More than a couple of decades ago, I cultivated a habit of praying before I have my morning Bible reading time. I was encouraged to do this after reading Exodus 16:4, 14-18; John 6:32-36; Psalm 1:1-3; 1 Corinthians 2:9-13; John 1:1; Hebrews 1:1-2 and 11:6; Psalm 119; Psalm 139:16, Galatians 6:9-10; Ephesians 2:8-10 and Proverbs 3:5-8. Based on these Scriptures and many others, I pray a simple prayer of faith in my God to do what He promised, "Holy and gracious Father, as I open your Word, teach me all that You see fit for me to know and understand today. And open the eyes of my heart to see every opportunity You've prepared beforehand, that I may live for your glory this day."

As I prayed this morning before I read my Bible, I meditated on the holiness and awesomeness of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. And I thanked Him for who He is, and all that He has done for all His creation, especially those made in His image. While in prayer, I was reminded of the goodness of God in my life and how happy my life has been, and still is today. Not to say I haven't had any hard and painful days. But as it is written in 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, even the most wretchedly brutal days are being used by my faithful and loving Father, for my eternal glory that outweighs anything I will ever experience on this side of Heaven.

Some of the happy days of my life I was reminded of today are:

• The day God the Father granted me the gift of repentance that led me to saving faith in Jesus Christ, receiving and adopting me into His holy Family as His daughter, making Christ, my all-time First and Greatest Love;
• The day I met my childhood best-friend Angela Mylechraine who was the first to invite me, a foreigner, to play;
• The day I met my third-grade teacher Mrs. Mitchell who was the first teacher who didn't discriminate me by making fun of and punishing me for being Korean, but rather, she loved and taught me well;
• The day my eleventh-grade AP History teacher Mr. Nachajski, knowing I had potential to do more than get inebriated during lunch and fall asleep in the back of his classroom, cleverly challenged me to ace the next thesis assignment;
• The day that my Father and God, through His Word (Psalm 27), kept me from taking my own life during my sophomore year in high school;
• The day the LORD provided me a three-month reprieve from 13 years of persecution;
• The day my awesome Father and God forgave me for wandering, and provided me safe passage 3,000 miles away from temptation, and drew me closer to Him;
• The day my compassionate Father answered my prayers for a husband after His own heart, and moved my darling Jim, next door to me;
• The day I got to marry my darling and wonderful Second Love;
• The day our precious first son Michael was born;
• The day our precious second son Kevin was born (who's still an unbeliever, please pray for him);
• The day our precious daughter-in-love, Caitlin was brought into our lives;
• The day our youngest son's unbelieving girlfriend, Alicia, moved into our home where she gets to hear the Gospel, see it lived, and witness the holiness, goodness, mercy, and grace of God.

I love my life.

I really do.

What I love most may seem boring to many, and possibly absurd to others. But still, I love everything the Lord has given me—especially the simple, daily pleasures many miss because we think we deserve any good we receive.

I love sunny days because they remind me of the warmth and awesomeness of God's grace; His face that cannot be seen by any human lest we be destroyed. I love cloudy days because they remind me of the cool covering and gentle relief of God's mercy.

I love that though my body is severely broken, weak, and in constant pain, my Father gives me the strength to get out of bed. And if that weren't good enough (which it is), because my Father is so generous in His love toward me because of Christ, I get to do other "ordinary" tasks. I get to wash laundry for my household. I get to fold clothes and put them away. I get to hem tears and sew buttons. I get to be a diligent keeper of my home with weekly dusting, sanitizing, toilet bowl cleaning, and so much more. I get to seasonally plant beautiful and aromatic flowers in my front yard to display the beauty of God's creation to all who pass by. And if the Lord provides opportunities, share the  Gospel with all who linger. I get to decorate my home, simply and comfortably so that all who enter, sense God's peace abides here. I get to plan weekly menus, learn about different foods, herbs, and spices and their nutritious values so I can shop wisely to ensure my family is enjoying healthy and delicious food, while remaining a good steward of all that God has given us. I get to cook for my family and precious brothers and sisters in the Lord whom I deeply love and enjoy serving.

This may all seem dull and mundane to many, but I'm so enthralled with the awesome work of God that enables me to do all these things—they are quite exciting and joyous to my soul. Proverbs 27:7 and Matthew 6:33 are true. When you're hungry for the holiness and goodness of God to be displayed in your life, you're consumed with honoring and pleasing Him above all else. And this makes even the bitter things in this life...sweet. But when I have my moments (and I do); when selfishness creeps into every crevice of my heart and mind, because I'm full of myself, I loathe and complain about any kindness shown to me.

This is why I love that God grants me a multitude of opportunities daily, to demonstrate my immense gratitude to Him for giving me His Son, by serving and loving others in accordance with His Word. I love that I have this great freedom in Christ because I've been set free from the bondage of my sinful flesh. I no longer have to seek my own good, because I trust in His steadfast love and faithfulness to give me far better than I deserve. I trust my Father to discipline me when I stray, to rebuke me in my rebellion, and to grant me forgiveness and mercy in my repentance. I trust my Lord to bless me with His pleasure as I seek His face and to exalt His name rather seek and exalt my own. Oh what joy! Oh what incomprehensible bliss it is to know Christ and be known by Him!

Though it is nice when people are kind to me, thoughtful of my pitiful plight, and refresh my soul with altruistic fellowship; my daily joy and happiness does not depend on them or my circumstances. The fullness of my contentment is solely dependent upon the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me.

The LORD God is our refuge. He alone is our ever-present help in our time of need. And when is that time? When is the time that we most need God? Is it when we're single? When we get married? When we have children? When we lose our jobs? When people speak well of us? When people speak ill of us? When?

Our "time of need" is all the time. Every living thing's time of needing the Almighty begins from the time life begins. Unfortunately, not all of us know that, or, are mindful of it as often as we ought to be.

We need the LORD our God when we rejoice and when we mourn; for without Christ our God, we don't know how to do anything without sinning. Without Christ, our rejoicing is in ourselves and we do a "Yay me!" dance in our souls and with our mouths. We joy in proclaiming our own goodness and jubilantly share our successes as if we could ever do, or give anything good to anyone without the only One who IS good—GOD Almighty.

Therefore, the only One in whom we know we can wholeheartedly entrust our hearts to, is the LORD, and not another sinner like us. Too often we think our parents, our best friend, our spouse, or even a counselor is the one person that we should and do bear our entire souls to. This is not only a foolish practice, but also sinful one. It is a practice of idolatry. For in this very act of giving all of oneself to anyone except the LORD God, is to break the Greatest Commandment: To love the Lord our God with all our heart and with all our soul and with all our mind and with all our strength.

No human being, saved or unsaved is qualified to bear everything you have to offer. They will either misjudge and hate you for what you've shared, or they will misjudge and hate those whom you've wrongly spoken ill of. Don't tempt others to sin. Bear your entire souls to the LORD alone, and prayerfully consider what you ought to share with others in accordance with Ephesians 4:29.