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Palo Alto Youth & Young Adults, 625 Hamilton Avenue, Palo Alto, CA (2026)

05/13/2026

Morning Devotion. May 13

Psalm 51:12
Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

12 Ko e fiefia ʻo hoʻo fakamoʻui ke ke fakafoki kia kita. Kae poupou au ʻe ha laumālie tauʻatāina.

Good Morning Church Family, and Happy Wednesday!

Life can sometimes leave us tired, discouraged, or carrying the weight of mistakes and regrets. Yet Psalm 51 reminds us that God’s grace is always flowing like a cool stream in the middle of a dry land. When we come honestly before God, He does not push us away. He forgives, restores, and renews us.

The joy of salvation is not based on having a perfect life. It comes from knowing that we are loved by God, forgiven through His mercy, and never abandoned by His presence. God’s grace makes us whole again.

Today, remember that every new morning is another opportunity to walk with God. Let His grace refresh your spirit, guide your thoughts, and strengthen your heart. No matter what yesterday looked like, God is able to restore your joy today.

As we continue through this week, may we live with thankful hearts, willing spirits, and faith that keeps us close to the Lord.

🙏Heavenly Father, thank You for Your grace that restores and renews us. Wash away our fears, burdens, and sins, and fill us again with the joy of Your salvation. Help us to walk faithfully with You today and reflect Your love to others. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Have a blessed Wednesday everyone!!

05/12/2026

Morning Devotion. May 12

Psalm 27:14
Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.

14 Nofo, ʻo sio ki he ʻEiki: Fakatoʻotoʻa, pea ke tānaki ʻe ho loto ha ivi; Tala atu, nofo ʻo sio ki he ʻEiki.

Waiting is not easy. We live in a world that wants everything fast — fast answers, fast healing, fast blessings, and fast results. But many times, God works in the waiting.

Sometimes we pray and expect immediate change, yet God asks us to trust Him a little longer. In those moments, He is building our faith, teaching us patience, strengthening our hearts, and drawing us closer to Him. Waiting does not mean God has forgotten you. It means God is preparing something in His perfect time.

Difficult seasons can test us. They reveal whether we are only searching for quick solutions or truly seeking the presence of God. The good news is this: when we wait on the Lord, He gives us strength to keep going. He reminds us not to give up.

This Tuesday morning, do not lose heart. Stay faithful. Stay prayerful. Stay hopeful. God is still working behind the scenes, even when you cannot see it yet.

🙏Heavenly Father, teach us to trust You while we wait. Give us strength when life feels difficult and courage when we feel discouraged. Help us to seek You above everything else and remind us that Your timing is always perfect. Fill our hearts with peace and hope today. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Have a blessed Tuesday everyone!!

05/07/2026

"And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God."

Romans 12:2, KJV

Today is the lifestyle.

Romans 12:2 is another verse people quote without understanding what it actually means.

“Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

Most people hear that and think it means “think positive.”

Replace bad thoughts with good ones.

Start journaling.

Practice gratitude.

Meditate on happy things.

That’s not renewal.

That’s redecoration.

You’re rearranging furniture in a house with a cracked foundation.

Renewing your mind is not about thinking better thoughts.

It’s about changing where your thoughts come from.

Look at what the verse actually says.

“Be NOT conformed to this world.”

The Greek word for “conformed” is suschēmatizō.

It means to be shaped by an external mold.

Poured into a pattern.

Pressed into a template that someone else designed.

That’s what the world does to your thinking every single day.

Social media shapes how you see yourself.

Culture shapes what you believe about success.

Past trauma shapes how you interpret every relationship.

The opinions of people you respect shape what you think is true.

And most of it happens without you even noticing.

You didn’t choose most of the thoughts you think.

They were installed.

By your environment.

By your pain.

By repetition.

By the enemy whispering long enough that his voice started sounding like yours.

That’s the mold.

Renewal is breaking the mold.

The Greek word for “renewing” is anakainōsis.

It means a complete renovation.

Not a patch job.

Not an upgrade.

A renovation from the inside out.

New wiring.

New plumbing.

New everything.

And the tool for that renovation is not your effort.

It’s the Word of God.

Renewing your mind doesn’t mean thinking harder. It means replacing the source.

Trading the world’s operating system for God’s.

This is why Day 6 matters.

Taking thoughts captive is the daily practice.

Renewing your mind is what happens over time when you do it consistently.

Thought by thought.

Verse by verse.

Day by day.

The old mold cracks and a new pattern forms.

Not because you tried harder.

But because you kept showing up to the Word and the Word did the work.

“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

Romans 10:17 (KJV)

Faith doesn’t come by feeling.

It comes by hearing.

And hearing comes by the Word.

The more you’re in the Word, the more your mind gets rewired to hear God’s voice instead of the world’s.

That’s the transformation Paul is talking about.

It’s not behavior modification.

It’s source modification.

Think about it like a radio.

Your mind is always tuned to something.

If you wake up and immediately scroll your phone, you’re tuned to the world.

If you spend all day consuming content that feeds your flesh, you’re tuned to the flesh.

And then you wonder why your thoughts are anxious, lustful, bitter, or hopeless.

You’re not broken. You’re just tuned to the wrong station.

Renewing your mind is not adding God to your playlist.

It’s changing the station entirely.

And notice what happens when you do.

“That ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

When your mind is renewed, you stop guessing what God wants.

You start recognizing it.

The word “prove” in Greek is dokimazō.

It means to test and approve.

To discern by experience.

A renewed mind doesn’t need someone to tell it what’s true.

It can taste the difference between truth and counterfeit because it’s been trained by the Word.

This is the end of Week 1.

Look at where you started.

Day 1: Sin is identity, not action.

Day 2: The root is unbelief.

Day 3: Your thoughts are compromised.

Day 4: Your feelings are a con man.

Day 5: Lean not on your own understanding.

Day 6: Take every thought to court.

Day 7: Renew your mind daily with the Word.

That’s the foundation.

And next week we build on it.

We’re going into repentance, restoration, and what God actually did about everything we just uncovered.

Step 1: Audit your inputs.

What is your mind consuming first thing in the morning?

Last thing at night?

Throughout the day?

Whatever you feed your mind the most is the mold it’s being pressed into.

If the Word isn’t the primary input, the world will be.

Step 2: Don’t say, “I need to think more positively.”

Say, “I need to change what’s feeding my mind. The Word of God is my new default, not my last resort.”

Step 3: Make it a daily habit, not a weekly event.

Renewal is not a Sunday thing.

It’s an everyday thing.

Five minutes in the Word before you check your phone.

That’s the starting line.

The app is designed for exactly this.

Use it.

PRAYER:

Father God, I’ve been shaped by the world longer than I’ve been shaped by Your Word.

My thinking has been molded by culture, trauma, social media, and opinions that were never Yours.

Today I ask You to renovate my mind.

Not a patch job.

Not a quick fix.

A full renovation.

Help me show up to Your Word daily and let it rewire what the world installed.

I don’t want to think better. I want to think differently. Change the source, Lord.

I’m done being conformed.

I’m ready to be transformed.

Amen.

05/05/2026

"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."

Matthew 6:33, KJV

“Seek ye first the kingdom of God.”

I’ve heard people use this verse to mean all kinds of things. Go to church more. Pray before you do anything. Read your Bible first thing in the morning. Put God at the top of your priority list. Make sure your spiritual checklist is done before you handle the rest of your day.

And none of that is what Jesus is saying.

Because seeking the kingdom first is not about adding more spiritual activity to your schedule. It’s about changing what sits at the center of your life.

And for most of my walk, the center was me.

I was making my own plans and asking God to bless them. I was building my own life and inviting God to come along. I was the driver and God was the passenger. And I thought because I prayed before making decisions, I was “seeking the kingdom first.”

I wasn’t. I was seeking myself first and sprinkling God on top.

And if you’re honest, you might be doing the same thing.

Seeking the kingdom first doesn’t mean doing more for God. It means trusting what God already did through His Son.

Because the kingdom is not a to-do list. The kingdom is the gospel.

Think about what Jesus said. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, AND HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS.”

His righteousness. Not yours. Not the righteousness you build through discipline and good behavior. His. Christ’s. The righteousness that was credited to you the moment you believed (Romans 4:5).

Seeking the kingdom first means waking up every day and remembering that the foundation is already laid. Christ already lived the perfect life. Christ already died for your sins. Christ already rose again. The work is finished. Your job is not to build the kingdom through your effort. Your job is to trust the King who already built it.

And when you do that, everything else shifts.

“For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.” Romans 14:17 (KJV)

The kingdom is not external stuff. Not performance. Not activity. It’s righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. And all of those come from the gospel. Righteousness was given to you through Christ. Peace comes from trusting His finished work. Joy flows from knowing you’re secure in Him.

That’s the kingdom. And it’s already inside you if you believe.

So what does it look like to seek that first? Practically?

It looks like starting your day with the gospel instead of your problems. Not “let me figure out how to fix today” but “let me remember what’s already been fixed.”

It looks like approaching your job differently. Not “I need to prove myself” but “I’m already accepted in Christ, so I work from rest, not for approval.”

It looks like approaching relationships differently. Not “I need this person to complete me” but “I’m already complete in Christ, so I love from overflow, not from need.”

It’s a total reframe of how you walk through life. Not self-directed with God added. God-centered with everything else finding its proper place.

And here’s the part most people miss about this verse. Look at the last portion.

“And all these things shall be added unto you.”

Added. Not chased. Not ground out. Not stressed over. Added.

What things? Go back a few verses. Jesus was talking about food, drink, clothing, the basic needs of life (Matthew 6:25-32). He was telling His disciples to stop worrying about provision. And then He said when you seek the kingdom first, the provision comes.

Not because you earned it. Because the King takes care of His people.

You don’t seek the kingdom to get stuff from God. You seek the kingdom because the King is the stuff. And everything else is just overflow.

That’s the flip. Most people read Matthew 6:33 as a transaction. “If I put God first, He’ll bless me with what I need.” And that’s just the prosperity gospel wearing a better outfit. That’s still transactional thinking.

The real meaning is this. When Christ is your center, you stop stressing about the rest. Not because the problems disappear. Because the Provider is bigger than the problems. And when you trust the Provider, the anxiety about provision loses its grip.

I remember when this shifted for me. I was stressing about finances. Stressing about the ministry. Stressing about the future. And I was praying about all of it constantly. “God, provide. God, open a door. God, make a way.”

And one day while reading the Word, Matthew 6:33 hit me differently. I realized I was seeking provision first and hoping God would tag along. But Jesus said seek the KINGDOM first and the provision follows.

I had the order backwards.

The moment I stopped chasing provision and started resting in the King, something changed. Not the circumstances. Me. The anxiety loosened. The grip on control relaxed. And things started falling into place, not because I worked harder, but because I finally stopped trying to be my own provider and let God be God.

That’s what “added unto you” looks like. It’s not a formula. It’s a byproduct of trust.

“And my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19 (KJV)

All your need. According to HIS riches. Not yours. His. You don’t have to figure it all out. You don’t have to secure every outcome. You seek the King. And the King handles the kingdom.

Step 1: Check your center today. Not your schedule. Your center. Is Christ at the center of how you make decisions, or is self at the center with Christ added on? There’s a big difference between inviting God into your plans and submitting your plans to God.

Step 2: Don’t say, “I need to put God first on my priority list.” Say, “God isn’t a line item on my list. He’s the foundation under the entire list. When I trust His finished work first, everything else finds its place.”

Step 3: The next time you feel anxiety about provision, finances, relationships, the future, pause. Before you start problem-solving, go to the gospel. “Christ already secured the most important thing, my eternity. If He handled that, He can handle this.” Let the gospel lead before your stress does.

PRAYER:

Father God, I’ve been seeking my plans first and asking You to bless them. I’ve been the driver and treating You like the passenger. Today I move out of the center and I let You take it. Not as a line item on my list. As the foundation under everything. I seek Your kingdom first. Not to earn provision. Because the King who saved me is faithful to sustain me. I stop chasing what You already promised to add. I stop stressing over what You already promised to supply. I trust You with my career, my finances, my relationships, and my future. Not because I have it figured out. Because You do. And that’s enough. Amen

04/17/2026

"Faith Without Works Is Dead" Doesn't Mean What You Think
"For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also."

James 2:26, KJV

If you’ve been in any church for more than a month, you’ve heard this verse used as a weapon.

“Faith without works is dead.”

It gets pulled out every time someone wants to remind you that you’re not doing enough. Not serving enough. Not giving enough. Not changing fast enough. It’s the go-to verse for people who want to put the weight of salvation back on your shoulders.

And I get why it sounds convincing. On the surface, it seems like James is saying your faith only counts if you back it up with good behavior. That belief alone isn’t enough. That you have to prove your salvation with your performance.

But that’s not what James is saying. Not even close.

And the reason I know is because most people have never asked the most important question about this verse.

Who is James talking to?

James 1:1 answers it clearly. “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.”

The twelve tribes. He’s writing to Jews. Not to the church at large. Not to born-again believers living under the new covenant. To Jews scattered throughout the nations.

And not just any Jews. Keep reading through the letter and you get to James 5:6. “Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.”

Condemned and killed the just. Who is the Just One? Jesus.

James is writing to the people who crucified the Messiah.

Let that sink in. The audience of this letter includes people who participated in or supported the ex*****on of Jesus Christ. And that changes everything about how you read “faith without works is dead.”

These were people who had “faith.” They believed in God. They kept the law. They tithed. They fasted. They went to the temple. By every visible standard, they looked like the most faithful people on the planet.

But they killed the very Person their faith was supposed to point to.

They had religion without the Redeemer. Law-keeping without the Lamb. And that’s the dead faith James is talking about.

Their faith was dead not because they weren’t doing enough works. Their faith was dead because they rejected the only work that mattered.

“Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.” John 6:29 (KJV)

The work of God. Believe on Jesus. That’s the work James is pointing to. Not your physical performance. Not your religious checklist. Belief in the finished work of the Son of God.

And how could they have that belief if they nailed Him to a cross?

That’s the whole point.

James isn’t telling believers to add works to their faith. He’s telling Jews who rejected Christ that their law-keeping, temple-attending, commandment-following “faith” is dead because it doesn’t include the one thing that gives faith life. Trust in Jesus.

Dead faith is not faith that doesn’t produce good behavior. Dead faith is faith that doesn’t include Jesus.

And here’s the part that should stop every one of us.

The people who misuse this verse today are doing the exact same thing the audience James was rebuking was doing. They’re pointing to their works as proof of their faith. “Look at what I do for God. Look at how I serve.”

That’s the Pharisee mentality. That’s the mindset of the twelve tribes. That’s the same heart posture that looked at Jesus hanging on the cross and said, “We don’t need Him. We have the law.”

When you use James 2:26 to push works-based religion, you’re not following James. You’re becoming the audience he was correcting.

Think about it. The Pharisees had more works than anyone. They tithed down to their spices (Matthew 23:23). They prayed publicly. They fasted twice a week. They kept the law to the letter. And Jesus called them whitewashed tombs (Matthew 23:27). Clean on the outside. Dead on the inside.

Their faith was dead. Not because the works were missing. The works were overflowing. But the trust in Jesus was absent.

You can have a mountain of works and still have dead faith if Jesus isn’t at the center of it.

And the reverse is true too. The thief on the cross next to Jesus had zero works. Zero. He never tithed. Never served. Never went to temple as a believer. And in his final moments, he turned to Jesus and said, “Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” (Luke 23:42, KJV)

And Jesus said, “To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43, KJV)

No works. Just belief. And it was enough.

Because the work was never yours to do. The work was always Jesus’. He lived the perfect life. He kept every commandment. He fulfilled every requirement. And He died so you wouldn’t have to earn what He freely gives.

When James says “faith without works is dead,” he’s not saying go produce more good behavior. He’s saying faith that doesn’t include the finished work of Christ is not saving faith. It’s religious activity. And religious activity without the Redeemer is a co**se in a suit.

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9 (KJV)

Not of works. Paul settles it. And James agrees with Paul when you read James in context. They’re both pointing to the same truth from different angles. Paul says works can’t save you. James says faith without Christ can’t save you either. Both are pointing you to Jesus.

The work is believe. The rest is His.

Step 1: The next time someone throws James 2:26 at you to make you feel like you’re not doing enough, ask them, “Who was James writing to?” Context changes everything. James was correcting Jews who rejected Christ, not believers who are resting in the gospel.

Step 2: Don’t say, “I need to produce more works to prove my faith is alive.” Say, “My faith is alive because it’s in Jesus. And any good that comes from my life is the overflow of His life in me, not my effort to prove I’m saved.”

Step 3: Examine where your faith is pointed. Is it pointed at your performance or at the Person of Jesus Christ? If it’s pointed at what you do, that’s the same direction the twelve tribes were facing. And we know where that ended. Point it at the cross. That’s where living faith begins.

PRAYER:

Father God, I’ve been reading this verse wrong. I thought it was about me doing more. But it was about trusting Your Son. The audience James wrote to had all the works in the world and still killed the Messiah. Their faith was dead because it didn’t include Jesus. Today I check my faith. Not by looking at my works. By looking at where my trust is pointed. Is it pointed at me or at Your Son? I choose the cross. I choose the finished work. I choose to believe on Him whom You sent. That’s the work. That’s the only work. And everything else that comes from my life is fruit from that belief, not a payment for my salvation. Thank You for context, Lord. Thank You for truth that sets free instead of adding weight. Amen.

04/11/2026

Epeleli: "A'usia 'o e Palõmesí: Nofoma'u ki he 'Otua ko hotau Hüfangá pea Fakamo'oni kia Kalaisi Toetu'u." / "Living the Promise: Sheltering in
God's Refuge as a Witness to the Resurrection

Grace is a vital part of the Christian life. In fact, it’s the fuel that we need to participate in God’s work in the world and his work in us.

Sometimes, I hear rather humdrum definitions of grace. It’s popular in some parts of the Protestant world to describe grace as God’s “unmerited favor.” This is a fine definition of one aspect of grace, but it doesn’t capture the full picture.

John Wesley had a great, and short, definition: grace is the power of the Holy Spirit.

Notice how this description of grace is not only dynamic, but relational.

This dynamic view of grace comes from the larger tradition of the Church, and in particular from Wesley’s own Church of England. He learned this definition by praying the prayers of the Church, which describe grace as God’s “power” and His “governance.” It’s this divine power that enables one to live a Chrsitlike life.

Without grace, the faith teaches us that we are, in the words of St. Augustine, “turned in upon ourselves.” After the Fall, sin marred the image of God in each of us even if it didn’t erase it. But the damage caused by sin made us selfish, self-interested, and devoid of the ways that lead to true life, and true happiness.

But God didn’t leave us in that state. In His continued rescue mission—the calling of Israel, the life, death, and resurrection of Christ, and the founding of His Church—God pours out his grace upon the world.

Grace entails a dynamic and life-giving relationship with God. We could describe it as the active repercussion of God’s very presence in our lives.

And it is that grace that enables us to turn to Him, to accept His love and forgiveness, and ultimately to partake in the new life made possible by Christ’s death and resurrection.

The grace of God was not only seen in the Cross, emanating from Jesus’ self-offering for you and for me, but Easter morning saw an explosion of grace. The new creation that Christ launched in that graveyard just outside of Jerusalem is a new creation of grace, of presence, pardon, power, and hope.

In this season of Easter, a season that lasts 50 days, take hold of the grace of God, participate in the means of grace, celebrate the fact that Christ was raised from the dead, and let the Holy Spirit work in you, by grace.

Blessings Always
Ofa moe Lotu 🙏🏽💙🛐❤️

04/09/2026

Apr 9, 2026

You’re Not Struggling With Lust, It’s Actually…
“For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.”

Jeremiah 2:13, KJV

Lust is rarely the root problem.

It is the symptom.

At its core, lust is not about desire for a person.

It is about relief.

Relief from loneliness.

Relief from stress.

Relief from emptiness.

Relief from feeling unseen or overwhelmed.

Lust is what happens when the soul looks for comfort

in something other than God.

You are not just craving pleasure.

You are craving rest.

You are not just seeking stimulation.

You are seeking peace.

And when that need goes unmet in God,

the heart looks for substitutes.

Scripture calls those substitutes broken cisterns.

Things that promise relief

but cannot sustain it.

Lust feels powerful because it offers immediate escape.

But it always leaves the void deeper than before.

That is why the cycle repeats.

Because the problem was never the desire.

It was the source.

God does not shame desire.

He created it.

What He confronts is where desire is aimed.

Lust says,

“This will make me feel whole.”

The gospel says,

“You already are made whole in Christ.”

This is why willpower alone never heals lust.

Behavior management does not fix heart hunger.

Freedom comes when you stop asking,

“How do I stop?”

and start asking,

“What am I trying to soothe?”

Jesus never offered behavior tips first.

He offered Himself.

“I am the bread of life.”

John 6:35 (KJV)

“He that drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst.”

John 4:14 (KJV)

Lust loses power when satisfaction is relocated.

Not when desire disappears,

but when desire is fulfilled rightly.

You do not overcome lust by hating yourself more.

You overcome it by trusting God more.

You are not broken because you struggle.

You are hungry.

And hunger is not solved by restraint alone.

It is solved by returning

to the only source

that truly satisfies.

Step by Step: Addressing the Real Root

Step 1: Stop shaming the struggle

Shame deepens the cycle.

Step 2: Identify what you’re seeking relief from

Stress, loneliness, anxiety, exhaustion.

Step 3: Bring that need honestly to God

God meets needs, not performances.

Step 4: Refuse counterfeit comfort

Short relief always costs more later.

Step 5: Anchor your identity in Christ

You are not empty. You are filled in Him.

Step 6: Let satisfaction replace striving

Freedom grows where trust lives.

PRAYER:

God, show me what my heart has been seeking apart from You. I bring You my hunger, my stress, and my need for relief. Teach me to find rest in You instead of substitutes that cannot satisfy. Amen.

04/07/2026

One with Jesus/ Taha ia Sisu🙏🏽Apitanga 2026 Fakafetai mo Fakafetai 🙏🏽 Fakamalo Lahi kihe Talekita mo Tuli moe kau taki moe kau Fanau he feing ke tau Taha mo Sisu💙 Pray you all had a Spiritual Experience 🙏🏽💙🛐❤️

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