EPIC Christmas Party + Personal Message from Chris Koga

Hello everyone! Here are some photos from our EPIC Christmas Party a couple of Saturdays ago, and below you'll find a personal message from Chris Koga, enjoy!
~Sheri

Kei with food from L&L's :P

Austin as "The Grinch"!

EPIC's awkward family photos

"Dad's in jail"

"bathroom mirror, myspace"

"Charlie's Angels? + family friend"

Worship Afterwards :D

photo credit: Kristy Lee

Hey students of EPIC! It was good to see those of you who could make it out to our Christmas party last Sunday! We had a great time with Austin in his green skin-tight body suit dressed as the Grinch and Traci being her usual crazy self! I appreciate them and all the stuff they planned for us! It was definitely a fun night with the free food, good conversation, and the action-packed gift exchange, but I’ll tell you that for me, my favorite part was our time of singing Christmas songs together. There was over 40 of us packed in a living room celebrating with wonder and awe and worship that Christ had come to us, and for us, and was now with us.

You know, in the midst of all of the parties and celebrations that I attend during this busy vacation time, I like to think about a guy named Simeon who doesn’t appear in any nativity scenes or in many Christmas cards, but he’s actually a significant player in the first Christmas pageant.

In Luke 2:25 it says, “Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon Him.”

Things weren’t going real well for the nation of Israel. They hadn’t heard from God for many years and were under Roman rule. They had lost their political independence and were living in fear of the capable, crafty, and cruel King Herod, and many were wondering if the Messiah would ever come.

But verse 26 shows us that Simeon had good reason for his hope and anticipation: “It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.”

And so what happened was that the Holy Spirit prompted Simeon to go to the temple courts at just the right time on just the right day that Joseph and Mary were bringing their infant to the Temple. When Simeon looked at the baby Jesus, now about 6 weeks old, he knew that God’s promise had been kept. Here was Immanuel, “God With Us,” to make everything right, to provide comfort by His presence, and to eliminate rejection, fear, and loneliness and to meet our greatest need in the forgiveness of sin.

Verse 28 of Luke 2 says that Simeon reached down and took Jesus out of Mary’s arms and began to praise God. As he broke out into praise, he acknowledged that God had not only fulfilled the individual promise to him, but also the promises of the prophets to send the Anointed One to comfort both Jews and Gentiles.

The presence of God with us is our celebration during this season and our joy each day in giving us cause and reason to break out in praise that God has met our deepest need in the Lord Jesus. So if you feel lonely, empty, afraid, and maxed out. If you need some comfort, some consoling, or a fresh sense of God’s presence, you can find what you’re looking for in Jesus. Have a merry Christmas EPIC family and hope to see you all at our winter retreat!

~Chris

Brads Message Respone On The Parables, The Growing and The Mustard Seed

~Its really encouraging listening and learning from Gods word through Brads message. I feel energized and refreshed to serve Him with diligence in my service to Him. There are times when I get very burnt out in my service, but by Gods strength I will press on for the sake of His Kingdom
~Praise The Lord! I truly believe in Brads massage. Jesus is truly the light of the truth and we definitely need to reflect and communicate the worth of the Gospel to people. It is so true we dont have the power to change and only God has the power we need to be faithful from the smallest level and God will do all the rest. BE FAITHFUL to our Lord and he will do wonders! Praise the Lord! - Brian
~Today I learned that I need to become just about Gods message and His word. I learned that I need to throw out the seed that the Father has given me; despite how rocky the soil (person) may be. -B Marcus Henderson
Coming back I can not help but praise God for Faithful men who badly and shamelessly preach the truth to a dying world. Praise be to God who in His perfect timing brings about growth and life in the heart of the believers and the non-believers alike. For those of you who attend regularly and are blessed with Godly staff and leaders. You have no idea how good you have it....Remain Faithful:)
~Never give up on being faithful as I serve in the little things. As Brad said, from 1Corinthians 3 all we can do is water the seed (which is small seemingly______), but God is the one who ultimately grows that small seed into something bigger than we could ever imagine.
~I needed this message. Sometimes its so easy to just not take the chance and be faithful that God will reach those who seem like they don't want to heal it. Once the seed is planted, however, God can work beyond what we can see. I need to remember to share Gods light.
~I liked the Parables of the mustard seed. Thinking that something so small can turn into something so big. It also says in the bible that if you have faith as small as a mustard seed then you be saved- such a big blessing. I learned that to be a true follower and have faith in oneself it starts from within to have ambition to thrive. I liked the way King and Messiah relation was really meaningful.
~I do follow Christianity, I love and appreciate life and what God has planned for me. Today I appreciate the message because its a reminder that Gods kingdom regardless of anything is pressing forward. God really wants us to be a part of it too. A seed was planted in us, now its time to let the Holy Spirit to grow in us and spread Gods love.

Message Responses-Week Fourrrr :)

Hello hello everyone! here are some of your guys' message responses from Brad's message :)

The message tonight was exactly what i needed to hear. i've been stuggling with a situation with my parents. i have somewhat of a better understanding. thank you for clarifying a few questions although i have a lot more.

WOOOOOO! now that's what i needed! to see that my acts are in loving response to God's grace and His mercy and not pure programmed machination. YES JESUS!

this message really brought to light the wrong things i've been focusing on. i am obedient to Jesus not because i'm trying to earn something but i am obedient to Him out of love for Him-in response to what He's already done for me. He is truly worth loving and following as faithfully as i can. thank you Jesus!

i grew up as a Christian and i have always believed in the grace of God. But when reality sets in, its really hard to live as a Christian but that's why we strive to become perfect because we will never be perfect. i wan to enjoy my sundays by giving up the Internet.

the message really spoke to me because lately i'be always felt like i have failed God. because i was focusing so much on keeping the law, it made my love relationship with Him so much harder and i became so distant. i want to do His commands out of love and not pure obligation.

God has not called me to live a life based on rules that cause me to leave Him out of the picture. we are each called to live a life obedient to God not by following rules, but by following God's commandments out of our love for Him.

I feel that lately as i've been stuggling with certain sins and failing with certain responsibilities, there is a strong temptation to feel guilty (in that i need to earn more forgivness when in fact Jesus paid for ALL my sin.) before and after i became a believer. and i praise God for His grace so i can get up again and strive for holiness.

Hope you all have a blessed rest of the week <3

De-fencing the Law; Mark 2:13-28

Hey Epic fam! Here is Brad Toy's message recap for last week's message! It was a challenging lesson on what is God's law, how it was viewed in the past, and how it looks now with Jesus Christ at the center of it... anyways, check it out - I guarantee the lesson(s) will be of great significance, as we seek to live this life striving after and loving Jesus - enjoy, and be challenged!
-Sheri (member, the epic blog team)

As an avid sports fan, the thing that hooks me the most, is when a player comes along (in any sport) and changes the game as we know it. Usain Bolt awakened the olympic world to the fact that a gigantic 6'5" human could shatter the world record in the 100m sprint. Shaquille O'Neil forever changed the role of a dominant basketball center. Lance Armstrong dominated the cycling scene by winning an unprecedented 7 consecutive Tour de France victories. There is something about game-changing greatness that we as humans are just wired to be in awe of. And that's the way I feel as we move along through Jesus' earthly ministry as laid out in the Gospel of Mark.

This past Sunday, we continued in our study of the Gospel of Mark. And we spent the night unpacking Mark 2:18 - 3:6, where Jesus epitomizes our series title, "This Changes Everything". We already saw in Chapters 1 and 2, Jesus' breaking of the social and religious norm by healing the leper and by hanging out with Levi, the tax collector. And beginning in v18, Jesus deliberately and divinely goes right after the Pharisaic religious structure that so dominated the NT world at the time. But in order to fully understand the passage (and most of the Bible for that matter), we must get a good handle on the Law of God.

What is the Law of God?

The Law is the set of rules and regulations that were to govern the lives of God's chosen people (Israel). The Law is laid out in the first 5 books of the Old Testament. It can be summarized in the all too familiar 10 Commandments listed in Exodus 20. The 10 Commandments can be further summarized in Matthew 22:36-40 where Jesus explains to the expert in the Law that the 2 greatest commands are to "Love the Lord your God" and to "Love your neighbor".

What was the purpose of the Law?

There are many reasons why God gave His people the Law (ie. Separation from other nations, preservation, systematic orderly government, etc). But the ultimate over-arching purposes of the Law was to be a written reflection of the full character of God Himself. This was to be a standard of perfection to show man that they could not live up to it on their own. It was to act as a mirror in which man could see their true sinful state and that the need for a savior was absolutely necessary for salvation.

Fence/Hedge around the Law

Despite God's desire for the Law to show man their true fallen nature, the Pharisees instead treated the Law as a means of earning salvation by upholding it. And to make sure that they were keeping the Law, they also created hundreds of other supplemental laws ("a fence around the Law") that the Jews were required to keep. The more you restricted and deprived yourself, the "holier" you were.

Jesus the game-changer

In Mark 2:18 -3:6, we see 3 instances where Jesus purposefully attacks the heart of this Pharisaic religious system. Once He violates the religious rules on Fasting, and twice He violates the Sabbath laws. And in each of the three events, we see Jesus making two bold statements:

(1) On a surface-level, the religious rules of the Pharisees were contradictory, ridiculous and out-of-touch with reality (2:19, 2:25-26, and 3:4).

(2) On a deeper level, the religious rules of the Pharisees do not apply when Jesus was physically in their midst (2:20, 2:28 and 3:5).

And here is the key to our understanding of the Law of God: If the Law is the full expression of the character of God, and Jesus is the full manifestation of God in human flesh (John 1:14), then Jesus IS the human manifestation of the Law! As Matthew 5:17 says, He didn't come to destroy the Law, but to fulfill it! He didn't come to do away with the Law, but to usher in a new way, and the only way in which sinful people can live up to it!

Meaning this...when you become a believer, and receive Jesus into your heart, your life becomes intertwined with the only One who has ever fulfilled the Law! Your life becomes indwelt by the Law incarnate! Then and only then can a sinful human live up to the Law. Salvation can only come through grace by faith in Jesus Christ who lives in you, and not by any human attempt to uphold a set of external religious laws and rules. Righteousness must come from the INSIDE-OUT...not OUTSIDE-IN!

What does this mean for the college students of EPIC?

As professing believers, we need to call into question our motives for the things we do as "Christians". Why do we go to church every Sunday? Why do we read our Bibles? Why do we sing songs and give offering? Why do we help others? And if our answer has anything to do with earning favor from God...then we are building religious fences just like Pharisees! We are putting new wine in old wineskins. We are putting a new patch on an old pair of ripped jeans (Mark 2:21-22).

Students, our answer for why we live out the Christian life with obedience needs to be because we love Jesus Christ more than anything in this world. And since He IS the LAW incarnate, obeying the Law should be the desire and longing of our hearts...naturally!

"This is love for God: to obey His commands. And His commands are not burdensome"

1 John 5:3

my prayer

I keep replaying this song in my car over and over and over again.  It's the prayer of my heart right now.  I want more of Christ you guys!  I want to love Him more than anything and anyone else!  He is so good!!!

the return of Open Mic :)

Hello everyone! hope you all have a safe and fun Halloween yesterday! :)



...the blog team is trying to revive and renew this epic EPIC blog, as we revive it, we're bringing back open mic which we think is super duper awesome :) for this week's open mic, Austin interviewed the beautiful Whittany Horton, one of my besties and one of the most amazing people i know :)

So this is the lovely Whittany Horton, she is 19 years old, and a freshman at Arizona State University.

What is your favorite part about college?

theres always someone new with a different personality you can meet. unlike being at home and around family you take your own responsibility and it makes you grow up a lot.

What have you been involved in?

Republican Club, Getting connected w/ church (small groups, bible study), Rotary Club (interact), To write love on her arm (suicide prevention club)

What has God been teaching you?

instead of being home, shes accountable for her own doing and no one tells her whats right for wrong, shes on her own stability

Anything else you'd like to say? :)

you dont know how bad your walk is until you stepped away from poisitive feelings and surroundings, when youre not totally surrounded with good vibes temptation tries to strike

So here's a little bit of Whittany for you :) She is super duper amazing so make sure you talk to her when she comes home for Thanksgiving! :D

This Changes Everything- Week Tree :)

happy friday everyone! alright so here is the long awaited recap/messge responses :) This past Sunday, October 23, we had the privlege of having Layne Wakuta speak about Jesus' authority! :D

Without further ado, here is a little summary of Layne's message :)

word of the week: AUTHORITY(exousia)-the freedom of choice..."the rightful, actual, and unimpeded power to act, or to possess, control, use or dispose of, something or somebody." (The New Bible Dictionary)

The Gospel of Mark=The Gospel of Action
-Mark 1:15,17
-There is very little detail, Mark gets straight to the point.
Jesus Christ=Man of Action,Man of Authority
-Mark 1:28-31
~Jesus shows His authority in 2 ways:
* Authority in His teaching
* Authority in His power over evil spirits

Authority in teaching:
-Mark 1:21-22~"...he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law."
*Matthew 28:18-"Jesus...said, 'All authority...has been given to me."
What happened to authoritative teaching?
-"400 years of silence" (Intertestamental Period):time between Malachi & the coming of John the Baptist and Jesus Christ
-Influence of Hellenism throughout Israel, even the Jewish people
-Authoritative speaking of prophets was replaced by boring repitition of Jewish laws by the teachers of the Law (Pharisees and Scribes)
*Luke 4:14-22

Authority over evil spirits:
*Mark 1:23-28~"...A new teaching-and with authority! He even gives orders to evil spirits and they obey Him."
What is an evil spirit?
- an unclean spirit, or demon
*Does demon possession occur today?
-Yes, demon possession seems like when a demon(s) live in a person they take control over that person's mind & body (Charles Ryrie)
*How can someone become demon possessed?
-God blinds the minds of unbelievers so they cannot see Christ (2 Corinth. 4:4)
Can a Christian become demon-possessed?
-NO...why?
*Christians are indwelt by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinth. 6:19-20)
*The Holy Spirit is stronger/greater than demonic spirits (1 John 4:4)

The Spiritual War:
*Ephesians 6:10-18
-The Armor of God: the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, feet fitted with readiness, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit (the Word)
*The Protoevangelion-The First Gospel
-Genesis 3:15-"...he will crush you head..."
-1 John 3:8- "The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work."

We have authority and victory over Satan and his demons through Jesus Christ...JESUS FTW!!! :)

Some things to think about:
-Who/what has authority in your life? Is this authority good/bad?
-Does God's Word/Jesus' teachings have authority in your life?

God Bless <3