Evening Thoughts

Sam Cho
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  • Religion & Spirituality

A chaplain‘s reflections about faith, life, death, and the beyond.

  1. 03/06/2022

    Ep 32: When death comes suddenly

    Have you ever received bad news that felt as if someone had kicked you in the guts? Have you ever received a phone call telling you to get to the hospital as quickly as possible because your loved one was involved in an accident? Have you ever had a knock on the door, possibly from law enforcement that your loved one was injured and had died?  In our bravest of moments we dare think upon such scenarios and wonder what we will do if that ever happened to us. The truth is though, that these scenarios have happened to real people. It has happened to real mothers, real fathers, and siblings and friends. Some deaths happen over time and through the years, but other deaths happen quickly and without any opportunities to prepare. Just this week, I got a call from one of Marines and he informed me that his father had died suddenly in his hotel room all alone. He just had dinner with this father and the next day he gets a call letting him know that his father had died. He was devastated at the news because there was nothing to indicate to him that his father’s last meal would be with his son the day prior. What are we to make of that but acknowledge that sometimes death comes suddenly and without any warning. God forbid that this happen to you, but I am always one for proactive preparation and I hope that this episode helps you in someway. This episode of Evening Thoughts is entitled when Death comes Suddenly and I want to talk about navigating death of a loved one or a friend when it comes without any time to prepare. Join me in tonight's episode of Evening Thoughts.

  2. 02/27/2022

    Ep 31: How can I find God’s calling for my life?

    I have wrestled with this question many times in my life, and it has been reignited by the fact that I am about to close one chapter of my life to another. For the last 5 years, I have been a Chaplain to the Marines. I have trained with them, been deployed with them, tragically lost Marines and Sailors together with them, and celebrated their successes as well. Now as I look ahead to my new set of orders, I will no longer wear the Marine uniform and I will be a chaplain to my Sailors on a ship. I am about to begin a new journey and so this is the perfect place for me to once again visit this question. What is God’s calling for my life? Has anything changed? Do I still feel the same calling as I did before? These are the questions that I am asking myself a lot lately. I imagine that many of you have asked the same questions as you prayed for God to reveal his purpose for your life. In tonight’s episode, my aim is perhaps share with you some things that have worked for me over the years and to encourage you in your own pursuit. Let us talk about that this evening.

  3. 02/20/2022

    Ep 30: The marks of a Christian

    Where is your confidence? If it is your looks, your money, your career, your intellect, your talent, or your marital status, would you move that confidence over to Jesus? We do that by abiding, being connected, by being nourished by Jesus Christ every single day. Finding Confidence in Jesus is one of the marks of a Christian. Join me as we delve into 1 John 2:28-29, 3:1-10 and let's talk more about what it means to be a Christian.

  4. 02/13/2022

    Ep 29: Is Empathy a Sin?

    Tonight’s episode is entitled, Is Empathy a sin? Now some of you may be caught off guard because this may be the first time you’ve ever heard that some people think that empathy is a sin. At least I was not aware that some Christians believe that empathy is a sin until recently. And then there are Christians who say that there is a place for empathy and employing it with caution is wise. In this episode, I will define what I think Empathy is, and talk about some of the good I see in it, and the potential dangers of it and let you decide for yourself whether empathy is sinful.

  5. 02/06/2022

    Ep 28: Creating healthy boundaries when helping others

    The Evening Thought for this episode is: Creating Healthy Boundaries When Helping Others. We will at one time or another find ourselves helping those around us, and I want to encourage those of us who do it regularly, specifically as a care giver or a counselor of some sort to create healthy boundaries to save yourself some trouble later on. Unfortunately, I had to learn this the hard way. So…I have a confession for you. That is a funny way to start a podcast episode, isn’t it? But I do and I say it like that because the topic for tonight’s episode is something that I had to learn over the years and when I learned how to do it, it felt like I could do ministry more joyfully and successfully for all involved. My confession is this: I like being wanted. I like being needed. I like feeling as if I am important to someone and them depending on me for help. I like being the primary person who helps someone else and for them to recognize me for it. I speak from my ego and my pride when I start believing that I should be the center of someone’s source of help. So I confess this to you because as a Chaplain and a Pastor, I’ve learned to pull myself away from this unhealthy behavior because ultimately I was creating bad boundaries with those who came to me for help. I like hearing someone say, “Chaps you are the only one who understands me.”  I liked them saying, “No one helps me but you chaps.” Chaps, “I don’t know what I would do without you.” Have you ever had someone say this to you? Or say something like this to you? You may already see where I am going with this, but boundaries are necessary at times when we help someone. Join me tonight in this episode and let's talk more about that.

  6. 01/30/2022

    Ep 27: The Assurance of your faith

    God’s word is often like a surgeon’s scalpel and God uses it to perform heart surgery on us. At times, it can hurt because we are faced with our own sin and these words are very piercing. It can be weighty and there may be times when you say to yourself "boy…I am missing the mark." Or "I am dropping the ball."Sometimes we may get discouraged when we see our efforts fail. When this happens, we must take a pause and reminder ourselves of the assurance that we have in Christ. We must remember the never ending, and always true beliefs about who God is and who you are in him. And the truth is there is not one of us who has a leg up on another person here. There is not one of us more deserving of God’s grace more than someone else. We are not perfect. We don’t always obey perfectly God’s word. Yes, let us spur one another to higher standard. Yes, let us challenge each other for deeper growth, but let us also keep reminding one another and assuring each other of the never ending, always abounding grace of God. Join me tonight as we delve into 1 John 2:12-14 to talk more about this.

  7. 01/23/2022

    Ep 26: Why is change so hard?

    Unless you are Forrest Gump, you don’t just wake up one morning and decide to go run a marathon. You don’t just wake up one morning and lift weights like Arnold Schwarzenegger. You don’t just wake up one morning and cook a meal like Gordon Ramsey. It takes time to train. It takes time to develop your endurance. It takes hours in the gym lifting heavy things and putting them down. It takes trial and error to cook a gourmet meal. In the same way, you don’t get a noble character by accident. You don’t become an honest person by whim. It takes practice and it takes time. It takes deliberate intention to be a person of integrity. You don’t become a patient person when everything goes your way. Use the opportunities you have to make healthy changes in your life and ensure that you give yourself time to make those changes. Don’t give up when things get hard. Don’t give in when your motivation lessens. Make use of this season of change in your life to make positive growth changes for yourself. Let's talk more about that in tonight's episode of Evening Thoughts.

  8. 01/16/2022

    Ep 25: Gentleness is not weakness

    Gentleness is one of the fruits of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22–23: “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” This means that a person filled with the Holy Spirit will exhibit these qualities and it is not a sign of weakness, but a sign of strength. It is the evidence of the indwelling of God’s Spirit within you to display gentleness. So being gentle does not mean that you have a lack of strength, but quite the opposite. Being gentle means that you have the strength of God within you to be tender for his glory and for the benefit of others. Be strong. Be gentle. Let's talk more about that in tonight's episode.

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About

A chaplain‘s reflections about faith, life, death, and the beyond.

Information

  • Creator
    Sam Cho
  • Episodes
    32
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2022 Sam Cho
  • Show Website
    Evening Thoughts