Spiritual Advantage with Sam Stone

One of the major breakthroughs as we enter 2023 is the increasing accessibility to AI (Artificial Intelligence) technology, especially for writing and painting. Many of you have heard in the news lately that you can type a subject or headline on the computer, and it will write a pretty well-researched essay for you. You can ask AI to write an article or a blog post in seconds.
My son told me that AI could probably write my sermons for me, but I doubt it because I write my sermon based on my personal enlightenment from the scriptures. I get the message directly from the Head Office. But if what he said were true, AI could replace me, and I will be out of my job soon. You have heard that AI will soon replace many jobs, including drivers and even doctors.
AI will affect everybody’s life, and your life will never be the same. The next car you buy might drive by itself. You get in the car, maybe in the back seat without a driver in the front seat, tell it where you want to go, “Hey Google, take me to the church,” and just sit and read your book or chat with someone on the phone, and soon you are at your destination. Would that make you nervous or give you peace?
For peace of mind, I decided to try it out to see if AI could really write a sermon for me. So, this week, I typed in the subject of my sermon on OpenAI, “How to empty yourself.” Immediately, a blinking cursor appeared as if it was thinking and researching from millions of sources on the Internet. I was extremely excited to see the outcome.
Unfortunately, it stopped and spat out a question saying, “I’m not sure what you mean by ‘empty yourself.’ Could you provide more context or clarify your question?” I was both disappointed and relieved. Disappointed because I thought it could assist me with my sermon research and save me some time. Relieved because I realized I am still not replaceable by AI. It has no access to the Head Office.
Now, I have peace! You know I am kidding! Actually, I have no worries at all because AI can assist us with thinking but cannot replace our wisdom. It can think for us but cannot attain enlightenment on our behalf because it has a brain but not a spirit. Peace comes from the Holy Spirit, as we discussed last week.
Today, I am sharing with you the second secret to inner peace. I began this new sermon series on “How to Cultivate PEACE Within” starting last week. There are five pillars of inner peace, and I am using the word PEACE as the mnemonic acronym to help you easily remember them. I hope this will kick off our new year on the right foot and probably make the rest of your life the best of your life.
P – Protect God’s Presence in You
E – Empty Myself
A
C
E
Last week, we shared that the first pillar of inner peace is “Presence,” by which I mean “God’s Presence” and that we must “Protect God’s Presence in Us at all costs.” If you have God’s presence, you have peace. We looked at how Joseph protected little Jesus from getting murdered by the tyrant Herod as an allegory for defending God’s presence in us.
Today, we will learn the second pillar of inner peace from Jesus. The Bible reveals that Jesus maintained his peace by “emptying himself.” (Philippians 2:7). What does it mean, and how does it help you maintain your inner peace? AI doesn’t have the answer, but the Bible does. So, let’s discover the secret.

Happy New Year! What are your expectations for the year? I researched the forecast for 2023 and found many optimistic predictions, even though they are more toward the end of the year. For example, the pandemic will end globally by the end of the year. The economy will also recover by the end of the year.
Don’t be discouraged by the phrase “the end of the year.” At least we know the light is at the end of the tunnel. All’s well that ends well. All you need to do is to brace for the first part of the year. Life is full of ups and downs, peaks and valleys. We should always hope for the best and be prepared for the worst.
Having had some rough years recently, we may find it hard to have a positive outlook. However, history shows that tough times are the best times to build character, develop spiritual maturity, and cultivate enlightenment.
Peace within is the most significant spiritual state we must cultivate because whatever the future holds, you can navigate through life with a smile in your heart if you know how to maintain peace within. The good news is Jesus came to give us this peace. He is known as the Prince of Peace. He said,
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” (John 14:27).
Peace is inner happiness that nothing in life can disturb. Peace is when your heart smiles even when your face can’t smile. Notice he says that the peace he gives us is different from what the world gives us because the world can only offer temporary and superficial peace. Jesus offers profound peace that can navigate the most severe storms of life.
His peace allowed him to forgive the perpetrators while suffering on the cross. That is the kind of peace we all need, and only he can give us.
Starting today, for the next five weeks, we will make this year the best year ever by cultivating peace within. In fact, if you have true inner peace, you can make the rest of your life the best of your life.
There are five pillars of peace, and I put together a mnemonic acronym using the word PEACE to help you easily remember these five pillars. This week, we will start with the first letter of PEACE:
P is for Presence, meaning the presence of God. If you have God’s presence, you have peace in the present.
As you know, Jesus’ middle name is “Emmanuel,” meaning “God is with us.” That means his presence is God’s presence. The problem is you must not only nurture his presence but also defend his presence in you because this fallen world love to sabotage God’s presence in you.
So, today we will learn how to effectively nurture God’s presence so that you have peace within, your hearts will never be troubled, and you have no fear for whatever the future brings. Let’s begin!

An expert in human development told me that a person’s foundation of faith and character is solidified by about 14 years old. That means if your child receives proper nurturing, discipline, and education, including attending Sunday School regularly before age 14, they are likely to turn out well.
After 14, they may go astray and explore dangerous territories like most teenagers. You will feel frustrated as parents as they stop listening to you, but rest assured because they will turn around later and build their life on the foundation they received before 14.
The spiritual journey of humans is somewhat like salmon fish. Young salmons leave home and travel all over the oceans, but no matter how far they go, they still find their way to their birthplace to spawn. They don’t waste time looking for another habitat.
Therefore, do everything you can to nurture your children, grandchildren, or any children under your care before they are 14, and don’t worry after that because you cannot do anything about them anyway. You can only give them non-anxious nudges, pray for them, and leave the rest to God.
If we review our own childhood, we will find this pattern pretty accurate. We all meander through life after 14, but our spiritual anchor stays in the same place, with few exceptions.
I wonder how God arranged a perfect habitat to raise his Son on earth. If God chose Mary because she was the perfect mother for Jesus, God must have chosen Joseph because he was the ideal father for Jesus’ forming years.
I hardly talked about Joseph because, during the Christmas season, we mainly focused on Mary—her faith, courage, and sacrifice to be the mother of Jesus. During this season, we are also busy with special music and celebrations that often crowd out our attention on Joseph as if he was just a minor role in the Christmas pageant.
However, the role of the father is almost equally important to provide stability in raising a healthy child physically, mentally, and spiritually. According to psychologists, a child growing up without a father could be devastating, even though not as devastating as without a mother. I grew up without both during those years, so I know what they mean.
Some might argue that Jesus doesn’t need an earthly father since he is God’s Son. So they treat Joseph as a non-essential figure in Jesus’ life. However, since Jesus was also “fully human,” as he is fully God, he also needed a normal family to grow up healthily.
Even though the Bible doesn’t give us much information about Joseph, we discover he could be a model of a loving husband and a great father based on what we know about him. The last time we read about Joseph in the Bible is when Jesus was about 12 or 13.
Some historians discovered Joseph died in a construction accident. The Bible says he was a carpenter, but he could also be equivalent to today’s architect because the term “architect” came from Greek, ἀρχιτέκτων (arkhitéktōn), from the root, τέκτων (téktōn), which means “carpenter,” “builder,” or “master of art and engineering.”
As a man from the Davidic lineage, he was likely to be well-educated in the Scriptures and responsible for teaching his children. We know Jesus also learned carpentry from him as well as the scriptures.
Even though we don’t know how Joseph disappeared, at least we know he was there for Jesus’ forming years and played an essential role in Jesus’ physical, mental, and spiritual upbringing. He was chosen to bring up Emmanuel—God’s presence—on earth.
Since the Scripture lesson for today, the Fourth Sunday in Advent, focuses on Joseph, let’s learn why God chose him as an earthly father to raise Jesus. Along the way, we will learn how to be a person chosen by God to fulfill God’s purpose on earth. Let’s begin!

Legend has it that when John Lennon was in kindergarten, his teacher asked the class what they wanted to be when they grew up. Each kid stood up and voiced their dreams. “I want to be a doctor!”  “I want to be a teacher!”  “I want to be an engineer!” “I want to be a firefighter!”
When it came to John Lennon’s turn, he said, “I want to be happy!”  The teacher said, “John, that’s not my question. What do you want to BE when you grow up?” Lennon said, “I want to BE happy!”
“John, you don’t understand my question,” the teacher said disappointingly, but Lennon replied, “Yes, I do, but YOU just don’t understand my ANSWER.” (End quote).
One important thing we need to learn from children is their confidence and lack of doubt. Doubt is a big killjoy and takes away our sense of humor and creativity. Doubt also hinders our potential. The Bible says,
“For the doubter, being double-minded and unstable in every way, must not expect to receive anything from the Lord.” (James 1:7-8).
See, that’s serious! Doubt can deny us our wishes from God. Doubt is not unbelief but between belief and unbelief. That’s why James said they are double-minded and unstable, wasting mental energy on ambivalence. Jesus wants us to pray with faith, not with doubt.
Children are happier because they don’t have doubt, but as we grow older, after encountering disappointments, setbacks, and tragedies, we begin to doubt the possibility of the pursuit of happiness. I wonder how many people have developed crippling doubt after the prolonged pandemic.
Now and then, you hear people say, “You cannot pursue happiness. Chasing happiness is vanity.” I was curious about why they came up with such a conclusion. Our national motto includes the God-given rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, distinguishing us from the rest of the world.
After some research, I discovered that those who discourage you from pursuing happiness are mostly unhappy. Misery loves company, so they don’t want you to have what they don’t have. They cast doubt on you, putting a stumbling block on your pursuit of happiness. Ignore them.
The Scriptures reveal that God wants you to be happy. Over and over again, the Bible says, “Rejoice always, and again I say rejoice.” Christianity is the only religion that sings at the funeral. Nowadays, some other religions try to copy us, but they are just copies.
When our children are unhappy, we parents feel like a failure. It’s the same with our heavenly Father. Jesus came to rescue us from this sea of suffering to the place of true happiness called heaven. He also teaches us how to live in heaven on earth. Jesus said,
“These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”  (John 15:11). 
Jesus has joy despite persecution and wants us to have the same joy to the fullest.
Today is the third Sunday of Advent, and we light the candle of joy and sing “Joy to the Word.” If you want to live with joy, you must eliminate doubt. Maybe that’s why Jesus wants us to be like children to enter the kingdom because they don’t have doubts but are full of joy.
We doubt when tragedy strikes or when we hit a setback. When he was in prison, John the Baptist began to doubt whether Jesus was the Messiah at all. That was a big deal because you would expect, out of all people, John must be the last one to doubt Jesus’ identity.
The good news is, based on Jesus’ answer to John’s doubt, we can discover four ways to overcome doubts. So, let’s begin!

As we entered December, I heard people talking about their New Year’s resolutions already. Even though I’m a last-minute planner, I admire those who plan early. Some want to eat healthily in the New Year. That’s a great habit because food is medicine, and if you eat right, you will prevent many troubles down the line and save a huge amount of money on medical costs.
Some want to quit a bad habit, and some want to develop a good practice. Gym memberships usually increase at the beginning of the New Year. Whether we can keep our resolution is another matter, but it tells us something about the human desire to change for the better.
It’s a paradox. We all want to change for the better, but at the same time, we also fear change because we don’t want to leave our comfort zone. Some people buy a smartphone because dumbphones are no longer available. As for me, I don’t like to wear new shoes because old shoes are the most comfortable. I liked to wear them until my wife secretly threw them away.
Here’s the paradox: people desire and fear change at the same time. As a result, people don’t change until the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change. We often call it hitting rock bottom. For those who resist change, hitting rock bottom is a good thing.
The question is, do we have to really wait until we hit rock bottom to change? What if it turns out to be too late when we hit rock bottom?
In 1988, when the entire nation of Burma rose up in protest for human rights and democracy, I told people with excitement that we had finally hit rock bottom, and the only way from then on was up. But a friend told me, “No, no, no! We will dig a hole under rock bottom and keep going down the abyss.” He was joking, but sadly it turned out to be true.
The lesson is we can’t rely on hitting rock bottom. For those who resist change, there is no bottom! My counselor gave me a word of wisdom on change, “If not now, when?” The “when” will never come; now is the only time to change. If you have something to change in your life, do it now. Don’t wait until the New Year. Figure out a way to overcome resistance right now.
Do you know the spiritual term for change is “repentance?” We often think repentance means regret, but it’s more than regret. The Hebrew word for repentance, “naham” means “regret and change.” Coincidently, the Chinese word for “repentance” is composed of two words, “悔改” (huigai), meaning “regret and change.”
Furthermore, the Greek word for repentance, “μετάνοια” (metanoia), also means “changing of heart and mind.” So, in conclusion, regret without change is not repentance.
The human desire to make New Year’s resolution reveals a deep spiritual longing for repentance—“regret  and change.” In today’s scripture lesson for the Second Sunday of Advent, John the Baptist, the greatest man ever born of women according to Jesus, said,
“Bear fruit worthy of repentance.” (Mt 3:8).
It means fruitfulness is evidence of repentance. Don’t you want your New Year’s resolution to bear fruit? We all want change to live our divine dreams. Your desire for a New Year’s resolution is God’s whisper to you to live a fruitful life. Let’s nail it once and for all so we don’t have to make the same resolution over and over again year after year. Let’s begin!

There is a Burmese idiom: “Drinking the Bitter Rain.” It came from a fable about a man in an ancient village who somehow foreknew that the upcoming rain would be poisonous. It would taste bitter and cause insanity if people drank it.
In that village, every home collected rainwater for drinking. So, he announced his forecast and warned people not to collect the upcoming rainwater and never drink from it, or they would become mentally sick. However, they ignored his warning and went ahead to drink it like they always did. As a result, the entire village lost its sanity.
He was very upset to see everyone go crazy and wished they had listened to his warning. The problem is, now everyone thought he was insane. Of course, when you are the only lucid person among loonies, you are the one that appears lunatic because you behave differently.
His anxiety intensified as everyone pointed their finger at him every day, laughed at him, and called him a fool. After a while, he became lonely and felt if he didn’t join them, he would lose his mind. So, he drank a cup of the bitter rain and joined the party.
So, when you hear your Burmese friends say, “I drank the bitter rain,” they mean, “I went with the flow,” or more precisely, “I surrendered to the peer pressure,” or “I drank the Koolaid.” The subtle difference is that they gave in, knowing it was harmful.
Would you drink the bitter rain? I am sure you wouldn’t, but when the pressure is high, will you give in? What’s your threshold for drinking the bitter rain? I think this fable speaks to our times.
Before Jesus left for the cross, he warned his disciples that the world was heading to insanity and his followers would face a great deal of pressure and temptations to give in to drink the bitter rain. Otherwise, they wouldn’t fit in. Jesus said,
And because of the increase of lawlessness, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. (Mat 24:12–13).
It’s easy to talk about love, but your love can grow cold when you see too much lovelessness and lawlessness around you. You will appear insane to practice love in a ruthless society. Just watch the news, and all you see is a dog-eat-dog world.
It becomes worse when they take advantage of you. You would be tempted to retaliate by becoming like them.
Jesus wants you to endure to the end. That means not giving in to drinking the bitter rain even if the whole world ridicules you. He said things would become worse as we approach the day of his return. He teaches us to be alert but not alarmed at times like this.
So, today, we will learn from Jesus how to resist drinking the bitter rain and keep our body, mind, and spirit awake and endure the trying times with light, love, and lucidity until he comes. Let’s begin!

This week, everyone has heard the news about Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), formerly known as the youngest billionaire in the world, suddenly being exposed as the biggest fraud, dragging down over a million investors with him.
Let’s analyze this case from a spiritual perspective on this Reign of Christ Sunday because there’s a life lesson for all of us to learn. Rember no one is an island. One man’s fall is everyone’s shame. So, let’s be humble and not judgemental because we gain wisdom only in humility.
When I was young, my grandma said it was bad luck to become wealthy before 30. I didn’t understand what she meant, but now, half a century later, I have seen enough young people ruined by their windfalls of fortune—with few exceptions.
Confucious said that people become established by 30 and unwavering by 40. Maybe that’s why people say life begins at 40. A friend told me that life begins when children move out and pets die. Well, it depends on what they mean by “life begins.”
Each time one of my children move out, I felt a part of my life has left. Each of them took a piece of me with them. You have heard of the empty nest syndrome. But I understand they need to learn to fly by themselves.
However, we are not talking about when life begins but about when people become mature enough to handle prosperity, power, and prestige. As my grandma said, it is a curse, not a blessing, to wield prosperity before maturity.
A few weeks ago, I mentioned the Eight Winds of life constantly blowing at us, representing the eight stressors of life. In case you missed it, here’s the slide I have presented. There are four sour stresses and four sweet stresses.
The four sour stresses are Scorn, Slander, Setback, and Suffering. I call them “overt stresses” because you know when they hit you, and you feel the pain, but at least you can deal with them since they are overt.
The four sweet stresses are insidious. They are Praise, Prestige, Profit, and Pleasure. Everyone loves these sweet stresses, but they kill you covertly from the inside, like eating sugar and processed carbs that taste yummy but slowly ruin your internal organs. When the symptoms surface, it’s usually too late to reverse.
Sam Bankman-Fried has been knocked out by a massive sweet storm. His parents are law professors at Standford University, and he graduated from MIT. People trusted him and invested in him because of his impressive background. It was a perfect context for an ignorant young man to invite a perfect storm.
Remember Bill Clinton’s famous line, “… just because I could”? If you are unfamiliar with his case, Clinton confesses on CBS News that he cheated because “he could.” That is a profound confession because it reveals a major flaw in humans.
Given a perfect opportunity, everyone could do the unthinkable. Jesus taught us to pray, “Lead us not into temptations,” because he knows we are too ignorant when facing temptations. So, it’s better to ask to stay away from them than to resist them.
Jesus prayed on the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” He says ignorance is not innocence. The crucifixion is a scene of utter injustice done by human ignorance. They did it because they could—with the power they wielded.
So, let’s use this opportunity to reflect on our tendency to commit injustice out of ignorance and how to avoid it. I am not talking about you; of course, you are not ignorant; I am talking about the one sitting next to you or your next-door neighbor! Let’s begin!

Recently, I watched an inspiring Standford GSB (Graduate School of Business) interview with Eric Yuan, founder of Zoom—the video conferencing software. Many companies collapsed or faced a crisis during the pandemic, but Zoom blossomed into a ubiquitous communication app by turning the crisis into an opportunity for exponential growth.
I am sure all of you have used Zoom for family chats, business meetings, church gatherings, and global conferences. Many school classes went on Zoom, and even many couples married on Zoom during the pandemic. It grew from 2,000 employees to 6,000 in 18 months. Now, it’s worth $25 billion.
When Eric Yuan looked for investment as a startup company,  no one wanted to invest in it, saying it was a competitive field. We already had established companies like Skype, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams. But Yuan wanted to prove them wrong, and he succeeded beyond anyone’s expectation.
Eric Yuan is a Christian, and his company culture is simple: “Delivering Happiness.” He said every employee is encouraged to maintain happiness within themselves so that they can deliver happiness to the world. Their company value is also in one simple word: “Care”—caring about Community, Customers, Company, Teammates, and Selves. You can see his focus on simplicity.
The mission of the company is to “Make communications frictionless and secure.” That’s why Zoom has won worldwide usage over competitors because it removes the friction of the video conferencing process. Zoom simplifies people’s lives.
Yuan says he treats every problem as an opportunity to grow. The Chinese word for “crisis” has two characters: “Danger and Opportunity” (危机 wei-ji). Leaders sense the opportunity when most people only see the danger during a crisis. In fact, Jesus wants you to focus on the opportunity during a crisis.
Jesus says when you hear the news that the world is going to hell in a handbasket, don’t panic, but turn it into an opportunity for expansion. In today’s scripture lesson, Jesus teaches us how to turn a crisis into an opportunity. So, let’s learn from the greatest servant leader in human history, the Son of God himself, how to take advantage of a crisis for a fruitful future. Let’s begin!