Spiritual Advantage with Sam Stone

There was a thief who accepted Jesus Christ, received baptism, and began his new life as a Christian. A couple of months later, he came to the pastor, asking, “Pastor, I stole again. You said a man in Christ is a new creation; the old is gone, and the new has begun. But why did I steal again? Am I not a new creation? What’s wrong with me?” The pastor asked, “How did you feel when you stole in the...

The book of Zhuagzi, the great Daoist philosopher, begins with a mind-blowing allegory about a fish named “Kun” which is thousands of miles in width and lenght. Yes, you heard me right. He sayid that the body of the Kun fish is thousands of miles long. What’s more incredible is that this fish suddenly turns into a bird named Peng. With a flap of his wings, he rises up to 3,000 miles above the ocea...

My grandma told me many puzzling Taoist stories when I was young; some of them took me a lifetime to understand. Here’s one of them. A man from a small village took his handicrafts to sell in a distant town, passing a deep forest. A few days later, he returned home with a sack of treasures on his shoulder. Surprised, The family asked how he got so rich selling his crafts. He said that a tiger he s...

There’s a couple living in Phoenix, AZ. The husband calls his son in New York City the day before Thanksgiving and says, “I hate to ruin your day, but I have to tell you that your mother and I are divorcing; forty-five years of misery is enough.” “Pop, what are you talking about?” the son screams. “Well, we can’t stand the sight of each other any longer,” the father says. “We’re sick of each other...

When I was in college in Mandalay, I gathered with a group of friends for tea and breakfast every Saturday morning. One of them had a motorcycle, and one day, he was hit by a car when riding his bike. However, he still showed up on the following Saturday for breakfast with bandages around his head and arms. He said, “When I was hit, I thought I would die. My motorcycle was completely crushed under...

Do you know what Christians were called before the term Christian existed? The word “Christian” was a derogative term, meaning little Christ. It was a way to make fun of those who follow Christ. But, later, they felt proud to be called Little Christ, so they adopted the term “Christian” as their identity. Again, do you know what they were called before they adopted the term Christian? They were ca...

Zhuangzi’s friend complained about a useless tree on the roadside that every carpenter ignored. Despite its humongous size, its trunk and limbs are gnarled, making it unsuitable to build furniture. People can’t use its wood to build boats because it would sink. To his friend’s surprise, the sage said, “What are you complaining about? Think on behalf of this tree. Just because it’s useless, it’s st...

Confucius was hiking with his disciples to visit a majestic waterfall. Even before they arrived at the waterfall, they could sense the power of it from the distance, first the rumbling sound and then the breathtaking sight of a tall and wide waterfall. It may be comparable to Niagara Falls. They could see the mist from the fall reaching miles away. As they approached the fall, they knew the powerf...

I’m sure you have heard the saying, “If Satan cannot make you bad, he will make you busy!” I used to take it lightly because I thought it was just a cute little joke. After years of observing busy people and personal experience, I discovered that saying is profoundly true. The truth is that busyness can be as bad as bad. Busyness can be a distraction from what matters most and our higher calling....

Legend has it that the vast battleship, USS Montana, was sailing in the Atlantic Ocean at night. The captain suddenly saw a blinking light on its path. Assuming it was another ship, he sent out a Morse code with the light from the battleship, signaling, “Starboard, starboard, 20 degrees north,” asking the other vessel to turn away to avoid a collision. However, the light on the other end did not c...

A less retold story about Jesus is when he cursed a fig tree for not bearing fruit. Jesus had arrived in Jerusalem riding a donkey. He visited the temple and drove off the merchants and money changers, accusing them of turning the house of prayer into a den of thieves. Then, he spent a night outside of the city. The next morning, he returned to the city, and on his way, he felt hungry. He passed b...

One of the most fascinating stories ever told among engineers is about a transaction between Henry Ford and Charles Steinmetz. Steinmetz was a brilliant engineer born in Germany and escaped to the United States in 1888. General Electric discovered his talent and recruited him. He was only four feet tall due to deformity, but people called him the “Little Giant” because of his outstanding invention...

One of my psychology professors had an impressive skill in reading people. She could look at your face and determine what’s happening inside you. You might smile, but she knew you had hidden anger and bitterness. You might be funny, but she knew you had depression. If you have seen the TV show “Lie To Me,” you know what I mean. She could read your mind through a twitch on your face and a twinkle i...

A man came to the village chief to complain about his brother, saying, “Chief, I am about to kill my brother because he has offended me seriously. I can’t tolerate him anymore. I know if I kill him, you will put me in prison. What should I do?” The chief looked at him carefully to find out who this young man was, “Oh, I remember who you are. You are the young man who was almost killed by the wolf...

Zhuangzi, the great Taoist philosopher, woke up from a dream one day and felt confused because he dreamed of himself as a butterfly. The dream was so vivid that he felt realistically fluttering his wings, flying among flowers, plants, and trees, and enjoying the gentle touch of the evening breezes. He felt unnatural to wake up as a human, wondering whether he was a butterfly dreaming of a human or...

There once was a group of three friends a Rabi, a Catholic Priest, and a Presbyterian Pastor. They gather together every Wednesday morning for breakfast and talks. One day as they were having breakfast, a huge fire broke out and engulfed the town. They all rush back to their houses of worship to grab the most important thing from the buildings. The Roman Catholic church was the closest, so the pri...

“Lord of the Dance” is one of my favorite hymns; I am sure many of you love this song too. One of the verses says, “It’s hard to dance with the devil on your back.” That’s where I got the title for this message. If you imagine life as a dance, the image of dancing with the devil on your back sounds heart-wrenching. We all know life is not a bed of roses but more like a mixture of roses and thorns....

Deep learning is a term often used in AI (Artificial Intelligence) to indicate a more sophisticated level of machine learning. It teaches computers to think like the human brain. However, I’m not talking about AI today, but about SI—Spiritual Intelligence. Just as “deep learning” is to teach machines to think like humans, “deep learning” in SI can teach humans how to think like God. Paul said, “Th...

I’m a recovering overthinker. One of the biggest problems I have is overthinking. I tend to ruminate and get trapped in analysis paralysis. I am getting much better; maybe I am getting older and practicing Jesus’ teachings longer. But recently, I found out I am not alone. 99% of people overthink everything. Some people overthink because they are perfectionists; some because they are people-pleaser...

I don’t know how many of you like Tom Clancy’s international spy thrillers. All thirteen of his novels have hit #1 in the New York Times bestseller list. Jack Ryan is a TV series based on Tom Clancy’s fictional character who works for the CIA. The show is fascinating because each episode covers multiple countries, like the James Bond movies. In the final season that was just released, Jack Ryan tr...

As a cat lover, I think the proverb, “There’s more than one way to skin a cat,” is one of the worst proverbs in the world. I discovered it originated from “There’s more than one way to kill a dog than hanging.” Then it changed to “There’s more than one way to kill a cat.” Then it evolved to “There’s more than one way to skin a cat.” The dog lovers must have changed the proverb, and they won! Anywa...

One of the most inspiring prayers for me is, “Let my heart be broken with the things that break the heart of God.” Do you know who said it? It was by Robert Pierce, the founder of World Vision, which has helped millions of children and orphans out of poverty over the years. On a visit to an island in Korea after the war, in 1949, Bob Pierce saw many suffering children running on the streets withou...

When I was introduced to the Book of Zhuangzi (Chuang Tzu), I was completely puzzled by the beginning of the book, which talks about an enormous fish thousands of miles long. It changes into a birth with a wingspan of thousands of miles wide. It says, “When it rises in the air, its wings are like the clouds of Heaven. When the seas move, this bird too travels to the south darkness, the darkness kn...

One of my favorite inspiring quotes comes from the movie, “The American President,” played by Michael Douglas as President Andrew Shepherd and Michael J. Fox as the Assistant to the President, Lewis Rothschild. It was time to run for his second term, but President Shepherd was too busy to campaign. The polls showed the opposition candidate was gaining ground. Lewis was concerned and had an intense...

I have studied body chemistry for some time and learned about the four hormones that make us happy. Here’s the list, from the worst to the best. They all make you happy, but their long-term effects differ; some can hurt you, and others can help you. If you know how they work, you can deploy them for your benefit. 1) Dopamine 2) Endorphin 3) Serotonin 4) Oxytocin Dopamine is released when you accom...