Stewardship: Our Lives

Okay. How you guys doing? Everybody's really quiet after that. What's up with that?

Hey, we are finishing up a three-part series that we did, what we've been doing on stewardship.

And so today we talked about stewardship of God's Word, was two weeks ago.

We talked about stewardship of God's money and the stuff that God's given us.

And today we're going to talk about the stewardship of our lives.

And so with that, I want to read the passage in your bulletin.

So would you please stand with me and let's read God's Word together and honor His Word as we read it.

And we're just going to look at the passage today comes from the book of Joshua and the book of Judges.

And you can follow along in your bulletin.

The people have just been released from captivity in Egypt after 400 years.

They've wandered in the desert for 40 years.

And now they are about to enter into the promised land.

And we picked up in verse 1.

Now when all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying,

Take up for yourself twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe.

Command them, saying, Take up for yourself twelve stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan,

from the place where the priest's feet are standing firm.

And carry them over with you and lay them down in the lodging place where you will lodge tonight.

So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe.

And Joshua said to them, Cross again to the ark of the Lord your God in the middle of the Jordan.

And each one of you take up a stone on his shoulder according to the number of tribes of the sons of Israel.

Let this be a sign among you so that when your children ask later, saying, What do these stones mean?

Then you will say to them, Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord

when it crossed the Jordan.

The waters of the Jordan were cut off.

So these stones shall be a memorial to the sons of Israel forever.

Thus the sons of Israel did as Joshua commanded, and they took up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan,

just as the Lord spoke to Joshua, according to the number of tribes of the sons of Israel.

And they carried them over with them to the lodging place and put them down there.

Then Joshua set up the twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan at the place where the feet of the priest

who carried the ark of the covenant were standing, and they are there to this day.

For the priests who carried the ark were standing in the middle of the Jordan

until everything was completed that the Lord had commanded Joshua to speak to the people.

According to all that Moses had commanded Joshua, and the people hurried and crossed.

And when all the people had finished crossing, the ark of the Lord and the priests crossed before the people.

Then after many years we're told that if Joshua leading God's people,

we're told that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of 110,

and they buried him in the territory of his inheritance, Timnaheres,

in the hill country of Ephraim, north of the Mount Gash.

All that generation were also gathered to their fathers,

and then there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord,

nor yet the work which he had done for Israel.

This is God's reading.

Please be seated.

The people of Israel had seen amazing things.

They had been in captivity for 400 years,

and God raised up a deliverer to come in and to deliver them,

and now they have been walking in the wilderness for 40 years in the desert.

God had been feeding this mass of people for 40 years.

Can you think of that?

Every day a cloud followed them and covered them from the heat to protect them from the heat of the desert,

and at night a pillar of fire came to give them warmth.

The clothes they had on their back, we're told in Scripture,

the clothes they had never wore out.

Now I don't know how you would feel about wearing the same pair of pants and jeans for 40 years.

My wife could not get into that,

and most of us probably couldn't either,

but the clothes never wore out.

They had water for 40 years from a rock that followed them around,

and now they are about to enter into the promised land,

and the Lord has them set up a memorial,

a reminder for them of God's faithfulness.

Actually, it's a reminder of God

and what he's done in their life and how he's gone before them.

It's a reminder of God's relationship with us.

It's a reminder of God's stewardship to his people.

The stones just don't represent memories of the great and amazing things that God did,

but they represent God's presence with them now

and how he always will go before them,

and he will always work and do things.

And so when people looked at these stones,

it was a memory of these things,

but it was also a memory of them

because there was one taken for every tribe,

and these stones represented the people of God.

These represented God's people.

In verse 6, I find it very interesting.

He says, what do these stones mean to you?

It's very personal.

What does God's faithfulness mean to you?

As you look around and you see symbols of God's working in your life,

what does that mean to you?

When you see the things that God has brought you into

and the places that he takes you,

when you see his stewardship

and how he's gone before you so obviously,

what does that mean to you?

And how will you share with your children

the amazing things that God has done in our life?

I've asked Franklin to come up.

Franklin and Therese have been with Watermark

almost from the beginning.

They came right afterwards.

Franklin, and you've seen them walking around.

They are an amazing couple.

They came from Beijing.

Franklin was actually born in Hong Kong.

Therese was born in Taiwan.

And they have been married for almost 30 years.

Therese, is that correct?

I just want to make sure,

because Franklin told me.

I just want to make sure he's correct on that.

Okay, and so Franklin has been working

with some back in Beijing and in China and America

with some large corporations.

And now he's kind of at a different stage of his life

where he's kind of his own boss.

And so I've kind of asked him to come up

and share of God's stewardship and faithfulness

in his life in the things that God has been teaching him.

So Franklin, will you come on up and share with us?

Thank you, Tobin and the worship team.

And the powerful video that we have.

The question that the video showed was,

how do we feel in that dash in our life?

The dash from the date when we are born

to the date where we leave this earth.

How do we want our life to be remembered?

And how we want God to remember us as?

I think these are all great questions

to ask ourselves every day, examine ourselves.

Several weeks ago when I was asked to share with you

about stewardship and how it relates to my life,

I told Tobin that talking about my life

is easy to let pride creep in

and that I've done this and done that,

I've been successful in this and that.

So I pray that the Lord,

the Holy Spirit will guide me, guide my thoughts

as Apostle Paul reminded us in 2 Corinthians

that if I must boast,

I will boast of the things that show my weakness

because Jesus Christ is my strength.

The Bible passages that I will be quoting

will be in the bulletin.

So what is stewardship?

And it took me a while to check out,

make sure that I got the definition correct.

And it is a responsibility to take care of something

belonging to someone else

or entrust it to our care

and we should exercise diligence

and responsible management towards it.

So what are the things that doesn't belong to us

but we have to care for?

So from the very beginning of the Bible

in Genesis 1, verse 27-28,

Genesis 1:27–28

So God created man in his own image.

In the image of God, he created him.

Male and female, he created them.

God blessed them and said to them,

Be fruitful and increase in number.

Fill the earth and subdue it.

Rule over the fish of the seas and birds of the air

and over every living creature that moves on the ground.

Throughout the Bible, God constantly reminded us

and reminded me that everything we have

were created by him and belongs to him.

And that included me and you.

God also gave man the responsibility

to make productive use of what he gave us

so that it will be fruitful

and it will multiply by managing it responsibly,

cultivating it, exercising control and influence over it.

And I look back, you know, as engineers or scientists

or businessmen or even students,

it's easy for us to think that we have made things.

We make things, we build things.

I was in construction and built things.

And finance things as a banker or as students.

We've got excellent grades, exceptional grades in exams.

We do it all with our own strength, tenacity,

take credit for all that work.

But let's take a look, think about it.

Examine a small part of a body, for example.

Without the wondrous and miraculous brain

that God created for in each one of us

and somehow being connected to our hands and feet,

without that connection in the most miraculous way,

we could do nothing.

We cannot even have the ability to lift up a feather

with our fingers.

So the last two weeks, we have explored

the stewardship of God's word and money.

And in discussing my life,

allow me to be transparent and vulnerable to you.

Allow me to reveal the things that has happened in my life

as it relates to stewardship of relationships,

time, work, children, etc.

All such things that have valuable lessons

that have taught me

and have enriched my life abundantly.

Hopefully, it will be an encouragement to you also.

I've divided my life into three phases.

The first phase is about my spiritual journey.

I came from a large, non-believing family.

Don't be scared.

A family with 12 kids.

I went to Catholic school,

in primary school,

which taught me that there is God

and our God is authoritarian

and disciplinarian to us.

When I do something wrong,

I will be punished

unless I go into confession.

And the way to redemption

was to say the Lord's Prayer

and Hail Mary so many times a day.

So from very young age,

I know and was fearful of this God.

But on the other hand,

knowing that this God

will save me from troubles,

so I prayed often,

saying the Lord's Prayer and Hail Mary

as I was told to do so.

Then when I entered junior high

and high school,

I went to a Protestant school.

There, the Bible was a required subject

that I must study

in order to go through high school.

The subject was called biblical knowledge,

so we were taught knowledge about the Bible.

Unfortunately, in those years,

we were caught by a change

in the education system in Hong Kong,

and the foreign teachers have to leave us.

And the one who ended up teaching me

the last couple of years of high school

smoked and sweared in and out of class.

So what taught to me from the Bible

was a total contradiction

to the behavior of the teacher.

Yes, I have gained some knowledge of the Bible,

but it was absolutely no meaning to me.

It was just a story,

and I really disliked

the memorization of the historical facts

that was required in the exams.

And let's look at my family.

My parents were good people,

honorable people,

taught me how to be a gentleman,

honest, hardworking, diligent man

that I can, you know, ought to be.

My father made the conscientious effort

to sit down with us

almost every Sunday morning

to try to impact us with his stories

and values repeatedly.

But all 12 of us behaved very differently

as we grew up in terms of values

and personality.

He had tried very hard

to impact us from a young age,

but not all of us enjoyed this time with him

or appreciate all the things he says.

There was not an authoritative standard

of value and behavior

that we can learn and love to live by.

After high school,

I went to the United States for college.

And there,

I left my family

and was approached for the first time

actively by Christian brothers and sisters.

In Wisconsin that I went to,

the brothers and sisters,

the Christian brothers and sisters

were very tenacious,

and they kept on asking me

if I were a Christian

every time I met them.

When I told them I was not,

they went their way

to fellowship with others,

leaving me cold in the fellowship.

So that had turned me off

and I stopped going

to the Bible study group

after a few times.

And I graduated from Wisconsin

and then went on to grad school.

And it was when I got to grad school

that something had changed.

The brothers and sisters

in the Chinese Bible study group there

was very warm and inviting.

It allowed me to search

and seek the Bible freely,

asking questions

and accepting

my sometimes off-the-wall answers.

The summer after I went to grad school,

looking for a place to live,

a brother rounded up 12 others

and rented a house

and called it the Christian house.

Though I was not a Christian,

then they invited me in,

accepted me as the one of them.

There I saw how these Christian brothers

and sisters lived their lives,

helping each other

and encouraging each other,

especially in studying the Bible.

I have the opportunity

to discuss many issues

in the Bible with them,

openly and in greater depth.

After a few months,

I began to really want to have

that peace and joy that they have.

As I said before,

being brought up in a Christian school,

all along I knew there is God,

but do not know who that God is.

It was when I was invited to a retreat

that I came to know

who Jesus Christ is

and why He has made

the substitutionary death

on the cross for my sins.

and a brother led me

to receiving Jesus Christ

into my heart

as my own personal Savior and Lord.

Brothers and sisters,

in this city of Hong Kong,

where we can meet people so easily

with so many events and gatherings,

many were brought up

with similar background as me.

Heard of God,

studied biblical knowledge

as a requirement,

went to church sometimes,

or have encountered

unpleasant experiences

with other Christians

at home,

school,

or business.

How do we exercise

good stewardship

to those who God

placed in our path,

allow us to lead them

to a personal relationship

with Jesus Christ,

or are we chasing them away

by being either too cold,

too warm,

too aggressive,

or too impersonal?

In Romans 10,

14,

it reminded me,

how then

can they call on

the one

they have not believed in?

And how can they believe

in the one

of whom

they have not heard?

And how can they hear

without someone

preaching to them?

I'm very glad

and blessed

that the Lord

put loving,

caring brothers and sisters

in my path

who ministered to me

at a critical point

in my life

before I graduated

from college

and go on

to the busy world

that was full of

distractions and temptations.

Little bit back

at this part of my life,

God has reached out to me,

but I was running away

from Him

for a long, long time.

But a seed was sown

in my heart

from very young days

and along the way,

and He never gave up on me

to call me home

to be with Him.

Let's take a look

at the second part

of my life.

The second phase

of my life

began after I graduated

from college.

This was shortly

after I accepted Christ

and serving

in a church

in Boston.

I was living a life

like a Christian

should,

doing all the right things.

My career

has been smooth sailing,

never skipped a beat,

always had a job

despite several

economic crises.

When I was not satisfied

with one job,

I would quit

and there was another one

waiting with more challenges

and more responsibilities.

Career-wise,

I was moving right along,

but spiritually,

I wasn't growing.

I attended Sunday school,

read the Bible occasionally,

but found it difficult

to understand

in boring reading,

and my mind

often wandered

and distracted

by work

or other things

that seemed important

for me to do.

after getting married

and children came,

life was busier

than ever.

Then the second one,

then the third one.

When I was

in my mid-30s,

I faced

the so-called

midlife crisis.

I was not satisfied

with the menial paycheck

and small pay raises

that decided

that it was time

to venture out

of corporate life

despite the steady paycheck

was what the family needed.

I went out on my own

doing something

more independent.

It was then

that my life

rapidly went

to a tailspin.

Making money

was a lot of work,

and the more difficult

it gets,

the harder I want to work

to prove that

I can do it

on my own.

As a man,

I was trying very hard

to be the provider

for the family

with my own strength.

This had taken

a toll on our marriage,

and we were

constantly fighting

for time

that I don't have

and income

that was not coming

in steadily

to provide

for the family.

Through prayers

of my wife

and brothers

that embraced us

through those

difficult times

had brought me

back to God's Word

through serious,

disciplined Bible studies.

and as I spent

more time

in reading

and understanding

God's Word,

His Word became

much more interesting.

His Word starts

speaking to me

with meaning

and application

to my life.

During this

trying period,

two passages

came to me.

Let me share it

with you.

In Matthew 6,

25 to 27,

it says,

Therefore I tell you,

do not worry

about your life.

What you will eat

or drink

or about your body.

What you will wear.

Is not life

more important

than food

and the body

more important

than clothes?

Look at the birds

in the air.

They do not sow

or reap

or store away

in barns

and yet your Heavenly

Father feeds them.

Are you not

much more valuable

in the day?

Who of you

by worrying

can add a single

hour to your life?

And then the other

verse in Psalm 127,

Psalms 127:1–2

verse 1 to 2,

as I was

building buildings,

it meant so much

to me

because it says,

Unless the Lord

builds the house,

its builders

labor in vain.

Unless the Lord

watches over the city,

the watchers

stand guard

in vain.

In vain,

you rise early

and stay up late,

toiling for food

to eat,

for he grants sleep

to those he loves.

these words

have reminded me

that I have to

let go of my pride

in being the provider

for my family

and allowing God

to take care

of this family.

And then I,

second thing is,

I have also decided

that I do not want

to live in the second

part of my life

as in the first half,

allowing God

to be the captain

to steer this ship

rather than me.

And the third thing

I realized was

that work

should not only be work,

but work should be

my mission field.

Not long after

making those decisions,

the Lord opened up

the door to me

to return to China

in 1995.

And for the past

16 years,

he has provided

much blessings

for our family.

The Lord know

my weakness

and has used

these difficult times

to prepare

and equip me

so that I will be

more ready

and matured

spiritually

to go to places

where he had

led me to go.

All glory

and praises

to the Lord.

Brothers and sisters,

in this high-pressure

Hong Kong,

we're all struggling

to succeed,

to be recognized,

to build relationships,

fighting for time.

Many of you

are probably

in this stage

similar to my

first half of my life,

looking for opportunities

by your own

strength and ability.

by your likes

and dislikes.

You may be working

very hard

to gain the next

promotion

or looking for

the greener pasture

next door.

Have you been

thankful to the Lord

for the blessings

that he already gave you?

Are you submitting

to the Lord

to be a provider

for all your needs?

Are you turning

the captain of the ship

to God

to steer it for you?

Are we using

the opportunity

need at work

to minister

to those

who are struggling

in career

or relationships?

Are we reaching out

to them,

praying for them?

The third phase

of my life

concerns

passing the torch

to the next generation.

A month ago,

something struck me.

I went back

to my hometown,

my wife's hometown

of Taipei

for a reunion

with her brothers.

Teresa came

from parents

who were believers

and prayer warriors.

It was when we

visited the grave

side of her parents.

The Lord opened

my heart

to appreciate

our marriage

so much more.

He allowed me

to see

how from one set

of parents' prayers

led to the strong

faith from Teresa

and her brothers.

And now,

both of our families

have passed our faith

to our seven children,

three from my side

and four from

her brother's side.

When we came back

and lived in China

16 years ago,

just like many of you

came back as expats,

as an expat,

yeah,

we have a better

pay package,

much better benefits,

but on the flip side,

the company expects

a lot out of you.

They expect you

to be on call

24-7,

expect you to go

on trips,

and better,

to stay in a hotel

with co-workers

than spend time

with your family.

They make you work

until your wife

and children

do not see you

at all.

I'm sure many of you

felt the same way.

Maybe some of you

are children

of an expat

and looking at

the lives

of your parents,

you know exactly

what I meant.

At that time,

our children

were four,

six,

and nine years old

when we came to China.

They were at

their very active age,

ready to absorb

anything that was

taught by anybody

around them.

Since I travel

so much,

making time

with the children

and Teresa

have to be

intentional.

because there

were always things

that needed to be

done in the office,

or there were

phone calls to make,

and these days,

an email to return

from your buzzing

smartphones.

When we want

to relax,

there were hundreds

of TV channels

or shows

and sports,

maybe serving

the internet,

so much interesting

things that can

consume our time

away from our family.

fortunately,

when we were in China

in the mid-90s,

where the distractions

at that time

was limited.

But even before

we came to China

from a very young age,

we started reading

the picture Bible

to our children

almost daily

from cover to cover

and pray with them

even for the five

or ten minutes

that sometimes

I don't have,

that only half.

As they grew older

and able to read

and understand,

we graduated them

from the picture Bible

to the full NIV Bible.

So from a very young age,

they have a good overview

of the stories

and teachings

from the Bible.

With the three of them,

sometimes it's hard.

They were at different

level of reading skills,

so both Teresa

and I

have to juggle

to read the Bible

to all three of them,

until they can do it

on their own.

When I had to travel

a lot in China,

after talking with them

over the phone,

checking on their needs,

oftentimes I would pray

with them

over the phone,

letting them know

that they would have

to depend on the Lord

for their studies,

for their exams,

or other challenges

in their life.

During our conversations,

we let our children know

that we are also

depending on the Lord

for our decisions.

so that they can

model after us.

While in China,

we go to the

international church,

at that time,

the community groups

were not very well organized,

and when the children

stepped in the teen years,

the youth groups

were not developed,

and our children

did not click well

with the kids

in the groups.

so we have tried

different things,

but it was through

spending time

at home with them,

and our weekly devotions,

that we were able

to give them

spiritual nourishment.

We have dedicated

every Sunday evenings

to our family devotion,

and intentionally,

we made no appointments

or engagements

with anyone.

an hour to two

every Sunday evening,

we sat together

to go over

our schedules

and needs,

and to read

and discuss passages

in the Bible,

and sometimes

what we learned

from the sermon.

It was through

these frequent encounters

with God's Word

and how it interrelated

to our daily lives

that they came

to personal knowledge

and acceptance

of Jesus Christ

into their daily lives,

and were baptized

in Beijing.

Now that our three children

all graduated from college

and they are living

away from us

in New York City,

they face similar pressure

and distractions

like I did

when I would first

enter industry,

if not worse.

The three of them

felt the need

to hold onto each other

accountable

and continue

with this family tradition

by getting together

once a week

in devotions

and prayers

for each other.

For us,

as parents,

this is the greatest

blessing

and assurance

that the Lord

can give us.

Not to say

that we have succeeded.

There are still

many challenges

ahead

in their lives

because the world

consistently pulled them

in different directions.

It's hard to believe

where the faith

will be

if it weren't

for the urge

to come

to seek together,

seek the Lord,

together

with all three of them.

I've learned

through our children's lives

that exercising

good stewardship

to one of the most

precious gifts

that God gave us,

which is our children.

It's the most

worthwhile investment

that we've ever made.

It is worth

so much more

than any high position

or high return investments

that we've ever made.

there is nothing short

of spending time

with them

and time with them

in God's Word

from the time

they were very,

very young.

As in Deuteronomy 6,

Deuteronomy 6:6–9

verse 6 to 9,

says,

these commandments

I gave you today

are to be upon

your hearts.

Impress them

on your children.

Talk about them

when you sit at home

and when you walk

the road,

when you lie down

and when you get up.

Tie them as symbols

on your hands

and bind them

on your foreheads.

Write them

on the door frames

of your houses

and on your gates.

Brothers and sisters,

preaching to our children

in God's Word

may not touch

their hearts,

but talking about them

often

when you sit down

at home,

when you walk

around the road,

when you lie down

and when you get up,

making use of

daily situations

that they encounter

as a teaching tool,

reminding them

of God's creation,

allowing them

to experience

God's goodness

and reality

in their lives.

God's Word

also reminded us

constantly

that we have

to be very mindful

of our actions

and our speech

doesn't match up

with what I have

taught them.

Our children

are watching

every move

and every action

that you make.

How you react

to those around you?

How do you make

decisions in the workplace?

How do I deal

with my staff

and co-workers?

How do I manage

the things

that God blessed us with?

Helping them

to experience

the reality

of Jesus Christ

in their lives

personally,

will help them

build a solid foundation

for them to move forward

into their adult lives

and prayerfully,

one day,

they will pass

on the same faith

to their children

and their children's children.

Many Christian parents

will send their children

to church

and Christian schools

hoping that they will

learn the gospel

from it

and become good kids.

from my experience

through church

and Christian school,

those church

and Christian school

play an important part

in helping them

to learn from the Bible.

In the end,

a child's ability

to come to Christ

will be taught

at home.

Following your examples,

what you do,

what you speak,

your decisions

at home

and in business.

if we do not

spend the time

with the children,

then they will be

taught by others.

No wonder

from a study

from Focus on the Family

in America

that out of

100 children

that entered college

professing

their Christian faith,

only 30 of them

graduated

keeping their faith.

70 of them

went on

adopting the ideals

and liberties

that was taught

to them

by their professors,

their peers

and society.

That is astounding

statistics in America

and I don't think

Hong Kong

is any different.

For those of you

who are single

or do not have

children yet,

the same principles

apply on how

your lives

affect those around you.

Our best teacher

is Apostle Paul

who remained single

but yet

how he had administered

and loved

the brothers and sisters

in the communities

that he reached out to,

allowing him

to become

the spiritual parents

to many.

In 1 Peter 4.10,

each one

should use

whatever gifts

he has received

to serve others,

faithfully administering

God's grace

in its various forms.

let this be

a constant reminder

for us

to use our gifts

to affect

those young brothers

and sisters

that cross our path

so that they can find

the new life

through Jesus Christ,

spending time with them,

loving them

and nurturing them

so that they can become

spiritual parents also

and pass it on

to the next generation

of family and friends.

in conclusion,

let's

remember the video

that we just saw.

Ask ourselves

some questions.

What are things

that we can take away

one day

when we leave this earth?

Can we take our work?

Can we take our money?

Our ambitions?

our possessions?

Our plaques?

Our titles?

Or anything?

Can we take any

of those things away?

And then ask another question.

What are things

that we can do today

that will continue on

after we leave this earth?

Are we teaching

our beloved children

that God lead us,

lead them to Jesus Christ

and guiding them

to hold on to the faith

through adulthood

so that they can pass on

to the next generation?

Or are we

helping to

make spiritual children

so that their faith

will strengthen

through our relationship

with them?

It's not what you gather

but what you gather

that tells what kind of life

you have lived.

How would you like

our Lord Jesus Christ

to call you

when you meet Him one day?

Would you like Him

to call you

as in Matthew 25, 23?

Well done,

good and faithful servants.

You have been faithful

in few things.

I will put you

in charge of many things.

Come and share

in your Master's happiness.

Let us pray.

Father, we thank you

for this time

to allow us

to look into our lives

and to look into our lives.

Are we being

a good steward

to the things

that you have

bestowed upon us?

You reminded us

in Matthew 16, 26, 27

that

what good will it be

for a man

if he gains

the whole world

yet forfeeds his soul?

Or what can a man

give in exchange

for his soul?

For the Son of Man

is going to come

in his Father's glory

with his angels

and then he will

reward each person

according to what

he has done.

Father,

help us to exercise

good stewardship

in our lives

to those that cross

our path.

Reach out to them,

to our children,

spend time with them,

to our work,

allow you to be

the provider and guide.

Father,

we ask you to come

to our hearts today

as we walk

this journey of life,

allowing you to steer

the ship of ours

throughout our lives.

Help us, Lord,

in the name of the Son,

Jesus Christ,

we pray.

Amen.