During the Chinese New Year, many will be busy with all the visiting, feasting, chatting, etc. But in the midst of all this, remember the Lord Jesus Christ. And let the activities and items of cultural significance be catalysts for not only remembering what He has done for you but also let them be opportunities to witness for Him. During this time of the year, we can remember and share with others about our salvation, changed lives, and eternal hope.

The Significance of the Colour Red – Our Salvation
The colour red is significant to the Chinese: it¹s a colour of prosperity, happiness, and good luck themes celebrated during Chinese New Year.
As Christians, the colour red is also very significant to us. We as believers have the blood of Christ, the Lamb of God, shed for us for the remission of sin. So during this Chinese New Year, as we don our red clothes and drape red banners over our doors, let us remember what the Lord Jesus Christ has done for us and to be thankful for our salvation.

The Significance of Spring – Our Changed Lives
Chinese New Year is also called the Spring Festival because it occurs at the cusp of winter and spring. It celebrates the coming of new life after a long winter. Debts are paid off, and when friends and family members meet, greetings are exchanged and old grievances are forgotten.
We have been saved by the shed blood of Christ unto a new life. There should be a changed life – our appetites and our desires should be those of Christ. Our behaviour and our manners should be that of Christ. As we visit our friends and relatives, let us remember to show forth our changed lives. Let us show forth the fragrance of the fruit we bear in Christ.
Chinese New Year, although joyful, can be a painful time for some of us. There might be relatives and friends we loathe to meet. We might wish we could sever ties with them. What are the hurts that exist between you and them? Forgive as Christ has forgiven, and seek forgiveness, to pay the debt and to start off the year with a clean slate before God and man.

The Significance of the Feast Our Eternal Hope
Chinese New Year is a time of feasting and there is great significance in the food consumed. Pineapple tarts are eaten to signify the coming of wealth. Raw fish is tossed high with crunchy vegetables and candied spices to symbolize the hope of abundant life and success in business.
But for those who are believers, we know that the Lord is in charge of all things and circumstances. As we enjoy the reunion dinner with our families on Chinese New Year’s Eve, let us look forward to our eternal hope, not in the material gains of this life, but in our future rewards.

As we eat the reunion dinner and as we visit our relatives and friends, let us consider them and ask if they shall partake together with us, that great Marriage Feast of the Lamb. Let us share with them the greater significance of the colour red, of a permanent spring, and an eternal feast.    (MARK CHEN)

Christians casually, sometimes even flippantly, refer to Jesus as Lord. But what does it really mean to call Him “Lord”? It means Jesus is our ruler, sovereign, owner, master, and sole authority. He is Lord.

Without Jesus as your Lord, you have no good thing. As David expressed in Psalm 16, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.” Don’t be deceived by what you think you have—youth is fleeting, wealth is empty, gifts and abilities are ultimately worthless. Without Jesus Christ as Lord of your life, you have no good thing. Surrendering to His lordship is the starting point and purpose for true life.

A popular but terribly misguided notion is that Jesus can be your Savior without being Lord. Perhaps you’ve even thought this way: I’m trusting in Jesus to forgive my sins; later in life I’ll make Him Lord. That thinking is false—nobody makes Jesus Lord. He is Lord. He doesn’t just want to forgive you and escort you to heaven. He wants to live through you and change you on the way.

So what does it mean to experience Jesus Christ as Lord of your life? It means you are yielding to His rule over every area of your life. He is . . .

Lord of your conduct. Jesus wants His desires and His will to rule over your actions, your words and feelings—your very character.

Lord of your relationships. Jesus wants to preside over your dating relationship or how you treat your spouse. He wants to rule over the way you parent. Jesus wants to be Lord over every interaction with business associates. All your relationships should yield to His rule.

Lord of your time. What should you do with your available time? How should you invest your life? If you want to live a life of purpose, you need to be about more than just flipping pages on the calendar. Jesus wants His priorities to be yours.

Lord of your talents. When you become a Christian, you are given some unique gifts; they are supernatural abilities intended to build God’s kingdom. Jesus wants to be Lord of the talents He gave you—whether those are gifts of music, teaching, mercy, helping, etc. Jesus wants to rule over how you invest those gifts in His kingdom.

Lord of your treasure. According to Christ, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21). Jesus cares about your money because He knows that until He has what you have, He doesn’t have you. When you surrender all you have to the lordship of Jesus, He gives it back so you can use it for Him. And He wants you to experience the joy in that.

Have you embraced Jesus as Lord? Nothing in your life will ever make sense until this does. If you ever wonder, What is life really about? How shall I invest my life?—here is your answer. Everything flows from this: Jesus Christ as Lord.

He wants to be Lord of every area of your life. What areas do you still need to surrender to His control?                                               (JAMES MACDONALD)

It’s comforting to really believe things will work out okay…even on a day like Good Friday, with so much suffering and pain. When nothing made sense and everything was hard, God worked it out for good—bringing the greatest blessing mankind will ever receive! We can believe Friday was good because of the result it brought, not because of what happened at the time.

There are usually two sides to everything. The cross has two: a crucifixion side and a resurrection side. And Jesus had to endure one side to get to the other. But if He hadn’t endured, then we’d all still be left without a Savior and no forgiveness of our sins.

Now, we don’t just go from Friday to Sunday. We have to learn to endure Saturday, which I think is sometimes the hardest to do. We’ll call it the middle. In everything, there’s a beginning, an end, and a middle. The beginning is sometimes a little bit exciting because it’s a new thing. And the end is certainly exciting because it’s where we experience the victory. But, oh…that middle! The Saturdays may be even harder than the Fridays because on Saturday, we’re in the grave and we’re not sure what’s going to happen next.

Most of the time, we don’t know how long the middle’s going to last, and although God knows…He’s not telling. (Isn’t He great at keeping secrets?) So we need to remember that when we’re going through the middle of something, we can be assured Sunday always comes after Friday. But we have to endure Saturday—we have to outlast the devil, remain steadfast and not give up or quit. When we do, we will enjoy the resurrection benefits and blessings that come on Sunday.

So, I want to remember that Jesus endured the cross because He knew what was waiting on the other side of it. In our daily lives, we are going to have to endure some things, and we’re going to face some hard times. But the only way to do it is to go through it.

Whether we’re hit by an unexpected circumstance, suffering for doing something wrong or for resisting temptation and sin by doing what’s right, we have to go through things. But waiting for you on the other side of the hard times is the joy of obtaining the prize—the good result.          (JOYCE MEYER)

In Acts the Bible tells us we need to be in relationships for our personal and spiritual growth. As Paul and the early Christians taught and received teaching “from house to house,”  we  too must  respond  in our
walk with Christ in each other’s homes (Acts 5:42; 20:20)! Even in the shadow of the Temple they did this, even in the shadow of your Church you can do this too. Why did they do this? Because they needed to be connected to one another in their fragmented and persecuted world, we desperately need to be connected too! They needed a way and place to do as Christ modeled and taught them, the multiplication of disciples, leaders, and churches so that God’s Kingdom will be built and glorified.

Are you thinking this is great but not for me? Perhaps you are like me, struggling a very busy full plate in life. A plate that is overfilled with mounds of things that you need to do and are responsible for in your life. Perhaps, they are overflowing your dish. We all struggle with the demands of our career and all of the frustrations and stress placed on us, such as goals, deadlines work flow and the office high jinx. Then there are our family obligations, taking the kids to school, picking them up here and there, dealing with all of their demands and obligations too. Then maybe you are already volunteering for something in the church or community. Maybe you are juggling work and school and family, to the point there is not a free minute in our week. Then you are asked, “Hey, why don’t you join our small group?” What??? I do not have the time! I cannot possibly commit to anything else. I am overloaded and overwhelmed! Well, to be honest, then you are the person who needs to be in a small group the most!

Why? Because, it is God’s plan for you to be in quality relationships to Him and then to others within the confines of a loving community, which is also the definition of “Church.” Because, we all need a place to belong and work through the issues of life. Because, we need to be loved and give our love. As a Christian our primary thrust is to know and grow in Christ. Where our goal is to be a surrendered and poured out offering to Christ’s glory (John 14-15; Gal. 2:20-21; Phil. 3:10). How can this be accomplished when all aspects of our life are riddled with stress? By learning spiritual disciplines and receiving the discipleship, relationships and encouragement that small groups offer. We need a place to grow and we as humans in relationship to Christ grow best in community with people who love and care for you!                                                                                (RICHARD J. KREJCIR)

What was Jesus prohibiting when He told us not to lay up treasure for ourselves on      earth? Scripture nowhere forbids ownership and investment in property or business. The anarchist idea that property is theft does not come from the Bible. Jesus commends putting money to work (Luke 19:11-26). Scripture praises the ant for storing in the summer the food it will need in the winter, and condemns the believer who makes no future provision for his family (Prov.6:6ff.; 1 Tim.5:8). Lack of future financial planning is regarded as irresponsibility.

What then was Jesus prohibiting? Living only for this life, loving the things of this world, purely selfish and excessive accumulation of wealth, lack of compassion for those in genuine need (the ‘undeserving’ poor), the foolish fantasy that happiness is to be found in materialism. To lay up treasure on earth does not mean being prudent and responsible by making sensible provision for the future, but being covetous like misers who hoard, and materialists who are greedy. It is thinking that you are the owner rather than the renter of earthly goods; the creator rather than the steward of all that you have. Storing up treasures on earth for yourselves, says Jesus, is foolish because they do not last. Moth and rust destroy earthly treasures and thieves break in and steal them. Nothing can protect your investments if businesses can go bankrupt, banks can fail, currency can be devalued, inflation can occur, stocks can collapse, property values fall, and taxes can rise.

Instead, Jesus teaches us to store up our treasures in heaven, which do not deteriorate but last forever. To store up treasure in heaven is to do anything on earth which will last for eternity. It is a good investment. What are such heavenly investments? The development of a Christ-like character: the fruit of the Spirit; growth in the knowledge of God; investment in the lives of others, especially in bringing them further into the kingdom of Christ; the use of our money and resources for the growth of the kingdom, which is the only investment whose dividends are everlasting. What we freely give away can never be taken from us by any earthly circumstance. We will always have the knowledge that our investment was worthwhile. Our hearts follow our interests and investments. Our lives are blessed by the investments we make. Where we put our treasure, our heart will be also. It is better to put it where it will have lasting good.

Behind our choice between storing up treasures on earth and treasures in heaven, there is our choice between two masters – whom we are going to serve: God or Money.

How can we make sure that we are choosing God over Money? How can we make sure that Money is our servant and not our Master? By giving it away. We are freed from money’s power when we give it away to serve God and His kingdom, to do good, to support kingdom activities. Money cannot do much good when it is stored up on earth. It is when it is released in God’s service that it can do much good and it can bless our souls.  (TED SCHRODER)