Illuminate Blog
Why I Went to Thailand: A Testimony From Sam Ahn
08/13/10
Anyone who has ever hung out in Pastor Gavin’s office knows that he likes to keep things pretty neat and ... more
Posted by Sam Ahn
Mexico Homebuilding 2010 - Same Place, Same Desire, Different Grace
06/18/10
"After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and ... more
Posted by Kim Sun
Pastor Kim's Links of the Week (6/17/10)
06/17/10
Brothers and Sisters,I hope you are well. After a brief break I am back and excited to exhort you to love and ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Mexico Homebuilding 2010 - Chocolate Chip Cookies, John Wooden, and a Pink House
06/16/10
Chocolate Chip Cookies, John Wooden, and a pink house. What do all of these things have in common? They were all ... more
Posted by Bill Hirokawa
Mexico Homebuilding 2010 Video
06/15/10
From June 4-5, a group from Lighthouse Community Church went down to Tijuana, Mexico to build a home for a family. ... more
Posted by Bill Hirokawa
Book Review - The Heavenly Man
06/08/10
Francis Chan described him as an example of one who really follows Christ, who has a “Crazy Love” for God, ... more
Posted by Sachie Maeda
Praying Life Seminar this Saturday
06/07/10
Lighthouse is hosting a PrayerLife seminar this Saturday, June 12 to wrap up our small group study on prayer. Here's ... more
Posted by Sachie Maeda
Radical: When Crazy Love Is Simply Not Crazy Enough
05/19/10
If you have a spare hour, I'd highly recommend you taking the time to listening to David Platt's seminar, "An ... more
Posted by Sachie Maeda
Getting the Big Picture
05/17/10
A question was recently posed at one of our staff meetings: "Why is reading the Bible so difficult?" The answers were ... more
Posted by Sachie Maeda
Beholding Our Trinitarian God
04/28/10
We hope you enjoyed Josh Kira's message two Sundays ago on the doctrine of the Trinity. Make no mistake about it, the ... more
Posted by David Lee
Free Hymns album!
04/27/10
Page CXVI has just released their new album of modern hymn arrangements. A quick listen of the sample tracks has me ... more
Posted by David Lee
Resources for Family Worship
04/27/10
What activities most define your family? Is it sports? Is it church attendance? Is it food? Would your answer ever be ... more
Posted by David Lee
Pastor Kim's Links of the Week (4/23/10)
04/23/10
Brothers and Sisters,I hope all is well. I am sorry I missed last week's Links of the Week. I was in Kentucky ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Book Review - A Quest for More by Paul David Tripp
04/19/10
After each small group series ends, one of my hopes is that I would continue think and live out the lessons ... more
Posted by Sachie Maeda
Pastor Kim's Link of the Week (3/30/10)
03/30/10
Brothers and Sisters,I hope you are doing well. I would appreciate your prayers for me and my sermon preparation ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Pastor Kim's Links of the Week (3/25/10)
03/25/10
Brothers and Sisters,First, I want to encourage you to attend worship service on Sunday to hear a powerful ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Pastor Kim's Links of the Week (3/17/10)
03/17/10
Apologies for not having this posted earlier. Blame the intern, not Pastor Kim. Brothers and Sisters,Sorry this ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Pastor Kim's Link of the Week (3/9/10)
03/09/10
Brothers and Sisters,I hope all is well. Again, this weeks links are eclectic, but hopefully all of them are a ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Pastor Kim's Link of the Week (3/2/10)
03/02/10
Brothers and Sisters,Here is another week of eclectic links. They don't follow one theme but they are all meant to ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Adopting for Life Livestream
02/26/10
It has been a blessing to hear of more and more people at Lighthouse who are going through the process of adoption. ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Pastor Kim's Link of the Week (2/23/10)
02/23/10
Brothers and Sisters, I hope all is well. This week's links range from the lighthearted to very serious, but I ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Pastor Kim's Link of the Week (2/16/10)
02/16/10
Brothers and Sisters,I hope all is well. For this week's links, I offer an eclectic bunch, but ones that I hope ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Hope for Workaholics
02/15/10
Consider the wise words of John Starke regarding the Christian work ethic: It's easy for me to lose perspective in my ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Book Review - Forgotten God by Francis Chan
02/12/10
When conversing with fellow brothers and sisters, how often do you hear about the work of the Holy Spirit? How ... more
Posted by Sachie Maeda
Pastor Kim's Link of the Week (2/9/10)
02/09/10
Brothers and Sisters,As you walk with our Lord this week, I hope these links will encourage you in your love for ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
C.J. Mahaney on the Super Bowl
02/05/10
C.J. Mahaney offers wise counsel on how to watch the super bowl this weekend. He suggests that we: 1. Strategically ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Pastor Kim's Link of the Week (2/2/10)
02/02/10
Brothers and Sisters,I hope all is well. It's time for my "Links of the Week" (so far the only two suggestions for ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Recommendations for “A Praying Life”
02/02/10
This season’s small group series will be focused on the topic of prayer in the Christian life. We will be ... more
Posted by Gavin Kajikawa
Growth by Remembering
02/02/10
Our encouragement from yesterday's sermon from Revelation 2:1-7 was to fuel our love for Christ with remembrance. ... more
Posted by Gavin Kajikawa
Pastor Kim's Link of the Week (1/26/10)
01/27/10
Brothers and Sisters, In an effort to encourage your love for our Lord and others, this is the inaugural edition ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
How to Meditate on God's Word
01/22/10
Stephen Altrogge has posted a helpful article on the blessings of Christian meditation. He writes: "The truth is, the ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Books You're Reading in 2010
01/14/10
Just in case you were wondering (and I'm sure you were, you curious cat, you), here are some of the books that your ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Book Review - Biblical Eldership by Alexander Strauch
01/13/10
How have you been enjoying our recent sermon series on Lighthouse distinctives? Have some of them been surprising? ... more
Posted by David Lee
Books We're Reading in 2010
01/12/10
Here are some of the books that the leadership and staff of the church have committed to reading in 2010. What's on ... more
Posted by David Lee
Praying for Your Pastors
01/11/10
During this week's message on church eldership, Pastor Gavin suggested looking at these seventeen ways for you to pray ... more
Posted by David Lee
10 Questions to Ask in the New Year
12/29/09
Don Whitney: The beginning of a new year is an ideal time to stop, look up, and get our bearings. To that end, here ... more
Posted by David Lee
Family Tensions and the Holidays
12/21/09
Russell Moore has posted an excellent little encouragement on how we should approach family tensions this Christmas ... more
Posted by David Lee
Server or Servant?
12/08/09
“Then he (Jesus) poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the ... more
Posted by Dan Kawakami
Behold the Lamb of God - Free Music Player
12/03/09
Andrew Peterson. Christmas. Free. All great things individually. But when combined, they assemble like the mighty ... more
Posted by David Lee
100/100!
12/01/09
Have you ever heard of the 20/80 rule? It’s the idea that in many churches 20% of the folks do 80% of the work; ... more
Posted by Jason Ho
The Return of the Christmas Music Recommendation
11/30/09
The following post is from last year's Christmas season, with a couple of new additions. Unless you’ve been ... more
Posted by David Lee
Singing in Light of Eternity: Heavenly-minded Music Recommendations
11/23/09
As our church gets close to the end of our "In Light of Eternity" study, how have you responded? Have you begun to ... more
Posted by David Lee
Some Crazy Love from some crazy Sawasakis
11/12/09
Last spring our small groups studied Francis Chan’s Crazy Love, In the foreword of the book, Christian ... more
Posted by Paul Sawasaki
Had a Bad Day?
11/10/09
One of my favorite hymns starts off with this: My hope is built on nothing less Than Jesus’ blood and ... more
Posted by Jesse Terasaki
Follow Lighthouse on Facebook and Twitter
11/09/09
You can now follow Lighthouse Community Church on Facebook and Twitter! Facebook Page - Lighthouse Community Church ... more
Posted by David Lee
Slaying the Dragon of Sexual Sin
10/28/09
Sexual sin is a dangerous foe that lurks in the corners of every church, even Lighthouse. It might very well be ... more
Posted by David Lee
An Amazing Job!
10/26/09
Job 1:22 says, “In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.” What was “all ... more
Posted by Ryan Narasaki
A Punch in the Gut from Piper
10/15/09
Some people use words to write. John Piper uses words to punch my soul in the gut. Here are some timely words from the ... more
Posted by David Lee
Don't Be a Holely Church
10/05/09
In your eyes, what overall letter grade would you give the evangelical church in America based on living obediently to ... more
Posted by Gavin Kajikawa
How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Coffee
10/01/09
At this point in my ministry, I think it has become plainly obvious to most in the church that I have a great ... more
Posted by David Lee
Be like David, not like Mike
09/18/09
Voddie Baucham has posted an excellent blogpost observing the differences between the acceptance speeches of Michael ... more
Posted by David Lee
Book Review - Desiring God
09/10/09
If I were to choose one book, outside the Bible, that has been most influential to me as a Christian and a minister ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
Have you Gotten Your Daily Dose of Jesus?
09/01/09
The book of Hebrews opens with a beautiful description of the son of God. This is fitting, for the theme of the ... more
Posted by Jesse Terasaki
Thanking God in the Endzone
08/17/09
When a professing Christian athlete approaches the podium or sits down to give a post-game interview, there is a ... more
Posted by Kelly Kira
A Rolling Stone …
08/10/09
...gathers no moss. We’ve all heard that old adage. What about these? “A slack hand causes poverty, but ... more
Posted by Jason Ho
Our Father's Love for Us
08/03/09
“But you are a God ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and ... more
Posted by Ryan Narasaki
More Than Just a Little Bit: The Call to Respect Your Husband
07/30/09
What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear the word respect? Maybe you think of the song, ... more
Posted by Jen Kira
Good Karma, Bad Karma: What's Wrong With Reincarnation?
07/30/09
Raynold Nakamura serves as an associate pastor at Evergreen Baptist Church in San Gabriel Valley.It’s very ... more
Posted by Raynold Nakamura
Worry and Worship (Luke 12:22-34)
07/27/09
If you are reading through the Bible with us this week you will read Luke 12:22-34 on not being anxious. It is very ... more
Posted by David Lee
Book Review - Theological Interpretation of the New Testament
07/15/09
Book: Theological Interpretation of the New Testament, Baker Academic, 2008Editors: Kevin J. Vanhoozer, Daniel J. ... more
Posted by Scott Yoshikawa
An Ode to Prayer
07/13/09
There’s no time, there’s no timeI’ve got much to do, there’s no time for something newJust go ... more
Posted by Dan Kawakami
Even the Swiss Take Sides (Luke 9:50)
07/06/09
While most people are familiar with Christ’s teaching that reads, “whoever is not for [Him] is against ... more
Posted by Jeffrey Silva
What’s So “New” About New Atheism?
06/23/09
Jojo Ma serves as associate pastor at Evergreen Baptist Church of San Gabriel Valley. Spend a few minutes at your ... more
Posted by Jojo Ma
Do you really believe in Jesus? (Luke 7:1-10)
06/22/09
Christianity is impossible. At Lighthouse we often talk of living for the glory of God but it is ... more
Posted by Jesse Terasaki
Making Lemonade (Philippians 1:12-18)
06/16/09
According to proverbial wisdom, when life throws you lemons, the best solution is to make lemonade. Cute. Quaint. ... more
Posted by David Lee
A Doctor's Thoughts on the Appendix (Ephesians 4:1-3)
05/25/09
The appendix. Seems like a rather silly organ. Kind of hangs there off the large intestine, doing very little. If you ... more
Posted by Jason Ho
Finances and the Economy: Are You in Control?
05/20/09
The economy is in an official recession. It’s the worst since the great depression. For those of us ... more
Posted by Paul Sawasaki
Did You Know I Was Adopted? (Galatians 4:3-7)
05/19/09
As you read this devotional know that there are children crying where no one will respond. There are children ... more
Posted by Gavin Kajikawa
Reflections on Mother's Day
05/13/09
Reflections on Mother’s Dayby Wendy SawasakiLast Friday afternoon, I spent about 45 minutes strolling the aisles ... more
Posted by Wendy Sawasaki
Is It Worth It? (2 Corinthians 4:17)
05/12/09
Let me ask you a simple question concerning living and suffering for the gospel: is it really worth it? Be honest. If ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
The Church Is An End, Not a Means
05/06/09
Typically, the church is understood as merely a means to an end. It is a means to spiritual growth and the ... more
Posted by Joshua Kira
Want to be a “good” Christian? Stop trying so hard. (Psalm 84)
05/04/09
It can happen so easily. We hear a good sermon or read an article, book, or blog and feel convicted. We ... more
Posted by Jesse Terasaki
Our Response to Repentance (2 Corinthians 2:5-11)
04/27/09
Consider the well-worn plotline of the following movie: a man is unfaithful to a woman, and though he completely ... more
Posted by Jeffrey Silva
Book Review - There Is A God: How the World’s Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind
04/22/09
There Is No A God: How the world’s most notorious atheist changed his mind, by Anthony Flew (New York: ... more
Posted by Scott Yoshikawa
What Makes a Person Evil? (Judges 17-21)
04/20/09
What makes a person evil? Perhaps it’s the perversity of one’s thoughts or the insidiousness of ... more
Posted by Eric Lau
Tracing the Resurrection Claims
04/12/09
The main research for the historicity of the resurrection in this article is credited to Dr Gary Habermas, ... more
Posted by Dan Lim
Christianity Dead in America?
04/08/09
Just in time for Easter, Newsweek editor Jon Meacham has penned an article provocatively titled, “The End of ... more
Posted by Jeffrey Silva
Are You Wiser Than a Sixth Grader? (Psalm 78:1-5)
04/06/09
This past weekend marked Lighthouse’s fifth annual Youth and College Retreat. Every spring, L.I.G.H.T (junior ... more
Posted by David Lee
Book Review - The Wisdom of Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes
04/03/09
Biblical scholar Derek Kidner “sees God’s wisdom expressed and echoed everywhere” (12). By ... more
Posted by Jason Ho
Getting Our Hands Dirty (Mark 1:40-42)
03/30/09
Mark 1:40-42"And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, 'If you will, you can make me clean.' ... more
Posted by Kelly Kira
Film Review - Fireproof
03/25/09
From the movie dust jacket: “At work, inside burning buildings, Capt. Caleb Holt lives by the old ... more
Posted by Steve Park
Monkey See, Monkey Do... (Romans 15:7)
03/23/09
Did you know that “Lefty” is not really a lefty? That’s right, Phil Mickelson, one of the ... more
Posted by Jason Ho
Weighing In On Lent
03/17/09
The timing of this post may seem odd, especially since we are virtually half way through the Lenten season, but with ... more
Posted by Jeffrey Silva
Passing God's Word from Generation to Generation (Deuteronomy 4:5-10)
03/14/09
Since Lighthouse began almost 6 years ago, I have had the blessing of overseeing the children’s ministry. ... more
Posted by Ryan Narasaki
New Old Songs: The Rebirth of Hymnody
03/13/09
I have an intense obsession with hymnody. Since its inception, the church has always celebrated its unity with Christ ... more
Posted by David Lee
Al Mohler on Texting and Twittering
03/10/09
In a recent Boundless podcast they talked with Al Mohler about texting and Twittering. The segment with him begins at ... more
Posted by David Lee
Don't Miss God's Faithfulness (Deuteronomy 2:1-7)
03/10/09
As a high school history teacher, I was often asked, “Mr. Kajikawa, why do we have to study hi... more
Posted by Gavin Kajikawa
ESV Study Bible Online
03/03/09
The good people at Crossway have just announced that they will make the excellent Online ESV Study Bible available for ... more
Posted by David Lee
The Irony of the Cross (Mark 15:16-20)
03/03/09
Irony is one of those notoriously slippery English words that is almost impossible to define. You can recognize it ... more
Posted by David Lee
Free Audio - Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life
03/02/09
Christianaudio.com has the audio version of Donald Whitney's excellent Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life ... more
Posted by David Lee
Scattered Pictures: Why Nostalgia Is Not a Good Thing
02/26/09
I love the 80s. Turner Classic Movies. Nick at Nite. Class Reunions. Retroland.com. Nostalgia is a big time ... more
Posted by Jeffrey Silva
The Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16)
02/23/09
Have you ever watched a movie with a myriad of seemingly unrelated events that eventually weave their way together by ... more
Posted by Dan Kawakami
Beyond Thanksgiving and Petition (Psalm 40)
02/17/09
This is a devotional on Psalm 40. I know what you are thinking: Where’s the Campus Crusade campfire? ... more
Posted by Jeffrey Silva
Honor Your Father and Mother
02/09/09
This week as I looked into the book of Matthew, I heard Jesus say: But you say, "If anyone tells his father or his ... more
Posted by Eric Lau
The Geekiest and Greekiest Video Ever
02/04/09
Forget the Golden Globes, SAGs, and the Oscars. Cinematograhic gold has been revealed in a recent ... more
Posted by David Lee
DON'T TAKE TYLENOL!
02/02/09
It is all so overwhelming sometimes. There are deadlines to meet, children to take care of, and tests to study ... more
Posted by Jesse Terasaki
Book Review - Crazy Love by Francis Chan
01/27/09
Lighthouse's small groups will be studying Francis Chan's Crazy Love beginning the week of February 22nd. Click here ... more
Posted by Amy Ho
How God Deals With Questions
01/26/09
Troubled times are questioning times. When circumstances are far different from when we would have them be, the ... more
Posted by David Lee
For His Name's Sake
01/19/09
When I was a small boy, I was attending an evening VBS (Vacation Bible School) when our teacher presented us with a ... more
Posted by Kelly Kira
Ligon Duncan on Praying for Pastors
01/14/09
Ligon Duncan, pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Jacksonville, Mississippi and all-around evangelical rockstar, ... more
Posted by David Lee
Don't Be a Fool
01/12/09
A California physician and attorney who has recently been in the headlines for his attempt to legally remove the words ... more
Posted by Jason Ho
Gavin's Sabbatical: What Really Happened?
01/09/09
Pastor Gavin recently returned from his three month sabbatica this past falll. Pastor Kim has just begun his. ... more
Posted by Gavin Kajikawa
What We're Reading in 2009
01/02/09
Have you made any New Year's resolutions? While there's nothing special about celebrating the New Year in and of ... more
Posted by David Lee
Should We Be Merry This Christmas?
12/22/08
Why should Christmas be merry? In other words, why should we celebrate this holiday like we do? We should celebrate ... more
Posted by Kim Kira
When You're Sick and Tired of "Deck the Halls": Christmas Music Recommendations
12/12/08
Unless you’ve been hiding in a cave for the past few weeks, you’re well aware of the fact that the ... more
Posted by David Lee
Economic Downturn and the Prosperity Gospel
12/09/08
The Charlotte Observer has just released an article citing one possible effect of the recent economic downturn: a ... more
Posted by David Lee
Book Review – Culture Shift by R. Albert Mohler Jr.
12/04/08
Every day, Christians are bombarded by commercials, internet advertisements, and billboards. At the touch of a ... more
Posted by Jesse Terasaki
Baptism Testimony - Mandy Zia
11/27/08
On October 19, 2008, we were blessed to witness the baptisms of four members of the Lighthouse church family: Sean ... more
Posted by Mandy Zia
Baptism Testimony - Kevin Yee
11/19/08
On October 19, 2008, we were blessed to witness the baptisms of four members of the Lighthouse church family: ... more
Posted by Kevin Yee
Baptism Testimony - Nicole Rubalcava
11/12/08
On October 19, 2008, we were blessed to witness the baptisms of four members of the Lighthouse church family: Sean ... more
Posted by Nicole Rubalcava
Baptism Testimony - Sean Ohira
11/07/08
On October 19, 2008, we were blessed to witness the baptisms of four members of the Lighthouse church family: Sean ... more
Posted by Sean Ohira
Book Review – Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris
09/02/08
Book review on "Do Hard Things" by Alex and Brett Harris more
Posted by Jesse Terasaki
Summer Missions Update - Kaycee Kaba and The Chronicles of Chocoflan- Completed, yet to be continued...
08/27/08
Mexico Update: August 27th more
Posted by Kaycee Kaba
Summer Missions Update - Kaycee Kaba and The Chronicles of Chocoflan-Special Edition
08/17/08
Mexico Update: August 17th more
Posted by Kaycee Kaba
Summer Missions Update - Kaycee Kaba and The Chronicles of Chocoflan- Mexico City Edition
08/05/08
Mexico Update - August 5th more
Posted by Kaycee Kaba
From Theology to Doxology: Letting the Study of God Produce Worship of Him
08/04/08
Romans 11:33-36 more
Posted by Jeffrey Silva
Summer Missions Update - Kaycee Kaba and the Chronicles of Chocoflan Part 5
07/29/08
Mexico Update - July 28th more
Posted by Kaycee Kaba
Summer Missions Update - Kaycee Kaba and the Chronicles of Chocoflan Part 4
07/25/08
Mexico Update: July 23rd more
Posted by Kaycee Kaba
From Every Nation pt. 4
07/18/08
Part fourof our four part series on Heaven... and Evangelism more
Posted by Dan Lim
Summer Missions Update - Kaycee Kaba and the Chronicles of Chocoflan Part 2
07/14/08
Mexico update: July 6th more
Posted by Kaycee Kaba
Summer Missions Update - Kaycee Kaba and the Chronicles of Chocoflan Part 3
07/14/08
Mexico update: July 12th more
Posted by Kaycee Kaba
Summer Missions Update - Kaycee Kaba and the Chronicles of Chocoflan #1
07/06/08
Mexico Update: Pre-trip and arrival more
Posted by Kaycee Kaba
Summer Missions Update - Berry and Kimmie #1
07/03/08
Philippines Update: Pre-Trip more
Posted by Berry And Kimmie
From Every Nation pt. 3
07/02/08
Part three of our four part series on Heaven... and Evangelism more
Posted by Dan Lim
From Every Nation pt. 2
06/25/08
Part two of our four part series on Heaven... and Evangelism. more
Posted by Dan Lim
From Every Nation pt. 1
06/18/08
Part one of four part series on Heaven... and Evangelism. more
Posted by Dan Lim
Film Review - Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed
06/11/08
A review on the documentary, Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. more
Posted by David Lee
The Same Bible, The Same Truth: Some Illumination on Same-Sex Marriage
06/09/08
A biblical response to California Supreme Court's May 15, 2008 ruling on Same-Sex Marriage. more
Posted by Jeffrey Silva
Buying Quality Christian Books
05/09/08
Helpful tips on how to buy quality Chrisitan Books. more
Posted by Scott Yoshikawa