Discouraged!

I am 36 years old, and in a few months I'll be 37. When I look at my love life, I am really losing hope with the idea if i'd be married someday.

Lord, I surrender my life to You and I put my hope in You!

Up-Down!

I really do not know what I am really feeling. Sometimes I feel that I am all in and sometimes I feel that I do not feel anything anymore. But what it constant is the 'every waking moment' prayer that I am reminded of every time I wake up and leads me to pray.

Lord, I trust in You will all my heart. I surrender my life to You. I lean to you and acknowledge you every step of the way, I may not know what will happen in the future, but I know that You will make my path straight!

Honing the Communication Craft

Lord, one of the things that's part of what I do as a Pastor is to communicate your Word. So I ask God that You would equip and inspire me to continually hone my communication skills especially this year.

I also ask that you illumine Your word to me in ways that I've never seen it before. That I see things in Your Word that really light up how we see You as our Lord. That we see details there that inspire us to obey You and surrender to You.

Lord, I want to communicate Your Word in ways that would spark change in the people who look up to me.

Fishers of Men

As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him. When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him. '

Mark 1:14-20

https://my.bible.com/bible/111/MRK.1.14-20

This is an explanation of the previous text--repent and believe.

This happened after John the baptist was put into prison. Jesus called his first disciples after the 'persecution' of John.

Follow Me - Come behind me as a disciple--a permanent disciple of Jesus. It was prioritization of their relationship to Jesus.

Peter and Andrew left their nets and followed him - they followed Jesus by quitting their jobs as fishermen.

James and John were 'middle class' probably because they have hired men with them. They left their father Zebedee with the hired men / they were sure that their father was taken care of. But they left their father, without delay--a picture of total allegiance.

"Come, follow me and I will send you our to fish for people" is the calling of every believer--to follow Jesus, becoming like Him (Christlikeness) and to be sent out for people (to make others become like Jesus also).

Repent and Believe

'After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” '

Mark 1:14-15

https://my.bible.com/bible/111/MRK.1.14-15

John was arrested because of his comments about Herod and his adulterous relationship.

Jesus 'retreated' to Galilee when John was arrested*

The time has come! - It was a Kairos moment.

The kingdom of God has come near. - because the King has come near. The Kingdom of God is where the rule of God is directly observed.

Repent - turning from something (180 degree turn)

Believe - embracing the new thing to believe in.

The good news - Because the Messiah is here.

Repent and Believe - that is the constant call for everyone. To turn away from my own self-sufficiency and embrace Jesus.

Fully Loved Fully Tried

'At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” At once the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness, and he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him. '

Mark 1:9-13

https://my.bible.com/bible/111/MRK.1.9-13

The Baptism of Jesus is one of the events that pictures the trinity. The Father speaking from Heaven; The Son being baptized and the Holy Spirit descending like a dove.

Jesus underwent John's baptism to identify with man and man's sin. -Dr Constable's Notes on Mark, p. 21

The Father expressed his love and pleasure for the Son, even though the Son hasn't done anything yet.

God loves us and is pleased with us for who we are in Him not by what we do. 

In a world where, achievement and work has become that standard of love and pleasure and acceptance and belongingness and approval - everyone looks good on social media. Everyone is achieving in social media. We want reactions, hearts, likes, views, shares, etc. 

plot twist - God loves the Son and is pleased with Him but was immediately sent to the wilderness to fast and to be tempted by the enemy.

The same Holy Spirit who descended on Him like a dove is a the same Holy Spirit who led Jesus to the wilderness for forty days to be tempted by Satan. (Wild animals adds to the intensity of the temptation, angels adds to grace given in times of need)

God allowed Satan to tempt Jesus for two reasons: to show that He would not draw away from the Father's will, and to demonstrate His qualification for the mission.

Jesus came to overthrow the Kingdom of Darkness, and the Testing in the wilderness is an inevitable encounter.

*Adam was tempted in the perfect place and failed. Jesus was tempted in the worst environment, and he succeeded.

It's not about the environment.

God in his love send his people to trials and testing. Trials and testing helps in perfecting our faith. Suffering expands our emotional capacities and our spirituality and faith. It exposes what we know and what we really believe about God our Father. Temptations will be fierce, but the same Holy Spirit who dwelt in Jesus and overcame temptation from Satan is with us in our temptations.

Our suffering with the enemy is also God's way of initiating our own personal ministries.

Forerunners

'The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, 

as it is written in Isaiah the prophet: 

“I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way” — “a voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’ ” 

And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. John wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. And this was his message: “After me comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” '

Mark 1:1-8

https://my.bible.com/bible/111/MRK.1.1-8

Mark started his gospel with John the Baptist. He was the messenger ahead of Jesus, who prepared the hearts of people to receive and identify the Messiah. He is a a voice calling in the wilderness, Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight paths for him.

His message of repentance, baptism. and the after me.... is all for the preparation for the hearts of people so that when Messiah comes, they won't miss him. He is calling all people to ready their hearts so that their hearts would be sensitive when God through the Messiah, reveals himself.

John's lifestyle--diet and fashion sense marks him as a typical prophet / man of God in those times.

Point: You are the first step for people before they encounter Jesus fully. Is our interactions with people prepare their hearts points to God. Is our lifestyle/behavior reflects someone who truly knows Jesus. Our we preparing the ways of Lord so that people would receive Jesus in their lives.

Epic Fail Today.

There are time like these, when my preaching felt like an epic fail--that I haven't prayed enough & that I haven't prepared enough--and I know that it is true. I know in head what is the bottom line of what I want to share. But when I'm already up there, at the stage, everything falls apart.

I'm sorry Lord for not doing and giving my best. Sorry Lord.

Failed Relationships

I have never had a girlfriend. I have never experienced how to court a lady that I like. If you would learn my story, you might get depressed. You see, I did not chose to be single. There were a couple of times that I asked a girl out--asked if I could court her. There was a time that I hung out too much at a girl's place just to let her know that I like her (though I did not tell her outright that I would court her). All in all, I think I did what I needed to do as a guy that liked someone, especially when I've made up my mind with regards to courting a girl.

This made me evaluate and see what has been happening. Why have I been failing at this area in my life. I really don't know. Maybe it my fashion sense. Maybe it's my appearance. Maybe it's my personality. I don't know. But there's someone that I would like to acknowledge why I have been experiencing this apparent failure--God.

Looking back, I realized that most of the women that I was considering started out single and available but suddenly, while I was in the process of considering them or maybe praying for them, there would be a guy that would start courting them. There was one instance that a couple brought to me and a lady friend an idea that if we hit a certain age, and if we are still single and available, why not consider each other for marriage. While this got me thinking about the possibility of me and my lady friend, out of nowhere, there came a man from her early years and began courting her. There was also a time when I was starting to get close to a lady friend from church, again, out of nowhere, someone from her past contacted her and began courting her. Looking at in now, I am amazed at how I did not see it then--that whenever I began to like someone or considered someone, this someone would have a guy courting her.

I think this is God. I think God is protecting me and also protecting my lady friends from me. I know that I am not mature enough to handle a relationship. Also, I think God is also preparing the best for me--for which He would get the most glory. All in all, I thank God that He is fully involved in my life--that He answers the prayer that I ask of Him every time that I am starting to like someone: that if this is not from You, shut the door, Lord. And He has been shutting doors ever since.

Sheer Persistence

“I tell you, even though the man inside will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of the first man’s sheer persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.”

Luke 11:8 NET

http://bible.com/107/luk.11.8.net

Sheer Persistence - God responds to sheer persistence - probably because it is an act of desperation that unles God moves, nothing will happen and nothing will ever change. It is also an act of faith - believing that there is nobody else in this world that can do what is being asked for in prayer.

God let me have sheer persistence in prayer.

Closer You and I

Intimacy with God is a crucial part of living the Christian life. It is growing and deepening your relationship with God.

Lord, I want to grow deeper in my walk with you. I want to know you more. Lord, grant my request. Lord, help me. Amen.

When The Going Gets Tough

Life gets tough.

Mas madali sanang sabihin na life gets easier--that the older you get, pagaan nang pagaan ang buhay. But that is not the case. That is not reality--things that we cried for when we are younger, we laugh at it today, and then we face new challenges. It'll show our character, it'll show our values, it'll show whose we are and it'll show the convictions that we truly hold on to.

Amidst all these crazyness--na pati yung mga challenges sa buhay natin ay naglelevel-up--one thing we want is to understand why all these things are happening. Of all the people in the world, why are these things happening to me. 'Bakit ako pa?' Ika nga.

And our capacity to understand and the capacity of our faith collides with each other when things get really tough. Doubt seeps in. We question God. We need answers to the why's? And somehow, we need the answers now.

At this point, many are tempted to fall away. The correlation with the need to understand and the strength of our faith gets front and center. However, most of the time, as we face trials, our understanding is not yet able to accomodate what God is doing.

"To whom shall we go?", "You have the words of eternal life" said Peter one time. And this is the truth that we need to understand. If we fall away from Jesus, we are going to another direction. We are going to another person, being or god. But nothing in this world has offered eternal life than Jesus. He alone is the way to eternal life.

You do not have to understand it all so that you'll be able to hold on to Jesus. Marami na siyang ginawa sa buhay mo--sa buhay natin. Marami na siyang pinatunayan. Marami ng himala. In times of hardship and trials, where we don't understand what's happening. Remember that to go away from Jesus is worse. You may not know where these trials are leading you, know that apart from Jesus, you will never know where you will be, but in Jesus, you may not understand what's happening but you can be sure that He is leading you to life eternal.

Saved by Grace

Our salvation is a gift from God through the obedience and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. I am but saved by grace through faith. Thank you Lord for saving me, for redeeming me, for freeing me. I owe my life to you Lord God. I love you, Lord.

Thursdays @ Church

I praise God for how he guides our adult Bible Study. What I am doing right now is just get a story from the Bible. We'll read the story / text and then get some observations and from there try to look for principles about God and man that would help each one of us in our walk with God.

I thank the Lord because, though I know the text, I really don't know what observations the group will emphasize. So what ever they say that's where we'll start the discussion and create generalizations and applications for our lives. I thank the Lord for the knowledge and wisdom that he gives us during our time in the study of His Word.

Today was also a rest day for my Young Adult group. They have things to attend to that needs their immediate attention. I just gave them an assignment that they will have to do before our next meeting to enrich our discussion. May the Lord bless the work of their hands so that whatever they are attending to right now would be a blessing to them.

We also re-started our drum lessons. Bim and Meca came, and I am really amazed at how fast they are learning. I hope that they would really bloom to be musicians after God's heart--that they would use the skill/talent in worshipping God through music.

Rest Day Monday

Literally, I would just rest every Monday. I try to get my mind off things during Mondays. It really crawls up to my nerves--the message for next Sunday and the time I'll be needing to prepare, the church stuff which includes growing spiritually and numerically, my inadequacies as a Pastor, my failures, etc. And it really just want to take over my mind so that I think about them. But Monday is rest day. So I keep my mind off many things. Minsan feeling ko namab sobra-sobra ang pag-iisantabi ko sa mga bahay na dapat pinag-iisipan ko.

Haaay.

Tuesday Hang-over

Hindi na talaga pwede sa akin ang magpuyat. Masakit sa ulo at walang productive na magawa sa maghapon. After ilang hours na gising, dadapuan ka kaagad ng atok, tapos sasabayan ng sakit sa ulo. I end up sleeping again, just to make up for lost sleep.

Was reading Mere Christianity Earlier. Sometimes, I think that when I read books, the information that I get just evaporate immediately. I can't remember ot anymore though while I was reading, I think I was absorbing it. I need to focus on my focus skills and comprehension.

I Can't Claim It

I find it hard to claim a happy and prosperous life from God. Maybe it's just me.

It's just that when I read Hebrews 11:

'There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection. Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were put to death by stoning; they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground...'

Then there's the traditional story of how the Disciples were martyred except for John who was exiled in Patmos and got to die at an old age.

Then there's our Christian brothers and sisters who live in countries that being a Christian means death.

How, how can I believe with all my heart that happiness, prosperity and even a comfortable life is what my God has instore for me and for everyone when all throughout the ages and even today, Christians are persecuted and martyred? I can't. It would be a slap to their faces that we would claim a different kind of Christian Life. It would seem that the Christian God favors us more than them. It would seem that our faith can bring us wealth and happiness while theirs lead to persecution. I just can't.

What I do claim are the promises of God that can be understood to be timeless.

All the other things that I want, I ask God but never hold on to it as if God is obliged simply because I claim it.

I do ask, I do pray, I do hope for a better life but my faith leads me to ask it humbly.

In the end, I think that what God promises us is not a life of happiness, but there will certainly be joy; not of prosperity and wealth but where I need not worry because He will provide; and a life of peace amidst all the sorrow in our broken world.

PS. What I also want to say is that what we believe about God and His Works should transcend time, culture and geography. What is true in the here and now should be true elsewhere, yesterday, today and tomorrow.

Ar-Ouch

When I was a new Pastor at MCF as the new Youth Pastor, there was one time that I led a devotion in one of the youth gatherings/fellowship. I shared about how it is wrong to associate friends with things and laugh at it. There went an series of arguments about it. Defending what I think was right, them, defending why it was just ok. Then after a few weeks, the chairman of the youth ministry told me that they were going to have a meeting. But in that meeting they will not be inviting me. Little did I know that they would be meeting with Youth Adviser,  and that the agenda was about me.

When the idea that they would be meeting about me sunk in, i was hurt. I was dreaming for the position of Youth Pastor for a very long time. There was a passion in me to lead this group and these men and women towards God, then. At the first signon conflict, it's as is that I was betrayed.

There was one class during my seminary days that we discussed a similar case study about one pastor who was hurt with they church he was leading. And that's one of the time that I really felt the hurt by that attack.

And that's one of the things that we experience from time to time. There are people that we love, we serve, we live with--people that we consider close to us would hurt us. And it's one of the most painful thing that we feel. Even our neighbor would hurt us.

And the response that we would easily resonate with us is pay evil with evil. We want revenge. We our out for blood. Whatever the people did to hurt us, we want to do the same thing and even to a certain extent something much worse to them. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.

That's our natural respose to evil done to us. If we could have our way, and there were times that we did have our way, we would have gone all the way so that people would pay for the evil they did to us.

We have saying in Filipino: "Kapag binato ka ng bato, batuhuin mo ng tinapay" Madaling sabihin pero masarap gawin. we want people to feel the same and much worse pain that they inflicted upon us.

That's our normal way of thinking.

But as Kingdom People... as people who represents God and His Kingdom in this world, we are called to a different kind of value system so that our response would be different to these kind of evil done to us.

But what has Jesus have to say about this?
Matthew 5:38-48

What did Paul has to say?
Romans 5:8

One Point:
Overcome evil by doing good! Romans 12:17-21

We do good, because goodness exposes evil. We do good because we are recipient of that same goodness from God! We can also do good because we can trust God that He sees everything and hears everything and He will be the one to avenge for us. We do good because God is good!

Temptation: Jump!

The second temptation that Satan majored in when he tempted Jesus was daring Jesus to jump from the top of the temple. Satan even quoted scripture to convince Jesus. Satan claimed that whatever Jesus do in this life, God will have to save Jesus, because Jesus was loved by God and is special in His eyes.

The temptation is essentially a temptation to presume on God. It is twisting the arm of God so that God would be forced to do something. If Jesus did jump, the Father would have to save Jesus. It has taken that long for God to bring Jesus in that moment in time. And  the Father would not allow anything bad to happen to Him. Jesus safety is an utmost priority.

This temptation is acting irresponsibly (most of the time in the guise of faith) then expecting God to breakthough and perform feats of salvation. Many of us are guilty into falling into this subtle trap. We would present God our prayer requests and in 'acts of faith, we become answers to our prayer even though it may defy logic, wisdom and even the very principles of God found in His Word. And then when we find ourselves caught in the chaos of our foolish decision, we expect no, we even demand God to save us.

Yes God is our Savior and Redeemer. He will never turn back on that role. But also remember, God is God, He is our King and our Sovereign. We don't play with God. We don't stiff arm God to do our will nor do we act as if God is our genie in a bottle who will obey our every command and longing. We don't rashly act upon things 'in faith' nor 'visions' because is God. We should be the ones to obey, to abide, to submit. We should never presume, that because it is a good idea, God is already backing us up. It should terrify us that we might be holding on to our ideas and implementing them in the name of God. God has given us His Word and the Holy Spirit to teach us and remind us of His promises and principles. Let them be the guide.

Masakit Din Pala

Lord nakakasakit din pala talaga ng kalooban. Na minsan alang-alang sa pagpapalapit ng kaluluwa sa Iyo ay kailangan mong magpakumbaba at isantabi ang iyong mga hinanakit matupad lamang ang nais Mong gawin. 

In those moments you should remember Jesus' prayer: "Lord if it is possible, please let this cup pass away from me, but not my will but yours be done." Napaka-comforting na prayer and situation because even Jesus, the Son of God, was allowed by God to experience the struggle of His will different from the Father's. Sabi Niya sa mga disicples, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death" but yet He obeyed, so that Father's will be done. My Lord and Saviour became so unselfish despite everything He was feeling, all so that the world might be saved. If my Lord has set aside pain and sorrow in obedience to the Father, I recon, I must do so also.

I also remember Jesus meeting with the Samaritan woman by the well. What transpired between Jesus and the woman brought salvation to the woman, but when the disciples came back, they were so engrossed with their stereotypes and prejudices that they missed the working of God in the heart of the woman. Ang sagot ni Jesus nung tinanong Siya ng mga disciples Niya kung kumain na Siya? "I have food that you do not know of... it is doing the work of God."

May mga personal concerns tayo. May mga personal prejudices at stereotypes. Minsan may sakit ng kalooban o takot din tayong dala. Maaring pagbigyan tayo ng Dios na 'ilaban' at mag-express ng ating kalooban sa Kanya, but we were never given any license by God to use those as excuses of not abiding, of not obeying, of not submitting. Yes it does hurt, but trusting in God that He knows what He is doing even though it hurt may and can be the only thing we can do towill satisfy our soul.

"In this world you will have troubles, take heart I have overcome the world." Thank You Jesus.