#vanderkok

parts of the book of Romans... a portion of the entire audio Bible I recorded and am now re-posting online, little by little... hope it is edifying and inspirational to you

listen !

Dear Melissa, March 26, 2009 Hello, how are you, the person I always cared for & still do? I. re RECENT EVENTS : Missy, I am writing to you now, the FIRST MOMENT possible since finding out where you potentially may be. I have been trying to write to you, or send a card to you, or stay in touch with you by mail over the years thinking you have been married all this time. In fact, the few times that I managed to drive through Michigan over the past few years I also tried to drive past your house in Muskegon, or at least wherever I thought you might live. I even dropped a Bible in your mailbox one time may years ago as I was starting my ministry. I hope you UNDERSTAND why I have TRIED to keep in touch. I have ALWAYS CARED about you & for you. When we met WAY BACK in high school 25 YEARS AGO I immediately liked you & we immediately had a mutual attraction to each other, at least I thought so. We were YOUNG & we were enjoying each other’s company SO MUCH. I remember SO MANY GOOD TIMES with you: At the beach, in the car, double dating, out-and-about, with other friends too. We had the BEST OF TIMES ! 1. LOSS OF A FRIEND: Rick Byle Do you remember some of the friends we had ? How about Rick Byle ? Well, unfortunately, I regret to inform you (if you have not recently heard) that Rick died in a snowmobile accident just last month (Feb, 2009). In fact, it was because of Rick’s death that I noticed a few entries on his online obituary in the Grand Rapids Press & one of them was from LDM. Do you remember her ? 2. CONNECTING with LDM & ASKING HOW IS MISSY Well, I exchanged a few emails with LDM and the FIRST THING I asked her even before we talked about Rick Byle was HOW IS MISSY ?! And after Rick’s funeral in Michigan (which I was NOT able to attend because I’m still in California & it just was not possible to go there) LDM responded to me and said she “thought” she heard you were divorced. I COULDN’T BELIEVE it. LDM did NOT know any more details than that—and didn’t even know for sure where you are now. For the past few month I kept ASKING LDM by e-mail if she knew WHERE YOU ARE and she said she would try to find out but the only number she knew turned out to be your grandmother who gave her a phone number to try that was disconnected. Then LDM tried calling Amy & Amy said she would try to find out but as of March 24 I still did NOT have any better idea. So I finally asked somebody I knew who knows how to locate people to try to FIND YOU FOR ME and this person said that she THOUGHT you MIGHT be living in Ohio with your sister Cindy. And this person gave me a few POSSIBLE addresses where I might be able to reach you. II WHY IT IS SO IMPORTANT for me to REACH YOU Missy, remember back to our HIGH SCHOOL DAYS & the GOOD TIMES we had together. Do you remember HOW MUCH FUN we had—the laughter & the conversation & the affection we had for each other ? I REMEMBER THOSE DAYS FONDLY & I always remembered you fondly. We had a GREAT RELATIONSHIP up until that ONE FATEFUL NIGHT when I drove you home from a night out—and after sitting in the car for a while I drove up the driveway and one thing led to another and I was going into your house, down the stairs, & into the bedroom with you. DO YOU REMEMBER ? Of course you do ! Who could forget that FATEFUL MOMENT ? Before re-telling what happened next let me TELL YOU HOW MUCH I RESPECTED YOU and what it meant for me to be with you. You know as well as I know that we had some intimate moments but we NEVER WENT TOO FAR and I believe both of us respected those limits knowing we were TOO YOUNG at the time to go too far. And even being in your bedroom I would have RESPECTED those limits & I KNEW, intuitively, that you did too. This is WHY I now look back on that MOMENT as a SPIRITUAL MOMENT—somehow arranged by GOD that neither of us understood at the time as such, and maybe still NOT FULLY to this day, but I am becoming convinced of it, more & more, all the time. I’m sure you are familiar with Romeo & Juliet---and thankfully we are, or were, NOT as tragic as them, and thankfully you are STILL ALIVE despite some hardships & difficult times. Likewise, I am STILL ALIVE despite some hardships & difficult times. Today, I can now speak of “THE NIGHT” but immediately after that particular evening I was very embarrassed all the more so because of the way your mother seemed to think I was a bad person (or so I thought). And I NEVER TOLD anybody about that night, until recently. Actually, I asked LDM if she knew what happened and I was surprised when she immediately remembered. And we did NOT speak the rest of that school year—perhaps you were embarrassed too, & then after high school I returned to California. I remember being SO SURPRISED when you suddenly showed up at KNOTTS BERRY FARM with your mom & your sister (Cindy ?) and I was STILL TOO EMBARRASSED to talk with you, at least with your mom being there, & I am SORRY that I did not do so at the time. I TRULY did NOT know how to respond to, or resolve, the events that took place that night & so I just went SILENT, so to speak, & tried to DISTANCE MYSELF NOT from you but from that particular night. And then I went to college, not just Calvin College, but a few semesters at other colleges, including Hawaii & Spain, & I also did some short-term mission work including Costa Rica & Philippines, & eventually ended up back Grand Rapids for more education at Calvin College from 1992 to 1994. At that point I had NO IDEA where you were & figured you had FORGOTTEN ABOUT ME. III. AT the RESTAURANT by WOODLAND MALL And so I was TAKEN COMPLETELY BY SURPRISE when suddenly JACK HOLWERDA came to me and told me you wanted to MEET WITH ME. I was so excited to see you again, but he didn’t give me any idea what it was about, NOR did he inform you that MY MIND by that time was FAR AWAY from Grand Rapids & ready to get out of there again. I had NO REAL EMOTIONAL support in Grand Rapids anymore and was looking forward to completing my teaching degree & possibly going off to another country again. WHEN I MET WITH YOU sometime in 1994 (??) I believe you were about ready to get married but you came to me with UTMOST SINCERITY I REALIZE NOW IN RETROSPECT and you were TRYING TO TELL ME that you STILL cared about me. And MISSY, PLEASE BELIEVE that I STILL CARED about you & always did, but at the time I was EMOTIONALLY FLAT & was NO LONGER in touch with my feelings toward you or anybody else. I had been through a few things myself at the time. Also, it would have BEEN BETTER if Jack had left us alone for a while. And so it has been FIFTEEN YEARS since we had that very brief get together with Jack listening in and after leaving our little get together at the restaurant by Woodland Mall I finished my second bachelor’s degree & got my teaching degree & taught school for a few years here in California & YOU apparently went ahead and got married. IV. TRAVELING WITH LOLA MY GOLDEN FOR FOURTEEN YEARS After TEACHING I left education & decided to go back for MY MASTERS-in-DIVINITY and ended up back in Grand Rapids for another year (1996-97), this time at Calvin Seminary, and then the next four or five years I spent at FULLER SEMINARY in Pasadena, California and have stayed around Southern California ever since then, while also traveling on a regular basis, especially with LOLA MY GOLDEN RETRIEVER for fourteen years until June of 2007 when she passed away. V. DOING CHRISTIAN EVANGELISM, & INSPIRATIONAL FILM Also, while going through Fuller Seminary I started my own ministry, Mustard Seed Ministries & did a lot of traveling & street evangelism as well as FILMING & creating (or trying to) inspirational films and that is what I continue to do at the moment while also helping occasionally in public education. VI MY RELATIONSHIPS & MY CURRENT STATUS I’ve had a few relationships over the years, mostly brief & ending due to various circumstances, most of which had to do with logistics or unexpected circumstances but I REALIZE NOW that actually there was something either PSYCHOLOGICAL or SPIRITUAL happening that prevented me from maintaining meaningful relationships with any of these girls or starting new ones because I had NOT PROPERLY RESOLVED my relationship with YOU ! Our relationship had suddenly terminated under somewhat traumatic circumstances & it was NEVER PROPERLY RESOLVED and discussed, nor truly had the chance to resume under proper circumstances. VII IS THIS THE TIME to MEET or CHAT & BE RECONCILED ? And NOW IS OUR CHANCE to at least TALK with each other and FOR ME to do the right thing and address what happened & to be a gentleman & stand up for you, & to do what is right & be a good, Christian person as well as loving, human person. And I still have FEELINGS for you, & CARE for you, & ALWAYS DID ! Can we FINALLY MEET TOGETHER without any distractions? Or at least chat by e-mail at first ? There are NO EXPECTATIONS . I have NO IDEA how you are feeling & doing EMOTIONALLY or SPIRITUALLY . All I heard is that you might have gotten divorced, but nobody really seems to know anything else or even if that is true. BELIEVE ME I am not judgmental & believe that whatever might have happened it certainly happened for a reason. Sometimes things change for a reason. You may feel hurt, you may feel relieved, you may feel free. You may feel confused. You may feel again or young again, or you may feel old. If you had children with this man maybe you have some feelings in regard to the children. I DO NOT know how you are feeling or even if you have another relationship with somebody. ALL I KNOW is that I want to get together with you or at least, at first, chat by email or otherwise. DO YOU USE E-MAIL ? If so can you e-mail me at [email protected] ? Or can you call me at 323-244-9883 ? It is NOW MARCH of 2009 almost APRIL . Will we EVER SEE EACHOTHER or TALK to EACHOTHER again ? I HOPE SO. I PRAY SO. Please, MISSY, now is the time. I am HERE ! YOUR TRUE FRIEND FOREVER (John) Philip A. (vander) KOK Missy, I often go by “John” now and have also added “vander” to my name because of the culture here in Los Angeles.

Dear Melissa, March 26, 2009 Hello, how are you, the person I always cared for & still do? I. re RECENT EVENTS : Missy, I am writing to you now, the FIRST MOMENT possible since finding out where you potentially may be. I have been trying to write to you, or send a card to you, or stay in touch with you by mail over the years thinking you have been married all this time. In fact, the few times that I managed to drive through Michigan over the past few years I also tried to drive past your house in Muskegon, or at least wherever I thought you might live. I even dropped a Bible in your mailbox one time may years ago as I was starting my ministry. I hope you UNDERSTAND why I have TRIED to keep in touch. I have ALWAYS CARED about you & for you. When we met WAY BACK in high school 25 YEARS AGO I immediately liked you & we immediately had a mutual attraction to each other, at least I thought so. We were YOUNG & we were enjoying each other’s company SO MUCH. I remember SO MANY GOOD TIMES with you: At the beach, in the car, double dating, out-and-about, with other friends too. We had the BEST OF TIMES ! 1. LOSS OF A FRIEND: Rick Byle Do you remember some of the friends we had ? How about Rick Byle ? Well, unfortunately, I regret to inform you (if you have not recently heard) that Rick died in a snowmobile accident just last month (Feb, 2009). In fact, it was because of Rick’s death that I noticed a few entries on his online obituary in the Grand Rapids Press & one of them was from LDM. Do you remember her ? 2. CONNECTING with LDM & ASKING HOW IS MISSY Well, I exchanged a few emails with LDM and the FIRST THING I asked her even before we talked about Rick Byle was HOW IS MISSY ?! And after Rick’s funeral in Michigan (which I was NOT able to attend because I’m still in California & it just was not possible to go there) LDM responded to me and said she “thought” she heard you were divorced. I COULDN’T BELIEVE it. LDM did NOT know any more details than that—and didn’t even know for sure where you are now. For the past few month I kept ASKING LDM by e-mail if she knew WHERE YOU ARE and she said she would try to find out but the only number she knew turned out to be your grandmother who gave her a phone number to try that was disconnected. Then LDM tried calling Amy & Amy said she would try to find out but as of March 24 I still did NOT have any better idea. So I finally asked somebody I knew who knows how to locate people to try to FIND YOU FOR ME and this person said that she THOUGHT you MIGHT be living in Ohio with your sister Cindy. And this person gave me a few POSSIBLE addresses where I might be able to reach you. II WHY IT IS SO IMPORTANT for me to REACH YOU Missy, remember back to our HIGH SCHOOL DAYS & the GOOD TIMES we had together. Do you remember HOW MUCH FUN we had—the laughter & the conversation & the affection we had for each other ? I REMEMBER THOSE DAYS FONDLY & I always remembered you fondly. We had a GREAT RELATIONSHIP up until that ONE FATEFUL NIGHT when I drove you home from a night out—and after sitting in the car for a while I drove up the driveway and one thing led to another and I was going into your house, down the stairs, & into the bedroom with you. DO YOU REMEMBER ? Of course you do ! Who could forget that FATEFUL MOMENT ? Before re-telling what happened next let me TELL YOU HOW MUCH I RESPECTED YOU and what it meant for me to be with you. You know as well as I know that we had some intimate moments but we NEVER WENT TOO FAR and I believe both of us respected those limits knowing we were TOO YOUNG at the time to go too far. And even being in your bedroom I would have RESPECTED those limits & I KNEW, intuitively, that you did too. This is WHY I now look back on that MOMENT as a SPIRITUAL MOMENT—somehow arranged by GOD that neither of us understood at the time as such, and maybe still NOT FULLY to this day, but I am becoming convinced of it, more & more, all the time. I’m sure you are familiar with Romeo & Juliet---and thankfully we are, or were, NOT as tragic as them, and thankfully you are STILL ALIVE despite some hardships & difficult times. Likewise, I am STILL ALIVE despite some hardships & difficult times. Today, I can now speak of “THE NIGHT” but immediately after that particular evening I was very embarrassed all the more so because of the way your mother seemed to think I was a bad person (or so I thought). And I NEVER TOLD anybody about that night, until recently. Actually, I asked LDM if she knew what happened and I was surprised when she immediately remembered. And we did NOT speak the rest of that school year—perhaps you were embarrassed too, & then after high school I returned to California. I remember being SO SURPRISED when you suddenly showed up at KNOTTS BERRY FARM with your mom & your sister (Cindy ?) and I was STILL TOO EMBARRASSED to talk with you, at least with your mom being there, & I am SORRY that I did not do so at the time. I TRULY did NOT know how to respond to, or resolve, the events that took place that night & so I just went SILENT, so to speak, & tried to DISTANCE MYSELF NOT from you but from that particular night. And then I went to college, not just Calvin College, but a few semesters at other colleges, including Hawaii & Spain, & I also did some short-term mission work including Costa Rica & Philippines, & eventually ended up back Grand Rapids for more education at Calvin College from 1992 to 1994. At that point I had NO IDEA where you were & figured you had FORGOTTEN ABOUT ME. III. AT the RESTAURANT by WOODLAND MALL And so I was TAKEN COMPLETELY BY SURPRISE when suddenly JACK HOLWERDA came to me and told me you wanted to MEET WITH ME. I was so excited to see you again, but he didn’t give me any idea what it was about, NOR did he inform you that MY MIND by that time was FAR AWAY from Grand Rapids & ready to get out of there again. I had NO REAL EMOTIONAL support in Grand Rapids anymore and was looking forward to completing my teaching degree & possibly going off to another country again. WHEN I MET WITH YOU sometime in 1994 (??) I believe you were about ready to get married but you came to me with UTMOST SINCERITY I REALIZE NOW IN RETROSPECT and you were TRYING TO TELL ME that you STILL cared about me. And MISSY, PLEASE BELIEVE that I STILL CARED about you & always did, but at the time I was EMOTIONALLY FLAT & was NO LONGER in touch with my feelings toward you or anybody else. I had been through a few things myself at the time. Also, it would have BEEN BETTER if Jack had left us alone for a while. And so it has been FIFTEEN YEARS since we had that very brief get together with Jack listening in and after leaving our little get together at the restaurant by Woodland Mall I finished my second bachelor’s degree & got my teaching degree & taught school for a few years here in California & YOU apparently went ahead and got married. IV. TRAVELING WITH LOLA MY GOLDEN FOR FOURTEEN YEARS After TEACHING I left education & decided to go back for MY MASTERS-in-DIVINITY and ended up back in Grand Rapids for another year (1996-97), this time at Calvin Seminary, and then the next four or five years I spent at FULLER SEMINARY in Pasadena, California and have stayed around Southern California ever since then, while also traveling on a regular basis, especially with LOLA MY GOLDEN RETRIEVER for fourteen years until June of 2007 when she passed away. V. DOING CHRISTIAN EVANGELISM, & INSPIRATIONAL FILM Also, while going through Fuller Seminary I started my own ministry, Mustard Seed Ministries & did a lot of traveling & street evangelism as well as FILMING & creating (or trying to) inspirational films and that is what I continue to do at the moment while also helping occasionally in public education. VI MY RELATIONSHIPS & MY CURRENT STATUS I’ve had a few relationships over the years, mostly brief & ending due to various circumstances, most of which had to do with logistics or unexpected circumstances but I REALIZE NOW that actually there was something either PSYCHOLOGICAL or SPIRITUAL happening that prevented me from maintaining meaningful relationships with any of these girls or starting new ones because I had NOT PROPERLY RESOLVED my relationship with YOU ! Our relationship had suddenly terminated under somewhat traumatic circumstances & it was NEVER PROPERLY RESOLVED and discussed, nor truly had the chance to resume under proper circumstances. VII IS THIS THE TIME to MEET or CHAT & BE RECONCILED ? And NOW IS OUR CHANCE to at least TALK with each other and FOR ME to do the right thing and address what happened & to be a gentleman & stand up for you, & to do what is right & be a good, Christian person as well as loving, human person. And I still have FEELINGS for you, & CARE for you, & ALWAYS DID ! Can we FINALLY MEET TOGETHER without any distractions? Or at least chat by e-mail at first ? There are NO EXPECTATIONS . I have NO IDEA how you are feeling & doing EMOTIONALLY or SPIRITUALLY . All I heard is that you might have gotten divorced, but nobody really seems to know anything else or even if that is true. BELIEVE ME I am not judgmental & believe that whatever might have happened it certainly happened for a reason. Sometimes things change for a reason. You may feel hurt, you may feel relieved, you may feel free. You may feel confused. You may feel again or young again, or you may feel old. If you had children with this man maybe you have some feelings in regard to the children. I DO NOT know how you are feeling or even if you have another relationship with somebody. ALL I KNOW is that I want to get together with you or at least, at first, chat by email or otherwise. DO YOU USE E-MAIL ? If so can you e-mail me at [email protected] ? Or can you call me at 323-316-0244 ? It is NOW MARCH of 2009 almost APRIL . Will we EVER SEE EACHOTHER or TALK to EACHOTHER again ? I HOPE SO. I PRAY SO. Please, MISSY, now is the time. I am HERE ! YOUR TRUE FRIEND FOREVER (John) Philip A. (vander) KOK Missy, I often go by “John” now and have also added “vander” to my name because of the culture here in Los Angeles.

3/4/07 ALOHA ! PLANTING SEEDS OF FAITH, HOPING FOR GOOD SOIL WELCOME ! AND NO I AM NOT CURRENTLY IN HAWAII, BUT MY MESSAGE IS BASED, IN PART, ON REFLECTIONS & IMAGES FROM MY PREVIOUS EXPERIENCES THERE IN PAST YEARS. Pastor Kok III March 4, 2007 The Sunday-Monday-Tuesday Message By Pastor Kok III Re. Who’s in Charge? “Whenever the Rainbow Appears…” Empowerment Kenosis Ask & You Will Receive ! Accepting Grace Water, Redemption, New Life ! Symbolic Baptism, Symbolic Communion Protestants, Catholics, Buddhists Praying for my Brother, Steven Paul Kok Avoiding Pecking Order Personalities “Beware of the Judaizers… “ Praying for My Friends from Hawaii Planting Seeds of Faith, Hoping for Good Soil Spiritually Healing the Physical Healers Etc. Good Morning ! from Santa Barbara, California ! What a week! An exhausting week! But the Sunday-Monday-Tuesday Message helps rejuvenate and restore me. What about you? I hope so for you too ! I had to get out of town (Los Angeles, that is) for a while… it becomes very small after a while for such a large metropolitan area. Of course I’ve been exploring it and pushing boundaries for quite a while now. I wouldn’t say I know Los Angeles like the back of my hand yet, the way I once knew Grand Rapids, but I would say I’m getting there. But before I continue with the PREAMBLE, let us begin with a WORD OF PRAYER and a few songs of praise. Prayer: Dear God, thank you for Your goodness to me, for Your goodness to us—the BODY OF BELIEVERS. You are the HOLY ONE in Whose Image we are made. We Reflect YOUR GLORY here on earth—BRINGING LIGHT to others. We give HOPE To those with little hope. We give FAITH to those with little faith. We INSPIRE others Because we are YOUR LIGHT—not the false light of Allah, not the false light of Buddha, not the false light of Hinduism, BUT YOUR LIGHT—THE LIGHT OF THE FATHER-SON-&-HOLY SPIRIT, the TRIUNE GOD ! YOU lift us up when we are down. YOU put us back together again when we fall apart. YOU are our strength. YOU are the BODY & BLOOD ! We are YOURS ! And we THANK YOU Lord, thank you, thank you, thank you! It is because of our humbling of ourselves and acknowledging You as the ONLY TRUE HIGHER POWER that we are REGENERATED for another day to make the ONLY TRUE DIFFERENCE in this world—as the BODY OF BELIEVERS, YOUR FAITHFUL ONES ! We PRAISE YOUR NAME—AND WE pray in the name Of YOUR SON, JESUS CHRIST, Whom we have become ! Song: O Holy Spirit, Lord of Grace ! http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/o/h/ohslgrac.htm Song: Holy God, We Praise Your Name ! http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/h/o/holygod.htm Song: Come Holy Spirit Come ! http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/c/h/chs_come.htm Prayer: Oh good Lord, I am tired but regenerated. I am exhausted but exhilarated. And I ask for YOUR BLESSING on today’s message, THE SUNDAY MESSAGE BY PASTOR KOK III ! Bless this message and bless YOUR BELIEVERS—let them be Edified, educated, and maybe even entertained by today’s message. Most importantly, may we ALL BE BETTER PERSONS BECAUSE OF IT ! In the name of JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD, AMEN ! My friends, as I was saying this was a long week—and here is why. Some of you know that one of my ‘missions’ in this world is the public schools. I started out as a ‘regular teacher’ in Coachella Valley back when it was a very desolate community on the far edge of the desert—and has since grown and multiplied and developed. Last week my message was composed, in part, from the east end of the Coachella Valley—and I gave you images from the National Date Festival, and ended up back in Los Angeles near the Academy Awards ceremony. The next day, Monday, I got an assignment to the Westchester area of Los Angeles—very close to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). The automated system randomly requests substitute teachers and this request happened to be a five-day assignment and, unbeknownst to me prior to my arrival, I would be working with a STUDENT TEACHER all week. ALMOST EVERY future teacher starting out in college goes through a teaching program in addition to their major or majors they acquire along the way. Most programs require future teachers to do what is called “student teaching.” I did it too—back in Michigan in conjunction with Calvin College—at Holland Christian Middle School (now called South Shores Middle). Bob Kool was my ‘supervising teacher’. So I arrive at this Westchester School and get a key to the classroom from Ms Choyce—a nice main office secretary (one of the few nice ones). And I walk to the D building—arriving at the room I meet the student teacher, “Ms. S.” She’s a student at nearby LMU (Loyola Marymount University). Our introduction starts out relatively friendly, although I am perplexed by how she begins—as she inquires, “I heard you were a regular teacher…” …and I am thinking to myself ‘you heard…” and wondering who’s been talking and how anybody knows anything about me at all at this level. Only a few people are privy to my personnel records (as far as I know)…but I glossed over it for the time being. She’s a young lady—and assertive—not the kind of person I wish to argue with. Because she also is resting upon her “rights” as a student teacher at the school . Anything I say could be used against me—if she suddenly becomes “legalistic” or even UNTRUTHFUL although she doesn’t seem that way. Nonetheless, I keep the conversation at a superficial level for the time being—telling her briefly about my experience at CVUSD, noting the antagonistic politics going on there at the time. And she commiserates—saying, “I understand.” So I think everything is going to be kool. But at the same time as the classes begin—I realize this is going to be a very “passive” week for me. Normally I am the only adult in the classroom and I have to lead the class, take control, communicate with the students, do attendance, sometimes discipline students, maintain a decent milieu, keep students from harassing each other, etc. But now she’s in charge—to a certain extent. Albeit they let me know at the office that I am ultimately the ONE IN CHARGE . My one concern wherever I happen to be is to make sure the attendance gets taken right away. So as the first period begins I ask Ms. S who is absence and she bristles a little bit—as if I was being presumptuous talking to her directly—almost as if I am an “underling” and then she adds, “ I like to wait a little while…” Now for me teaching is not “just a job” nor something I do “just for the money.” There are easier ways to make money, and more money. I wouldn’t be doing what I do if it was not a MISSION. And it can also be EMPOWERING---and should be—FOR BOTH ME AND THE STUDENTS. If I walk out feeling overly beleaguered at the end of the day—something went wrong. I WANT TO BRING OUT THE BEST IN THE STUDENTS AND at the same time BRING OUT THE BEST IN MYSELF. But as the first day wore on I realized that Ms. S. thought of herself as being a “superior’ to me. But she was a “lady” and I didn’t want to argue—that would not be gentlemanly of me, so I let it go. At the same time she NEEDED TO BE EMPOWERED and feel as if she were truly and totally in charge. So I wanted to play my part in HELPING HER BECOME A TEACHER. The “work”, therefore, became a task of diligence—trying not to OVERSHADOW HER, and letting her have the stage, so to speak. I JUST WISHED SHE COULD BE A LITTLE GRACIOUS AND THANKFUL TO ME FOR PLAYING THE PART. Anyways, back at the main office (or across the hall in the attendance office) I mention my conflict to Ms. Torres and she says, “She needs to know you are in charge.” And I equivocate a little, but she goes so far as to say that we can have a meeting with the principal to let her know. I say, ‘Hopefully that will not be necessary.” In fact, if there’s one thing I want least is the formal intervention of an administrator when I am at a public school. I seek to empower and be empowered at a informal level and hoped that Ms. S would realize that EXPECTATION as the week went by—that she was being empowered by me just as much as she could empower me. For that matter I was NOT SABOTAGING her efforts as a student teacher. But was she sabotaging me? I was trying to give her respect and support—modeling such for the students to follow. Didn’t she realize that successful teaching usually only happens if and when the students (& others) decide to cooperate at a RESPECT LEVEL rather than a judicial enforcement level? It goes back to the same sort of relationship God wants from HIS FOLLOWERS—love not law. Any teacher knows that it is exhausting and ultimately not very satisfying to have to be constantly disciplining and doing interventions with the students. At the same time there are students who simply do NOT LEARN TO LOVE OR RESPECT and therefore use of “the stick” (so to speak) is the only way to maintain order. And let’s face it—at a young age—a good teacher is a teacher who has perseverance—in regards to TEACHING MECHANICS. You cannot take insults from students at a personal level, nor can you hope for or depend upon their affection. But hopefully some sort of decent “relationship” can fall into place after a while. Nonetheless, it only takes one or two unruly, disrespectful, students to sabotage a classroom milieu. It can be difficult. Remembering some of the things I learned along the way and recalling some of my own experiences I vowed to not take any of the student teacher’s slights of me at a personal level. She was young, relatively small in physical stature, albeit with a strong voice and obviously intelligent—but she needed support from me as well as the other adult in the classroom—a special education teacher who assisted. So I ignored the slights and did not make a “power play” for control—as she apparently was doing to me. Nor did I sabotage her efforts to lead which would have been very easy. I decided to accept being “second fiddle” even if it meant feeling unempowered and even passive to a certain extent. It was a lesson in TOTAL humility –thankfully ONLY FOR A WEEK ! If I unempowered myself too much for too long it would be hard to reverse the flow, part of the problem being that there may have been a little “passive-aggressiveness” in Ms. S. If I allowed her to disrespect me for too long—she may have taken that as a “victory” of spirit & strength over me. At one point she even said to another student that she is “above me.” Again, I didn’t argue. She was falsely sure of herself— sure she was superior to me. Scripture: Mark 1:17-18 "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." At once they left their nets and followed him.” So for an entire week I listened to her teach—occasionally offering assistance to the students –taking attendance and even walking it to the office myself a few times (not minding a reason to step out of the classroom for a few moments). One of the strengths of Ms. S. was her discipline of the students—and she pounded the “mechanics.” She didn’t ease up too much, which was good. She may have been even better in an elementary setting—which requires a very regimented approach, more so than high school. And it became clear that she did not want advice from me. I think she would have been happier had I not been there at all. On the first day I asked her if she felt comfortable alone—thinking I would step out to the restroom for a few moments and she said, “Oh God yes, you’re just required to be here…” and then said, “Take your time.” Well, yes, I suppose “by law” I am required to be there—but I choose to be there because it is part of a “MISSION” of mine. I tried to go back in my mind to the way I saw things when I was a student teacher at Holland Christian Middle. Back then my allegiance was still towards my college—the English Dept & education program. They were my “supervisors”—not so much the principal, and the teachers at the school were not really my “colleagues.” Likewise, I think Ms. S. thought of LMU as to whom she was accountable not the school or the district---and her SUPERVISOR came twice to observe during the week. Her supervisor, by the way, a large African American woman, was only briefly sociable towards me. The rest of the time she was blank-faced and sitting in the corner. And when I gave her a nod of acknowledgement she did not acknowledge me in return. It was as if there was a concerted effort on the part of the two of them to let me know they thought I was a “NOBODY.” Thankfully, that attitude was not widespread beyond the classroom. I’ve had successful experiences at this particular school previously and the office employees are much more grateful for our presence as substitute guest teachers. It’s not as if we don’t have the education—in some cases even more so than some of the regular teachers. Of course, on the other hand, some substitutes have just the bare minimum—so it varies greatly. In my case I have two BA’s, regular teaching experience, and an M.Div. I am not “posing” when I speak with some authority based on education and experience. I am not acting. The best word I can come up with for describing my role this week is a theological term, ‘kenosis.” It refers to the “emptying” of one’s self for the sake of others (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenosis ) based, in part, on Philippians 2.5-7ff which says, “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.” Phil 2:5-7 How far to take that is the question? How far do we go in “making ourselves nothing.” For a while Christian (including Catholic priests) pastors were accused of preaching and teaching too much humility and subservience to their followers—to the extent that they took advantage of them (especially Catholic priests). In such cases the lesson of being “like a servant” was wrongly applied. Paradoxically, the aspect of kenosis seems to be more assertive than passive. By actively allowing or accepting or taking on the role of a servant you actually empower yourself and others in the process. You do not allow yourself to be totally compromised (especially in a sexual manner such as priests have done to young boys). Being a servant means helping and assistant others, even walking an extra mile sometimes ( “ If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles” Matt 5:41). It’s being pliable but not breaking. One thing you can be sure of is that Jesus Christ never totally broke down and gave in to the darkside. Likewise, neither shall we. He was tempted and afflicted but never lost hope, never lost faith. Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen (Hebrews 11.1). It occurred to me as the week went by that this young lady might be Catholic although it could not be taken for granted. LMU is a Catholic university meaning they probably attract more Catholic students than other universities but I’m not sure if devotion to Roman Catholicism is a prerequisite to admission. And I didn’t ask her because she made it clear that she wasn’t interested in conversation—apart from what she began. It was more like “speak when spoken to” with her. She did not successfully differentiate between adults and students in the classroom. So here I am with a young lady student teacher empowering herself at my expense, but accepting it, for the time being. It’s the nature of the job to a certain extent—as long as it doesn’t go too far. We are adults empowering young people through education and social interaction—and have to set our ego aside sometimes—not totally, but to a certain extent. They cannot see things with the breadth that we are able to as adults—merely because of longevity more than anything else. We have lived longer—traveled more, been there done that, so to speak. But we don’t want to empower those who don’t show potential for positive leadership and respect for others. Our job is not to breed terrorists who will harm the cause of greater good . Did Ms. S have the potential for good? I think the seed was in her. I didn’t see long-term character traits of total power and control. I saw flashes of it in her now as a young lady but give society time and allow the aging process to do what it does to all, and she will be mellowed. It is almost inevitable. However, it is not always guaranteed. There are teachers in some public school settings who have managed to maintain a very tight grip on power and control dynamics within their classroom (sometimes for better other times for worse)–which they sometimes carry over into expectations in society—that simply don’t work. The reason they have power and control in the classroom is because we let them have it—NOT BECAUSE THEY ARE SO PERSONALLY GOOD, GIFTED, TALENTED, AND HARD WORKING. They are what they are because of GRACE—and that’s a hard lesson to learn for some people. When decent people with power & control don’t learn that lesson they can become self-glorifying TYRANTS. My role in the classroom, in part, is to try to identify some of those future tyrants and not to let them become OVERBEARING. And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness. 2 Cor 12:8-9 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. Eph 2:8-9 “… who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began…” 2 Tim 1:8-9 One thing I’ve experienced in almost ten years of guest teaching now is that “regular teachers” usually go out of their way to make the “guest teacher” feel appreciated . And usually they do their best to leave a lesson plan, seating chart, and other accessories that make the day go easier. I’ve never experienced a “regular teacher” being condescending towards me. So it surprised me when Ms. S seemed to be a little hierarchical in nature, despite the fact that according to the people in the office she was “below me” in terms of the “pecking order.” Should I have gone out of my way to bring this to her attention? But it brings me back to the issue of her possibly being Catholic—and the fact that the Catholic church is much more hierarchical in nature than that of the Protestant Church. Was that part of the dynamic in play here? I wasn’t sure. The other factor that left me uncertain was not being sure of her age. She made reference at one point about having been an “assistant editor” for a magazine (while she was teaching the 6th period journalism class). Was she a “return student” as I had been when I went through the teaching program at Calvin College? Despite that—and despite feeling older then (back in 1994 I was 27 years old) —I really was not all that old or experienced. Now I am forty. Was she thirty? Twenty-five? Older? Younger? It was difficult to tell. And she wasn’t offering too much information. One thing is for certain though –when I am a guest teacher in the classroom I am there for the “greater good.” I am trying to benefit the most people in one sitting, at that particular time and place without compromising my integrity or conscience. I am not pushing or pulling too much of my own personal agenda other than that which coincides with the greater good, a larger truth. And for me—the reason I do so is none other than God Almighty Himself. That’s what keeps me constant, steady, and absolute. In fact sometimes it is such an emptying (kenosis) of myself that I have to do some ego indulgence activities as soon as I leave—for me one of those is going to the chiropractor and having them adjust my back. It’s nothing too indulgent but it sure feels good to have somebody “crack my back” and take care of me for fifteen minutes. Of course I also need it to a certain extent given the constant chronic pain in my neck, left side, and left leg. And as I was saying a few weeks ago I recently went to the California Natural Healing Arts College for a massage. I haven’t been back there, but I found a new Massage College in Redondo Beach this week—a time for self-indulgence following my Kenosis at the Westchester School. And also an opportunity to reach out in the name of Jesus to another person. I just happened to be driving by and saw the sign $29 for an hour. I was feeling low---not just physically but also emotionally—and I find that just being touched (nothing kinky for those of you with perverted minds) helps me mentally & physically. So I inquired and a gal by the name of Chieko came out. She happened to be from Japan. And she happened to be Buddhist as I found out over the course of an hour as she gave me a “Swedish massage” (nothing sensual; see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massage ). And I kept up a conversation with her for the entire time—telling her about Jesus Christ, the difference between Protestant & Catholic, why I believe in God—my belief that God was in the room with us right then and there, and so on and so forth. I’ve never “gushed” like that before. It was a valuable opportunity. She not only listened but seemed genuinely interested. And she talked about her Buddhist faith—the primary difference in her faith being that she was fearfully trying to perform for her god and to please him, whereas I told her that my relationship with my God was a relationship of LOVE AND TRUST, and observed, gently, that her relationship sounded more like that of the Jewish faith. She also confided in me that she prayed mostly to her ancestors and even left food out for them. By the end of the session I hadn’t convinced her to abandon her Buddhist faith but maybe I planted a seed that would grow later. I put my arm around her as I left and said, ‘God bless you” and later sent a little card mentioning the name of Jesus. We live in such a touch phobic world---especially where I came from in West Michigan. And in the schools, of course, any sort of physical touch, even accidental, can cause people to bristle. So sometimes you have to find somebody willing to touch you –even if they are not persons OF THE FAITH. She didn’t hurt me, nor did she molest me. I felt a little better physically leaving there, and a little lot better emotionally –having had an opportunity, spontaneously, to speak of my faith, which, most importantly, was what it was all about. I learned a little from her and maybe, hopefully, she learned from me. I couldn’t force faith into her. It would either come via the grace of God and her slight inclination or it wouldn’t. Why do some people become Christ believers and others do not? It may be a matter of “election”. All we can do is plant the seeds, hoping some will find good soil. We are FARMERS FOR CHRIST ! Song: Be Thou Supreme ! http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/b/t/s/btsuprem.htm Song: Someone’s Knocking at Your Door ! Could be Jesus ! http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/s/o/m/somknock.htm And that’s my message for today. May God bless the message, the messenger, and those who receive this message in faith. May the Spirit be with you. May you trust with all your heart, mind, and soul ! Pastor Kok III P.S. Subsequently, I sent a fax to the student teacher (Ms. S.) and the assistant (Ms. W.) as well as the lady in the attendance office (Ms. T), explaining some of my thoughts and feelings; and I also encouraged Ms. S to use her gifts & talents to the best of her ability. And I hope I may have planted a seed of faith in Ms. S, as well as the others. Only time will tell. P.S.S. It also occurred to me that there was a different cultural perspective at play as well. The lady in the attendance office probably comes from a working class family where the man is not respected if he does not maintain command & control even to a physical extent; whereas it seemed to me that the young lady student teacher came from a professional family which does not place much, or any, emphasis on nor care about the man as masculine leader, perhaps placing all the emphasis on cognitive ability. Both extremes are wrong. Biblical manhood can be gentle as well as strong, intelligent as well as sometimes happily ‘simple.” Because how one should “be” depends on the situation and is reliant upon the Holy Spirit, there is no one single specific defining characteristic of those living in the Spirit of Biblical Manhood & Womanhood. Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life" John 4:13-14 "Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous" Matt 13:47-49 March 4, 2007 Pastor Kok III Pray for My Brother, Steven, a Great Kid ! "But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found. " Luke 15:32 The Sunday Image Message by Pastor Kok III: Hawaii 1986 Merges with Hawaii 1989 (this image message starts at the bottom) "You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with..", Mark 10:39 In 1989 I returned to Hawaii for a week with my parents and younger brother, Steven.I was a senior in college by that time. Steven was in his senior year of high school. Above: 1) One of my favorite places to go in Oahu is a place called, informally, "The Toilet Bowl". It's a circular bowl-like area amongst rocks which regularly fills up with water and then empties out, hence the name "toilet bowl." When it fills with water you can jump in and wait for it to drain. You cannot get out, however, until the water comes back in and pushes you up and out on to the smooth rocks around you. Here I am, Pastor Kok III, in the empty toilet bowl; 2) Here is Jim Kok in Hawaii, posing for the camera; 3) Jim & Linda at the top of Diamond Head above Waikiki, 1989 Above: 1) Back to Chaminade, 1986--as I mentioned earlier--one of our fellow students started the Chaminade Scuba Diving Club. One day we took an outing and some of them (those with scuba diving licenses which did not include me at the time) went scuba diving while the rest of us just had a good time at the beach. Here I am, Pastor Kok III, in a rubber raft (center with arm raised); 2) and this is in 1989 with the family; 3) Pastor Kok III taking a nap in the sun. Who is our "family?" In some cases it refers to our literal father, mother, brothers & sisters. In other cases our real "family" are those IN CHRIST ! In 1989 I returned to Hawaii with my LITERAL FAMILY (minus my older brother & sister). Some of my LITERAL family members are still IN CHRIST, praise the Lord ! I was baptized as an infant, but I believe in symbolic second baptisms as well, and I believe both 1986 and 1989 were SYMBOLIC BAPTISMAL events for me (and for some of those with me). The WATER that surrounds you on all sides when in Hawaii symbolically represents a CLEANSING, and has SPIRITUAL significance--but only if INTERACTED with in the right state of MIND AND BEING !Above: (left) Even having a cold can of Coors at the beach in Waikiki back in 1986 had spiritual significance, because it was consumed with sincerity & truth, without a weakened conscience.(right) & Sleeping all night outdoors in a hammock on Hickam Air Force Base was awesome ! 'And immediately he and all his family were baptized. Now when he had brought them into his house, he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household. Acts 16:33-34 Jesus made reference, unapologetically, to wine (alcohol) in the Bible: And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, 'The old is better.'" Luke 5:39 Of course much of it had symbolic reference but He nonetheless did not back away from it in a timid manner. I don't hear from Steve too much anymore, but I pray that he is alive IN THE SPIRIT. Please pray with me. Pastor Kok III: Memories of Hawaii ! 1986, 1989 With my parents & brother in the Spring of '89 we did more of the normal tourist things such as going to an Aloha show, among other things. The locals put on a good show for the "haoles" (which is what they call Anglos from the mainland in a semi-affectionate way, although not always). (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haole ) Above: 1) Jim & Linda in Hawaii, 1989; 2) Jim & Linda learning how to do dance, Hawaii style Above: 1-3) And we visited Pearl Harbor, and the Arizona Memorial. It was a very memorable moment. It brings the event to life--to stand literally in the place where one of the U.S. ships went down. A beautiful rainbow over Waikiki, 1989 " Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth." Gen 9:16 Pastor Kok III: Confession No Way to Get Around it, Some of the Time Was Just Having a Good Ol' Time COMMENTARY: "I. Here is a caution to take heed of judaizing teachers, or those who would impose upon Christians the yoke of the ceremonial law: Let no man therefore judge you in meat nor drink, etc., v. 16. Much of the ceremonies of the law of Moses consisted in the distinction of meats and days. It appears by Rom 14 that there were those who were for keeping up those distinctions: but here the apostle shows that since Christ has come, and has cancelled the ceremonial law, we ought not to keep it up. "Let no man impose those things upon you, for God has not imposed them: if God has made you free, be not you again entangled in that yoke of bondage." (from Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1991 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.) Col 2:16-23 That was then, this is now. The festive atmosphere of those five months in Honolulu was simply spontaneous. Hawaii was popular in the media at the time. It was a good time to be there. The time was right. And I laid the foundation for a return some day (without, to be honest, consciously realizing it)--a return for the sake of follow up, in CHRIST. I know I will be going back there, again, SOONER OR LATER, just like I went back to the Philippines. Must all church celebrations be done formally within the walls of a church building? Evangelism would be impossible as such. Could we have been "breaking bread together" without consciously knowing it? None of us mentioned it as such. Did God bring us together without pretense? But there was a Spirit of positive communion amongst us for those five months--something I NEVER EXPERIENCED IN SUCH A WAY BEFORE. Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with bread without yeast, the bread of sincerity and truth. 1 Cor 5:8 We were all young and in some ways just surviving. Pray that the fellowship we experienced together mostly in a social, somewhat frivolous, way will some day deepen into a spiritual communion, IN CHRIST ! I now value those few months, in retrospect, much more than I did at the time. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.Rom 8:26 "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." Mark 1:17-18 Pastor Kok III Making Friends for Christ Fall Semester, 1986 Chaminade University of Honolulu You see, discipleship is a process, and might not always show immediate results, if at all. Did my new friends do what I commanded them to do? Well, I wasn't telling them directly, in words, to "Go and make disciples..." (Matt 28. 19) one reason being I had not yet made them my disciples. All I could do is try to plant a seed. And I did plant a lot of seeds mostly through "presence evangelism." Whether they landed in good soil I do not yet know. Only time will tell. \\\ Prayer Request: To this day I still think about and pray for these "friends"--most of whom I do not know their whereabouts. I do know that Ron & Kimo are still in Hawaii (but not exactly where), whereas Ed Durkin is here in Los Angeles working for Merril Lynch ( I have his office address and send him something from time to time). I ask you, fellow believers, to pray for them too! "A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop-a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. He who has ears, let him hear." Matt 13:3-9 Pastor Kok III Making New Friends at Chaminade University of Honolulu Fall Semester, 1986 I made a lot of new friends (or acquaintances) while at Chaminade University. 1) Of course Ron Foo, my roommate, became a friend (shown here with his surfboard); 2) as did Ed Durkin (from Pennsylvania; shown here in the front of the picture on a sailboat owned by a friend of Durkin's father) who lived one floor above me in Hale Pua; 3) and there was Jay from Alaska (shown here with Ron Foo) 1) Another new friend I met in the dorms was Mike (shown here behind Ron Foo at the famous Matsumoto's shaved ice grocery store; I don't remember his last name) from New York. He was a tough-talking kid with a good heart--who had a brand new motorcycle shipped to Oahu ( a gift from his grandmother) 2) Here's Ron catching a wave; 3) As you can imagine, the temptation to party excessively is great--being in Hawaii with like-minded others, living in a dorm with friendly, same-age persons (not to mention a co-ed dorm). And so I did, a little,and if I had stayed more than a semester it might have been the end of me (not literally but in terms of an ability to handle academic rigor). Praise the Lord for giving me one good semester there and pulling me out before I partied myself to spiritual, academic, or cognitive death. And somehow I was able to maintain my vow of celibacy prior to marriage while in Oahu. That was not an easy task either . Meanwhile, unbeknownst to me I (or God) was laying the groundwork for a return--as a person with more discipline--later on in life. Essentially what I was doing there, although I did not the term for it then, was pre-evangelism. 1) Here's Ron Foo again; 2) And here's Ed Durkin with his roommate Ed Perez (from Guam) Jesus said: Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. John 15:13-14 March 4, 2007 Pastor Kok III Letting My Light Shine (for Jesus!) in Oahu A Semester at Chaminade University of Honolulu 1986 After my freshman year at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and having grown up in Grand Rapids, MI; I realized I needed a new perspective--a change of some sort--a different school (at least for a while). My freshman year at Calvin was okay, but it was so close to my high school that it did not feel like a big change. I even lived in the dorms with a friend I had known almost all my life (Keith Steensma). He was a great roommate and a great kid (now an adult working for his dad's insurance company in GR) but I felt inclined to go somewhere new for a while. Many of the kids I saw around Calvin College campus my freshman year were also familiar faces from my high school. My Christian High School (Grand Rapids Christian High) feeds into the nearby Christian denominational college and so for locals it seems like an extension of high school to a certain extent, at least socially. So I applied to Chaminade University of Honolulu and was accepted ! As you can imagine (if you grew up in a cold weather state) going to Hawaii was a big change of climate as well as a significant change of student body (for me). There were no "Calvinists" around the campus (Chaminade is from the Roman Catholic tradition but you are not required to be Catholic to attend, and recently I've noticed they have begun more describing themselves more specifically as "Marianists" see http://www.chaminade.edu/misc/marianistsInHawaii.php) although there were a lot of "mainlanders" in Hawaii for the first time. Like most of the mainlanders I was there for the weather, a place to continue to get college credits. Unlike some others I was also there for spiritual reflection I arrived at Honolulu Airport in the Fall of 1986 a week or so before classes began and was picked up by a representative of the university who drive me to my off campus dorm, Hale Pua, where I would live for the year (or semester as it turned out). I met my new roommate, Ron Foo, an Asian-American, for the first time. He was from Islip, New York. And I signed up for my classes. I took "core" classes. including anthropology & biology among others, that would transfer back to Calvin College or anywhere else CHIEF BIG FAITH

08/06/06 Pastor Kok III : LIVE FROM BEVERLY HILLS The DANGER OF GREED & About My Cousin Bob K. (Shame on Him) Dear Friends of the Ministry, It is 6:45 a.m on Sunday, August, 6, 2006 and I am in the heart of Beverly Hills. From where I am I can see the "steeple" of Beverly Hills City Hall and also downtown Century City (see attached images). The first thing that comes to the minds of most people when you mention Beverly Hills (and yes I am aware there is a Beverly Hills, Michigan as well, and maybe a few other Beverly Hills throughout the USA) is wealth $$$. It's been indoctrinated in our minds by the media. Even if we've never been to the city, most have heard of it, or seen images of it on television or in the movies. I grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan and I think my first exposure to "Beverly Hills" came from the show "Beverly Hillbillies"--which was a great comedy! Later, there came shows such as "Beverly Hills 90210" (never watched it) and the movie "Beverly Hills Cop" (never saw it) among others. What is it about Beverly Hills? And is it something Christians should avoid, chuckle about, learn from, or what? Well, I'll see what I can come up with as I compose. But simply because of the connotations Beverly Hills brings to mind - I cannot resist delivering a message entitled "The Danger of Material Wealth" , although I will make note of some paradoxes along the way (i.e. that there are "poor" people too who are just as consumed by material wealth, or more so, as some "rich" people). And I also want to make mention of a difficult time I am having with my "Cousin Bob K." I won't mention his last name in order to keep this less personal, but I will mention some of the specifics of the conflict, and will ask for your prayers. By bringing this matter to you, the believers and the Body of Christ, I hope to unburden myself, at least a little bit. But let's begin with a prayer and a few songs on this cool Beverly Hills morning as the sun rises: Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, Great God Amighty, and Gracious Redeemer, we come to you with arms lifted up to praise Your Holy Name ! Every breath we take comes from You. Every move we make is empowered by You. You are the Deliverer. You are the Empowerer. And we praise You for Your Goodness. And God help me deliver a message that will inspire and edify those who read it, and will also help unburden me with some of the matters of the heart that are weighing me down. Hear my prayer, Oh Lord. Amen. Song: Christ from Whom All Blessings Flow http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/c/f/cfwallbf.htm I like this song because our real blessings come from Christ not from material well being or wealth. Is material wealth a sign of blessings from God? Maybe, but then maybe not. It depends upon the circumstances and context. Song: Count Your Blessings http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/c/o/countyou.htm And we can count our blessings no matter what the circumstances may be--much material wealth or none at all ! In fact, as you may learn today--there is a reason to praise the Lord and count your blessings because of a lack of material wealth. But that is only if you use the gifts God has given you to "fill the gap" left for you to live without material wealth. When you "fill the gap" with the Fruits of the Spirit you will experience a life of real "wealth." That's part of what it means to take every "thought captive" (c.f. 2 Cor 10:5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ) I've been practicing "captive thought" for a while now--often filling the void with prayer. Last night I couldn't sleep too well and I filled the void with prayer for people I've known in my life from elementary school days to the present. I prayed for my "enemies" as well, including cousin Bob, who I want to talk about now. Cousin Bob, whom I've mentioned previously, lives in Holland, Michigan--one of the most "religious" places in our country. He is the son of my dad's late brother, Sherwood, a military veteran--who rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Army, and saw a little time in Vietnam. Uncle Woody as we affectionately called him had a big family. He and his wife Ruth (who is still alive today) had six children: Kathy, Bob, Gary, Bill, Sherwood Jr, and David. We did not see too much of them as we were growing up in Grand Rapids, MI. That's because they were moved around like most military families, and were in Germany for several years as well. Military life is tough on kids even though they enjoy some perks and some of them even become "brats." My uncle Sherwood's big vice was alcohol. And some of his children inherited it. In fact, my uncle Sherwood while he overcame alcoholism--or at least was able to stop drinking finally after really putting his liver to the test--probably died at the early age because of his life of alcoholism even though he was dry at the time. I drank a little bit going through high school and college myself and my dad always warned me of the dangers of alcoholism and noted that it was hereditary. Today, I don't drink at all--although not because of prior abuse or dangers of alcoholism as much as it just does not appeal to me all that much. I'll still sip a little wine now and then if the social occassion gives rise to it but in general that's only once or twice a year, or for communion. And being in the ministry as well as in education it behooves me to set a good example for those who watch every thing you do. I think there is an appropriate time and place for the consumption of alcohol, but it likes wealth--too much of it can become a problem for those who can't keep their priorities & convictions straight. But back to Bob K. --- as I was saying--we did not see their family much growing up until after Uncle Woody retired and moved his family to Grand Rapids. Prior to that we only saw Bob & Gary, the two oldest boys because they attended Calvin College for a while. Gary stayed at Calvin for two years but did not graduate. Bob stayed and graduated and went into banking. The two of them would come over to our house on Griswold St for a meal from time to time while they were in college and Gary lived with us for a short while as he was trying to find direction in life. Later, we would have a few Thanksgiving Meals together with Sherwoods family and my Uncle Gary's family in Kentwood, Michigan. The Sherwood family loved football--watching it--I'm not sure any of them played it--maybe David the youngest did at E. Kentwood High. And after Sherwood retired from the military he worked at the Kent County jail to make ends meet. This was when his alcoholism really rose to noticeable levels--even impacting his health and job performance. That's about the extent of our interaction--Thanksgiving gatherings maybe three or four times in the 1980's and the few times that Bob & Gary were at our house on Griswold St. Then there was Uncle Woody's funeral which I was not able to attend but did send flowers to Woody Jr to deliver. I never got any thanks or a note from them for my gesture of love. And then over the past few years I've been including Cousin Bob in my periodic mailings--i.e. my inspirational DVD's, newsletters, holiday cards, etc. He did not respond at all. Then when I added E-church to the ministry and added him to the e-mail list I finally got a response. That was when I was just starting the Sunday Morning Message. And he tried to sabotage me. It was totally unexpected. In my mind Bob had always been "okay" if not very enthusiastic or very involved. And I imagined he was receiving my ministry material in a pleasant manner even if he did not respond to it. You see, in my mind, I imagine people receiving my DVD's and enjoying them or if not, at most being indifferent. There's nothing offensive about them that's for sure. They are meant to be Christian inspirational films--sometimes even amusing or entertaining. There's nothing x-rated or r-rated in any of them. These are G-rated DVD's-- based on my own Christian experiences. And they are "home made" so to speak. This is not highly professional polished film -making. These are films made with a hand held camera put on DVD and given an introduction and conclusion. And they've increased in "polish" over time but are not meant to be commercial films. So several months ago I found it extremely strange and out-of-proportion to everything to find cousin Bob returning a DVD I sent to him writing "Return to Sender" on it and telling me the DVD's are "worthless" . I found it upsetting because he did so in such a demonstrative manner with apparent anger and even hate towards me--with no apparent reason. As I said our family never had much contact with the Sherwood family or any of the kids and the few times we did it was hospitable (i.e. we invited them to our house and even at least once to our cottage on Lake Michigan). Yet here was Bob in 2006 suddenly going on a rampage about the DVD's I sent him, and then also making a gigantic deal about me sending him the Sunday Message by e-mail to his "business e-mail address" at Huntington Bank in Holland, Michigan. It was as if anger suddenly erupted from Bob with me as the target, irrationally so. I say "irrationally" because the ministry I do is as innocent and harmless as the lad selling newspapers on the street corner. Take it or leave it. I want you to take it--for your own soul's sake, but nobody is forcing anything down anybody's throat so to speak. Even if you don't want to read my e-mail--at most it's a few seconds to delete it, once a week; or even less if you add a filter to automatically delete anything from "Kok". I'm not bombarding anybody with excessive e-mails like "spam artists". And some people label anything "spam" they don't like--like a bad cop calling anything he (or she) doesn't like "disturbing the peace." And so I wracked my mind to figure out what was behind this irrational outburst and temper tantrum of cousin Bob. And I realized that he was "posturing"--the same way my Uncle Gary did from time to time--to create a "paper lion". He was making "something out of nothing" to divert attention from his own lack of industry and involvement in the world, community, church, and school. I realized that Bob K. had done very little with his life; in fact almost nothing. His dad, my uncle Woody, despite his alcoholism was 100 times the man Bob K. is. Bob K. has done nothing with his life but has been able to live by pretense. The same goes for my Uncle Gary (albeit at least Gary has showed the discretion not to try the recent transparent posturing of Cousin Bob). Gary gets all the same mail that Cousin Bob gets but simply does not respond. But Gary is retired now. Bob isn't. Bob still must perform and still must create a reason for his existence and reason for him getting paid for what he does. And a lot of people live life this way, piggybacking on others--maybe their dad. Bob became a "military brat", without every having actually performed himself. Likewise, my uncle Gary piggybacked on his dad (my late grandfather the Rev. Gareth Kok) being a pastor. I can't make a point or even have a conversation about faith or theology with Uncle Gary because he knows it all (or thinks he does) given his dad was a pastor. Some of these pastor kids think they know everything because their dad is the pastor. I myself did not fall into that trap--I took it upon myself to become a pastor and go through all the training and education and discipline and hardship that is required to get to the point of being a pastor--not a pastors kid--- a huge difference. Likewise, kids of military professionals may think they "know it all" about military and the world because their dad did it. They are fooling themselves. God will judge us according to what we accomplish (or try to accomplish) , not what our dad's accomplished. Likewise, a bad dad or mom (or both) will not be counted against us in the Kingdom of Heaven--as long as we, ourselves, personally give our best here on earth. The problem I have with cousin Bob is the gall with which he sends me or returns to me ministry material. He has the gall to be so demonstrative--almost a level of being blasphemous. He's returning good stuff and calling it bad. That's the essence of blasphemy and most people don't have the gall to commit blasphemy. Some synonyms for "gall" are listed online as "..., arrogance, bitterness, brashness, brass, brazenness, cheek*, chutzpah*, conceit...effrontery... haughtiness, hostility, impertinence, impudence, insolence, malevolence, malice, overbearance, pomposity, presumption, rancor, sauciness, self-importance, spite, venom" ( http://thesaurus.reference.com/browse/gall). And I am glad God gave me the reserve to stand back and observe his behavior and reflect upon it before acting too hastily. You see this initially happened several months ago. Then in July I tried again--sending him another DVD--my "Memorial Day" DVD that I keeping adding on to as the summer progresses, recently including my Mt Whitney hike and Catalina Island. In an attempt to be jovial I sent him the dvd and wrote "Another Worthless DVD" on it--mimicking his language, thinking he might be a little ashamed of his behavior, but he came "roaring back" in a cowardly way with huge letters on the envelope he returned it and put brackets pointing to "worthless" saying 'That's Correct." That was a few days ago. It took me by total surprise. I thought he would have settled down by now, but he's still posturing, apparently still trying to deflect something from himself. And I wouldn't have thought that much more about cousin Bob had he not brought attention to himself. I sent some of the material back trying to "mirror" his cowardly monstrosity--so that he might reflect upon his behavior and be ashamed but I don't think that will happen. His behavior is shameful and if not barely within the bounds of legal behavior would be criminal. In fact, a few months ago he actually opened the envelope containing ministry material I sent him and looked it over and inserted his own personal note and then re-sealed it and wrote "Return to Sender" upon it--a total violation of postal rules and laws. You can't open an envelope, insert something in it and then "return to sender" without adding new postage. So I e-mailed a series of messages to my dad about cousin Bob, trying to unburden myself a little bit about it, but my dad is the ultimate diplomat and will not get involved in family conflicts--no matter who is clearly right or wrong. In fact, there are times when he will take the opposite side against me even when I am clearly right because he simply doesn't always like the person who is clearly right. In fact there's been times when I know my dad has not liked me even though I've been right, or maybe because I've been right. And there is a problem of anti-semitism involved in this--not to say I am Jewish--obviously I am not, but there is a wrongful notion that "doing things right" and "doing the right thing" is "Jewish" and even sometimes Christians fall into a blasphemous spirit of "anti-semitism" just because they've been outdone by people who are doing better (and that's not to say it's always or only Jewish people who are better--sometimes they do things worse. However, "Jew" just becomes a catch all ). Mel Gibson's recent outburst may be an example of the misconceptions of Judaism. Judaism and the Jewish religion is not the ultimate problem nor the cause of all wars. There's a misplacement of anger on Jews which should be directed towards "legalism." Jews can be legalistic but so can Christians, and Muslims, and Secular Humanists, and anybody else. Legalism is the problem. It's the elimination of the Spirit of the Law for the law itself. There's great Jewish people who show signs of the Spirit--and maybe will come to Christ someday (or are already partially "in Christ". There may be Muslims who show signs of the Spirit and maybe will come to Christ someday or are already partially "in Christ." And there may be "Christians" who do not show signs of the Spirit and do not fully or truly know Christ. It's not what you self-label yourself--it is who you are. And that brings me back to Holland, Michigan. I grew up in Grand Rapids and spent time in Holland and other areas of West Michigan. The Christian Reformed & Reformed Church looms large in West Michigan because that's where a large group of Reformed Dutch folk settled when they came to America after landing in Manhattan Island (or New Amsterdam as it was originally named). There's a Christian Reformed or Reformed CHurch on every street corner in Holland--an exaggeration but what I am saying--the churches are numerous, more so than in many cities. What does all this "religion" do for people? By and large there's a lot of great and Spirit filled people in Holland but also there are those who attend church legalistically and never truly "graduate" to a higher level of faith. They may be on time to church every single Sunday, maybe even twice on Sunday. They may even teach Sunday School or participate in the choir. They may have the best dressed kids with the perfect hair but if they don't continue to grow, it's "all for show" as they say. It becomes a show--the Dutch Reformed show. And it's a shame that I have to be critical because by and large as I was saying I count on the Reformed & Christian Reformed folk to be my best supporters and they are the most responsive to E-Church, God bless you ! It's not you who I am talking about. It's the legalists, some of whom inhabit the CRC & RCA or are in that community. And occassionally the legalists will fall out of form--forgetting how to "act" in times of crisis. It is during such times that we see the real "them." And it's not pretty. And that apparently is what happened and is what is happening with Cousin Bob. He doesn't think anybody is watching so he is "getting away" with his cowardly monstrosity and anti-social behavior. BUT NOW YOU KNOW ! I am telling you because YOU ARE THE BODY OF CHRIST AND WE LEAN UPON EACH OTHER. There's nothing more I can do. His behavior is borderline criminal in a petty way--if he was actually yelling at me the way he is "yelling" at me via U.S. Postal Mail it would be definitely something I could complain to the police about. But like most legalists they know how to maintain the pretense of social convention--although he's very close to crossing the line. IN fact he has, in a petty manner. You see, if he's not going to exhibit socially acceptable behavior to me as a relative and wants to maintain simply a "civil" relationship--i.e a relationship governed by civil legalities, he's still wrong. Civil people don't go to the extent he is going to--to reject social/ministry mail--either e-mail or U.S. mail. This is not a bombardment of mail. It's maybe one or two DVD's per year. And the e-mails are once per week. And with a normal civil request to "unsubscribe" I would normally make the effort to do so. But nobody likes being treated like an object. And that is how cousin Bob is treating me--and it's solely for one reason to divert attention from himself--create a non-existent issue--due to his own insecurity about not doing enough in life. IT's the same thing with my Uncle Doug in Bellflower, and was to a certain extent the same with my Uncle Gary. But right now--cousin Bob stands out because he's become more aggressive than any of them (although Doug was fairly aggressive as well when I saw him in Bellflower in July). How do I respond to blasphemy? I know that I am only doing good--or trying to do good. I know that my DVD's are good--not professionally perfect in terms of form but in terms of the intent and message they convey. I know that my Sunday Message is good in terms of form (most of the time) but most importantly in terms of intent. I WILL NOT BE MOVED ! So I bring this matter of the heart to you, my friends. Pray for me. Pray for Cousin Bob. I'm not going to press the matter any further in terms of sending him things--at least not for a while, but I'm going to put pressure on him via YOU--the BODY OF CHRIST ! I TRUST YOU--BECAUSE I TRUST GOD ! If you want to write to him and say "Shame on You" he works at Huntington Bank in Holland Michigan at 1 Financial Plaza (10717 Adams St), Holland, MI 49423. He is either a bank teller or some sort of bank employee. And if you are not on my side, then just say "unsubscribe" in the subject line and I will take you off the Sunday List. It's that simple. I am trying to build a ministry with people who are supportive. This does not mean total agreement with everything I say--but nonetheless still supportive. And so I will leave it at that for the time being. Pray that I will stay emotionally aloof enough so that I will not get pulled into the trap that Cousin Bob is trying to set. It's an emotionally abusive trap which certain personalities use to trap those around them--including spouses and children sometimes. Imagine running a great race --doing your very best--something most socially normally people applaud; but then coming up against a socially abnormal person who says "Wow, big deal. That's nothing. You are worthless." And I'm not talking about a super bowl champion saying that to a rocket football champion (although that would be a total lack of class as well), I'm talking about an armchair quarter back saying that to anybody out there trying--whether it's a kid playing rocket football or the best NFL player. It takes a total sociopath to do such a thing and unfortunately I have relatives like that. SO PRAY PRAY PRAY AND PRAY SOME MORE AND IF YOU WANT TO WRITE A "SHAME ON YOU" LETTER TO BOB KOK, THAT'S EVEN BETTER! And for that matter--you can write a "SHAME ON YOU" letter to DOUG TIMMER IF YOU WISH AS WELL at 10343 Beach St. Bellflower, CA 90706. These are only two of my shameless relatives who will not say "Good Job" or encourage me to keep doing good. Another shameless relative is Gary Kok ("Uncle Gary") at 3732 Ravine Vista, Grand Rapids, MI 49508. And why are they so shameless? Because of their own character flaws and personality defects--to deflect attention from their own deficits they refuse to praise that which is good. IT's the ultimate blasphemy --and is small compared to that which was done to JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF by LEGALISTS (NOT JUST JEWS). And I am going to enlarge this "SHAME ON YOU" list over time so that maybe I can get people to start writing letters and put pressure on some of these sociopaths. It usually only takes a few letters to prod these sociopaths in the right direction. By the way, I actually called cousin Bob at the bank in Holland last week and was about to say something but when I heard him answer his voice sounded so lonely and quiet and pathetic and for a moment I actually felt sorry for him. I couldn't say anything. I just hung up. And that's the way it is with a lot of anti-social behavior--behind it is something sad. And surely the the Sherwood family is sad because of their dad--and his life long struggle with alcohol. Unfortunately, we cannot allow their anti-social behavior to drag us down despite knowing the reason or reasons for it. And now let me turn to Scripture: Scripture: Luke 18:24-27 And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, He said, "How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." And those who heard it said, "Who then can be saved?" But He said, "The things which are impossible with men are possible with God." I usually glance at a few commentaries while preparing for a message, and here's what one says: Matthews Commentary: "There are such difficulties in the way of our salvation: as could never be got over but by pure omnipotence, by that grace of God which is almighty, and to which that is possible which exceeds all created power and wisdom. The things which are impossible with men (and utterly impossible it is that men should work such a change upon their own spirits as to turn them from the world to God, it is like dividing the sea, and driving Jordan back), these things are possible with God. His grace can work upon the soul, so as to alter the bent and bias of it, and give it a contrary ply; and it is he that works in us both to will and to do. Whatever we have left, or laid out, for Christ, it shall without fail be abundantly made up to us in this world and that to come, notwithstanding our weaknesses and infirmities." (from Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1991 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.) Here I am in Beverly Hills, California--which has one of the highest "wealth per capita" ratios in the country (albeit not the highest some critics point out--and also note that it's reputation may exceed actuality) and yesterday I drove around taking pictures of some of the notable points-of-interest (some of which I obtained from the internet as I drove around). I did not take the time to go find all the different "star" homes, although I made a note about "star maps" and celebrities in Beverly Hills. The first thing I noticed as I drove into Beverly Hills yesterday was the Jewish people walking to synagogue. Around Beverly Hills it is not uncommon to see the Jewish men dressed in black with the cap on their head, sometimes bobbing in prayer as they walk . While some people find it offensive or ostentatious I find it refreshing sometimes--in comparison to secular humanism which totally eliminates God and any overt association to holiness. This is not to say that we should put on a "show" of religion but we should not completely eliminate our faith in the public arena either. It is essential to make it a meaningful display--that is edifying to others, not hypocritical. Then I drove around and noticed some of the points-of-interest. There's the Museum of TV & Radio in Beverly Hills. I've been inside once--didn't go inside yesterday but can tell you that you can look up TV & Radio history--actually video & audio segments--categorized. Then I took my dog Lola for a walk at or near the Beverly Gardens Park. Nearby is the Beverly Hills Presbyterian Church and next to that is the Good Shepherd Catholic Church (both on Santa Monica Blvd) (for places of worship see http://www.tierraproperties.com/westside_topics/places_of_worship/beverly_hills.htm I also drove by Beverly Hills High School--where I used the pool locker room once (I intended to go swimming but ended up only taking a shower to cool off); and the Beverly Hills Hotel http://www.thebeverlyhillshotel.com/ (which is not geographically near the high school--they just happen to be near each other in the image gallery). From there I went up to north Beverly Hills and stopped by the Greystone Mansion--one of the few Beverly Hills mansions open to the public (for free). They were filming something there--meaning lots of trailers and trucks and people milling about so I didn't stay too long. Film crews abound around Los Angeles and they are not always the most socially adept people nor very conversational. I mean there are times when I would ask somebody "What are they filming? " and they wouldn't even know what they are doing or if they did would not be very interested in talking to you or informing you about anything because you are a "lay person" in their minds (i.e. not part of the "industry"). The fact is some of the time--with all the "help" staff buzzing around--many of them, in fact, do not know what they are actually doing--they just know they are getting paid for being there but they don't want to reveal their ignorance to "outsiders" . With all the cameras and lights and equipment they can appear very intelligent and sophisticated as long as they keep their mouths shut. Leaving Greystone (where I met my mom & dad once--for a social visit--although it was closed so we went and got a bite to eat in downtown Beverly Hills instead), I drove down Sunset Blvd (which runs right through Beverly Hills, leaving the seemingly seedy Hollywood scene behind to the east) and saw a few of the "Star Map" sellers. I bought one once but have never taken the time to seriously try to look up celebrity residences. Yesterday, the guy wanted 10 bucks for a Star Map, but I found a star map website online at http://www.seeing-stars.com/Live/StarsAddresses_A.shtml (also see http://www.seeing-stars.com/Live/BeverlyHills.shtml ) Then I looked up a few houses of architectural interest according to "Things to do in Beverly Hills" website at http://travel.yahoo.com/p-travelguide-2835240-b-11-beverly_hills_things_to_do-i;_ylt=AuZyqo4wSCpY2xSAZYiHtz07PGoL The Spadena House at 516 Walden Street, also known as the "Witches House" was particulary impressive--not in terms of wealth but the character of the home. It looks exactly like a little witches house--a nice break from the repetitive show of blandly similar wealthy homes through the south Beverly Hills neighborhood. I noticed the Beverly Hills Trolley around the town (see image). Then I drove by the Green Acres estate--apparently a point of interest in the history of Beverly Hills--first owned by Harold Lloyd, a silent film star (you can only see the outer gate, no tours). I also drove by the Robinson Estate--the only other estate open to the public--and now owned by the county of Los Angeles. Unfortunately, reservations weeks in advance are required so I took a picture of the entrance and left. Then there is also the Wosk Residence on Roxbury (rated #15 by Yahoo on things to see in Beverly Hils ) which was created by Frank Gehry and Miriam Wosk and is called a "whimsical structure" by somebody at the Yahoo site. Also on the list of things to see is the Creative Artists Agency (aka CAA) which apparently handles a lot of the talent and entertainment individuals. They are one of the big three talent agencies in Beverly Hills, the other two being ICM and William Morris. ( see http://www.icmtalent.com/contact.html http://www.caa.com/, and http://www.wma.com/ ) The Barakat Gallery is apparently a famous place for ancient artifacts and "specializes in Tribal, Pre-Columbian, Egyptian, Biblical, Near Eastern and Greco-Roman."I didn't have time to go in (mostly because parking is so hard to find) but I took a picture passing by. Then I went by the O'Neill house at 507 N. Rodeo Drive and ranked at #11 on the "things to do in Beverly Hills " list which says " The house ...is a welcome architectural anomaly amidst the often-boring pseudo-classical style homes of Beverly Hills" I drove around the block again and passed by a cute statue of an old couple walking hand-in-hand at the corner of Santa Monica & Camden. Couldn't get a great picture driving by but you can make it out. From there I drove back up to Sunset Blvd and headed west towards UCLA passing by the "statue house" which is what I call it (and is not listed on the "things to do" site) (not "statute") . You see I worked as a chaplain intern at UCLA Medical Center for a quarter while going through seminary and would regularly drive down Sunset Blvd and pass this house which stands out because of the numerous statutes on the front lawn (and they seem to be always adding more). They are so life-like they make you do a double-take, including a security guard statute that at first glance looks real. Judge for yourself. Although it is not near the northern entrance of UCLA I should also note (given the order of the images) the Tower of Hope in Beverly Hills, right next to the Beverly Hills High School and near Century City. I found the following website about it: http://www.project9865.org/tower.html Back to UCLA--this is where I chaplained for a quarter--working on infant ICU as well as an adult unit and periodically in the emergency room, every few days staying overnight . I counseled patients and family members and contacted family when somebody arrived at the emergency room. I dealt with "death and dying" and grief issues, and even did a baptism of an infant on the brink of death. I also did communion with patients. It was a challenging but great experience --known as CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education). Ironically, none of the CPE supervisors are there any longer and it seems as if the Pastoral Care office is much less than what it used to be (maybe more about that later). Since I was there back in the late 1990's they have added a new medical wing (see image). And while I was there they renamed the children's unit the Mattel Children's Hospital. Leaving UCLA I stopped by the burial site (or cremation crypt as it may be) of Marilyn Monroe. I had noticed last year an article about where she was buried on the anniversary of her death and had stopped by last year just for interest sake (http://www.marilynmonroe.com/about/timeline/index.html# ) Yesterday, I was in the area leaving UCLA and decided to add the picture as a point-of-interest for today's message and it just happened to be the anniversary of her death (June 1, 1926 to August 5, 1962). There were a lot of people coming and going--taking pictures of her crypt--as well as a few reporters taking notes about it. Interesting phenomena--how she lives on in the memories of the world. Rodney Dangerfield, the comedian, is also buried here. Finally, I came back around into Beverly Hills down Wilshire and back towards the 10 freeway noting the Academy of Motion Pictures & Art Sciences along La Cieniega Blvd. Yahoo mentions it as #8 in "things to do and see" in Beverly Hills. I wondered if it was actually in Beverly Hills--seemed too far away, but they say it is, so it must be. And now I'm back this morning--I actually plan to go to the Farmers Market (see http://www.beverlyhills.org/presence/connect/CoBH/Homepage/For+Visitors/What+to+Do/City+Events+and+Celebrations/LG-RP-Farmers+Market ) in a few moments where they are having a "chili cookoff" and cornhusking contest. I came to this last year as well--it's kind of fun--free chili samples. The Farmers Market is every Sunday but the chili and cornhusking contest only once a year. In fact I'm going to go down there right now, and I'll get back to the message in a few moments (9:48 a.m). And I'm back (10:10 a.m). The chili contest does not start until 11 a.m. Maybe I'll go back down in a little while. Meanwhile, they are having pony rides and an animal petting site for the kids. They also have the regular Farmers Market--which includes, among other things, melon tents, a hummus tent, breads & bagels, Kyo Ho Grapes, asparagus & potatoes, fresh seafood, ceviche, and much more (see images). One thing I must say for Beverly Hills--I've never experienced snobbery--what you might expect from a wealthy area such as this. I drive around in an older model car which stands out as old amongst the Rolls Royces, Jaguars, BMW's, the myriad of SUV's & Hummers, and other expensive cars which almost everybody drives around here; but not once have I experienced snobbery. I experienced more snobbery in Pasadena. So God bless the Beverly Hills folk in that regard. Now back to the message: Jesus was talking to a young rich man who wanted, seemingly sincerely and almost desparately to follow Jesus but at the same time he only wished he could take what he had (i.e. his estate) with him. He wanted the best of both worlds. But Jesus would not let him have both--he had to choose one or the either. Why couldn't he have both? Why can't a rich person be a Christian? Is that what Jesus was saying? Not exactly, albeit the lure of wealth is apparently so strong, even though it is possible for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God, He seems to be saying that the money & prestige often seduces the rich so much that they cannot enter the Kingdom of God because they no longer want to do so. Isn't that interesting? It's not because they have wealth that they cannot enter, it's because they lose their interest in entering. IF they could maintain HOPE and that spark of desire for something much much greater than what they have they could enter, but they become so self-indulgent and so satisfied here on earth they no longer have that desire. This is why the poor have a greater chance of eternal life. By remaining poor and "hungry" they know there has to be something better. There's an advantage to being miserable here on earth. But as I was saying there are "poor" people in "poor " neighborhoods who become self-indulgent and self-satisfied as well and are no better off than some rich people in terms of inheriting the Kingdom of God. It makes me reflect on the statement of Jesus who said "Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Matt 6:31-34 If we start out seeking wealth & riches it is that much harder to grow close to God because wealth becomes our "god." Instead, begin by seeking God, Himself, and growing in Christ, and all else will follow. We need not worry about what we will wear or eat. That will take care of itself. This is not say we strive to become "welfare" recipients. It's not to say we don't work, or we become lazy (as if the stereotype of welfare recipients has any truth to it) In fact, just the opposite--the quest for godliness is the much harder path to take. It is the road less travelled. I learned that going through seminary. I WAS ALL ALONE ! Being a pastors kid didn't help. In fact it may have made things worse. Being a son of a pastor who was a friend or associate of the president of Fuller Seminary didn't help. In fact it may have made things worse. Even being a son of a pastor who worked at the Crystal Cathedral didn't help--in fact it definitely made things worse (albeit for a little while I did enjoy the advantage of studying on the 10th floor of the Tower of Hope --in Garden Grove, not in Beverly Hills--on Sunday mornings; and did enjoy starting my ministry news and Sunday Message -which I videotaped back then from the 10th floor--but that is outweighed by the persecution I experienced around the Cathedral (more about that later). In fact while going through seminary I experienced one of the most tragic experiences in my life--which was an altercation with the Pasadena Police Dept (and I plan to talk about that some time). This experience was definitive in terms of being a disheartening moment which had lasting effects but which I will bounce back from and am bouncing back from as we speak. From every bad thing there are good things. Sometimes the bitter taste, however, does not go away for a long time. Nonetheless God does not promise an easy life in exchange for following Him. IN fact, sometimes just the opposite here on earth. In some, but not all, parts of Judaism there is a certain expectation of earthly blessings (maybe mistakenly so) in exchange for one's faith in God. The Messiah brought a little bit of a different message --the reward would be in heaven, not necessarily here on earth. There are other parts of Judaism which are very well aware of that, even if they do not yet believe in the Messiah. There are Jews who have suffered immensely for their faith. They are not all wealthy merchants or entertainment executives living in Beverly Hills (that's a very gigantic generalization and false stereotype). In fact, I love the way Jewish people find ways of "filling the gap" with things to do. They are very creative and resourceful. I worked with a Jewish chaplain at UCLA Medical Center and during one of the Jewish holidays near Thanksgiving he actually built a replica of one of the Jewish symbols inside the hospital cafeteria--a hut of sorts. He was a very gracious and intuitive person. We , as Christians, can learn from Jewish people, just as they can learn from us. Isn't that great ? ! So wealth is dangerous--in Beverly Hills, California and in Grosse Point, Michigan. In Manhattan Island, New York as in Bellevue, Washington, and everywhere in between and beyond. When we put "mammon" before God , mammon is our God. When we put our boat before God, our boat is our God. When we put our house & health before God, our house & health is our God. Put God first. Seek HIM first, and all things will follow. So what about those who have not done so? For those who dropped out of college and went into business for self-serving reasons and made their millions? For those who went into entertainment for self-serving reasons and are living comfortably in the "Hills of Beverly" and Bel-Air? Is there any hope for them? No earthly hope. They cannot reverse the course of history and the path they chose to take. But there is still HOPE--as Jesus Himself said, " The things that are impossible with men are possible with God." Is there anything the wealthy can do to reverse history? Should they sell all they have and give it all to the church? I think that's a matter of conscience and is between the individual and God. I heard a pastor once say that we are administrators of God's wealth for Him. He seemed to think that having wealth isn't bad as long as you use it for the right reasons ! There's some truth to that--as long as those with the wealth can keep their priorities straight. IT's the temptations that wealth carries that leads people astray. And I shouldn't middle-class off the hook too easily either. There's a smugness in the middle class communities of America that may take too much pride in being neither rich nor poor. Well, you can just as easily be hooked on your material way of life as the rich or poor. It's a matter of the heart. There's no actual quantity that can be defined. By the way, I just took a break at 11: 00 a.m and watched the corn husking contest (see attached images) and bought some falafels (What's a falafel? See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falafel. ) The guy who I bought the falafels from gave me a few free samples earlier but when I didn't buy right away he said 'Thanks buddy" as I walked away despite my sincere assurances that I would be back. And I did come back an hour later. This time he said, "Thank you very much sir." You see how some clerks or merchants try to condition us by the amount of respect they give us (or don't). As I was standing there a beautiful model came up behind me unbeknownst to me until I stepped back into her wheelie dealie. I said "sorry" and she smiled. I was about to simply say hello, but I still don't know how to relate to the models around here, even though she looked almost socially normal. And I'm coming to the end of my message. I never can include as much as I want to--but I always am able to deliver the general thrust of what I intended. Let's sing a few songs as a reminder of what it is all about: Song: Ambassadors of God ! http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/a/m/ambassog.htm That's what we are--ambassadors of God--ushering in the Kingdom of Heaven. Let's remember why we are here and do our best to represent the gracious and loving God we know. Song: Are You Sowing the Seed? http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/a/y/aysowing.htm That's the question you need to ask yourself, rich, poor, or middle class--are you sowing the seed? Are you a "farmer" for God? Are you truly trying as if it is a matter of life & death? BECAUSE IT IS ! Closing Prayer: Dear God, Thank you for giving me the inspiration this morning to deliver a message from the heart and as close as I know to Your heart as possible. I am growing too, Lord, and as I grow closer to You I grow better at delivering the Word of God. Bless me as I attempt to do the best I can, great God. And bless my congregation. Let them help hold me up . Thank you Lord for this day. Amen. And thank you all for continuuing to respond to my Sunday Message. I truly appreciate it. It really does take a lot of work to put this all together and transmit it. And it is all worth it if it is edifying to the Body of Christ for the Glory of God! Have a nice week my friends. J.P. Kok Pastor Kok III Parting Hymn: Bless us Ere We Go http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/s/w/sweetsbu.htm For More About Beverly Hills, Try Some of the Following Web Sites: http://www.alisonwinston.com/profile_bevhills_history.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beverly_Hills,_California http://www.beverlyhills.org/presence/connect/CoBH/Homepage/For+Residents/Facts+and+Figures/History+of+Beverly+Hills http://www.beverlyhills.org/presence/connect/CoBH/Homepage/For+Visitors/Facts+and+Figures/History+of+Beverly+Hills/RES-WC-History_Timeline And if you NEED HELP : E-MAIL ME AT [email protected] Include “please read chief” in the subject line

Don't be Fishermen, Be Fishers of Men !