter to the accepted impulses of life. The new rises from the decay of the ashes. Propelled by His undying love, I swim against the current of this darkening age until dawn breaks and dark shadows all flee away.