As many of you reading may already know, Pastor Mark Driscoll, lead pastor of mega-church Mars Hill in Seattle, had recently resigned from his position as lead pastor.  Prior to his resignation, Driscoll was suspended from ministry duties, asked to step down from a church planting network/organization that he had founded, and subject to an investigation of misuse of church funds (this is not an exhaustive list but only some of the things he is going through).  Let me say that I am not a fan of Driscoll nor do I fall in the camp of people who want to publically humiliate and discredit his ministry.  I have listened to several of his sermons and have been incredibly blessed and at the same time have been appalled at some things he’s said.  However, as I reflect and pray about this situation, a few things come to mind and heart that I believe presents a far deeper issue for everyone.
First, to those who have been hurt by the lack of wisdom of church leaders, whether it be misuse of finances, sexual misconduct, or a heartless power-trip, I pray and humbly ask for your forgiveness.  Pastors are indeed imperfect people.  But I also pray that through these situations, you become aware of the depth of fallen-ness of all man but at the same time the heights of love, mercy, and grace in which Jesus delivers all of us from that fallen nature.  Pastors are called to a higher standard, as those called to shepherd, teach and equip the congregation.  The church is called to be a community of grace and forgiveness in which a pastor is a part of.  Both must happen simultaneously. 
Second, we all as individuals need a deep-rooted faith, built on the cornerstone Who is Christ.  I’m reminded time and time again of my years of campus ministry as a college student, specifically remembering those whom I served with to make Christ known but who have fallen away after college as a result of a lack of deep roots.  Maybe it was because they relied heavily on a single leader, or organization.  Maybe it was because the worries of this world “choked” them up to prevent growth.  Whatever the reason may be, through prayer, reading of scripture, corporate worship, fasting, among many other spiritual disciples, we must individually and corporately find our joy of salvation and eternal destiny and purpose in Jesus and Him alone.
Lastly, as Paul admonishes the church in Ephesus, we must strive to be a body that speaks truth in love to one another.  This is not simply an accountability call, but as the verse continues, we speak truth in love to one another that we may “mature” as the body whose head is Christ.  One telltale sign of a church that is mature is one that speaks truth in love.  It’s not truth AND love, but the speaking truth in the position and posture of love, which is relationship and Christ-like perspective of one another.  I think of Driscoll and though I don’t know the details of his situation, perhaps he did not have spiritual friends to speak freely, truthfully, and lovingly into his life.  And it goes both ways.  As we speak truth in love, we must be gracious RECEIVERS of truth in love as well.  Believers must be ready in all seasons to hear the tough stuff with an unoffendable heart.  Friends, practice this.  God does not speak through His Word for nothing.  He KNOWS the BEST for us.
It’s been incredibly difficult for me to hear stories like this, especially as a pastor.  I have heard and personally experienced way too many stories where leaders in the church have fallen and been asked to step down from their positions for various reasons.  But I remind myself of several things that brings me back to my feet - there are sheep looking to me to point them to Jesus, there’s a world out there that needs to know Jesus (and I get to be a part of that!), and most importantly, Christ has already defeated sin and death on the cross and walks, leads, and fights with us to the way of hope and life.  And that is the best thing of all, that “God demonstrated His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
God bless you and keep you.

From Pastor Keeyoung’s Heart
October 26, 2014

Seems like Ebola is the “hot topic” that is being talked about more than anything else on the news and among people. When I heard that one of the Ebola patients flew into NIH for treatment during the week, I couldn’t help but worry about our church people who work at NIH. Not only them, but for most of us who live not too far from NIH, it’s something that gets our attention for sure.  I felt so bad that an ordinary nurse who was simply trying to help out an Ebola patient ended up contracting the disease. I’m sure a lot of things could have been done differently to prevent such a tragedy, but I can’t imagine the pain and the hopelessness she is dealing with knowing that there is no cure for the disease. I just pray and hope that we find a way to cure this deadly disease as soon as possible.
I’m currently listening to CNN news where John Kerry, the Secretary of State, is having a press conference as he was making an urgent plea for more countries around the world to step up and respond to the Ebola outbreak to fight against this deadly disease. However, the contributions made by a few countries tallied up to only a third of the $1 billion dollar goal set by the UN as of Friday morning. The news anchor was emphasizing the fact that only a handful of countries have contributed to this important cause out of 193 UN member countries so far. One of the lines that really stood out from his speech was “winning this fight is going to be costly and will take all our effort.” I don’t know much about politics and I’m not trying to promote anyone, but the Secretary Kerry is right on point on that. I almost said “amen” to it because that applies to not only the fight against Ebola but our missions as Christians living on this earth.
The great commission that we are called to carry out will require everyone’s effort, not just pastors and leaders. When the news anchor made the comment on how only a few members of the UN countries are making contributions, I immediately thought about the current state of the church. One of the hardest things to do in church is mobilizing and gathering up the members to be involved in the Kingdom work. Whether people are too busy or not motivated, only a handful of people end up doing the majority of the work for churches. The same trend has been and is still happening in local and global missions where only the so called, “missionaries” are evangelizing with urgency. Many of us who are living the American Dream, are busy pursuing our own agendas and thus have put aside the great commission that Jesus commanded to every Christian. 
The bible tells us that every believer has a role to play in the body of Christ. In Ephesians 4, the apostle Paul urges (just like John Kerry made an urgent plea) the church to live a life worthy of the calling we have received. And in order for a body of Christ to grow and mature in the likeness of Jesus Christ, Paul says it’s crucial that each part has to do its work (v. 16). As quoted earlier, not only will it require everyone’s effort, winning this “fight” is going to be costly. Someone has to be willing to pay the price as our Lord Jesus Christ stepped up and paid the price for us on the cross. And Jesus is asking us to do the same. We currently have a couple hundred “members” of NCFC but only a few are making a contribution toward winning “souls.” It is my plea to the church of NCFC to step up and get involved in saving people from the deadliest disease called “sin.” I pray and hope that many more will join in and become more involved in winning souls for the Kingdom of God.

From Pastor Brian’s Heart
October 19, 2014