Imitate

August 8, 2026

“Therefore I urge you, imitate me.” 1 Corinthians 4:16

“Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.” 1 Corinthians 11:1

Many of you know me as a soccer fan, but I am also a basketball fan. I used to play basketball so much when I was in middle school and high school. I remember those days when, on Sunday, I would play basketball for hours and hours until the sun set. I remember those weekday evenings when I would sneak out of a personal study session (In Korea, education is very strict and competitive, so schools had mandatory evening study sessions where students were forced to do personal studies at school. For me, I was at school until 10 p.m.) just to play basketball with friends. On lucky days, we wouldn’t be caught by our teachers, and we would be spanked pretty hard.

Basketball was a boom in Korea in the 90’s, when I was in school, because of a popular Japanese comic book called ‘Slam Dunk.’ This series was a huge sensation among Korean boys like me. It inspired us to play ball. I remember studying the comic carefully to improve my basketball handling (dribbling) skills or my shooting form. I ‘imitated’ the comic book to improve my basketball skills.

When I was a freshman in college, one of the required classes was preaching. I don’t remember much from that class, but one of the few things I remember was that the professor told us to copy sermons from famous preachers. He was not teaching us to plagiarize. He wanted us to ‘imitate’ well-known speakers. That was one way to improve our speaking skills.

Paul tells us to ‘imitate.’ And we must ‘imitate’ Jesus Christ. There is no shame in imitating Christ. That’s what Jesus wants from us. It will help us to be like Him. Let us imitate.

Beautiful

August 1, 2026

On one of my run routes, there is a corn field. When I was running that course today, I

was surprised to see the whole field filled with fully grown corn and I thought to myself,

“When did all of these grow so fast?” Then, I started seeing all the flowers and plants that

were scattered all over the side of the trail. They were of different colors: white, yellow,

purple, and so forth. They were spread out so randomly, but as I was passing by them

they seemed to be in harmony with one another, and the whole scenery was so beautiful

that I forgot that I was struggling in my running (I was fatigued by that point).

I really enjoyed the Vacation Bible School this week. It was a blessing to see the kids

come and learn more about the goodness of God, and for the youth and adults to get

together to offer their ministry for this wonderful cause. We took a group picture with

everyone on Thursday night. We all come from different backgrounds, and yet, everyone

gathered together looked so beautiful. There is just something special about being in

God’s dominion.

The wisest man that ever lived once said, “He has made everything beautiful in its time.”

Ecclesiastes 3:11. What God creates is beautiful, and there is great joy in it. I pray that

when we look around and witness all of God’s creation, may we continue to worship Him

and praise Him.

Remember

July 25, 2026

“And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt.” Genesis 19:29

Lot was not the most righteous man in the world, but he wasn’t such a bad guy either. He seemed to be a just man. (If you have time, try reading the whole chapter.) When the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, Lot invited them in for the night and showed them hospitality.

When night came, the men of the city came to violate Lot’s two guests. What was Lot’s response? He refused. He did all he could to protect his guests. He knew that was the right thing to do. Lot was even willing to give up his daughters in order to protect the guests that he had brought in. Eventually, the angels blinded the men.

The angels warned Lot to tell his family and run away from the city as soon as possible, for it was time for the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Lot took it seriously and escaped from the city before it was too late. Lot and his daughters were spared. (You can read about his wife in the chapter.)

How was Lot saved, though? Yes, he listened to the angels. But how was that possible? The verse above tells us that it was because God remembered Abraham. Isn’t that so powerful? From this, we can learn two things: First, remember that someone is always praying for you. So, don’t be discouraged or fall into despair. Second, remember to pray for others all the time. What Abraham did for Lot is something we can do for others by praying for them. Intercessory prayer should be included in every prayer we make, and your prayers will change someone’s life forever.