Reading on the book "Boy meets girl" by Joshua Harris, i've encountered a chapter or perhaps chapters talking about godly men and women whom we can talk to about particular issues, making them as our accountability partner/s, prayer partner/s and/or counselors. Looking at Josh's examples, it is indeed wonderful and a blessing to have some godly men and women in our lives especially as we live our daily Christian lives. But it hits me! Here in our place & time added with the culture of Ibalois, are there godly men and women of whom we can seek advices and counsel? hahaha! perhaps yes... but i presume so few. And even so few, not too often we approach them for guidance, because of a lot of factors and reasons.
It is sad to think and for me to picture such a situation. Growth, maturity and wisdom of Christians seems to be of no essential nor even emphasized the need of it. It may be emphasized amongst churches, but personally living it out, so few are challenged and are willing to undergo it. The willingness to grow and acquire wisdom that comes from God and to live a godly life, seem so frightening to others. It's just as the same as Christians fearing to commit to something or being fully commited, esp. with regards to the Christian ministries / services. So few want to commit; so few want to stand up; so few wants to live simply as a genuine Christian.
I believe I have some ideas of what are those fear, cause i too have had it. The fear of knowing a lot of things about God also means a greater burden / account / responsibility you will have.
Luke 12:48 (King James Version)
But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.
But the truth is, as Christians, we have already committed to something and that is one thing we shouldn't and can never backed down of. That is simply being a Christian. Christianity is also a commitment. The moment that we have received Christ as our Lord and our Savior, means we have committed our lives to make Christ as our Lord, our Master and Someone Whom we ought to follow. The only problem is on our part.
I remember this verses:
Matthew 26:41 (King James Version)
Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Hebrews 12:1
Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.
Galatians 2:20 (King James Version)
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
The thing is, God wants us to surrender all our life to Him, laying everything that hinders us in serving Him and letting God have full control over our lives. But most often, we reserve a part of us to ourselves or don't even want to surrender everything to God. This is the most common problem Christians have or struggle each one is having.
But in all this struggles, Christians should be motivated to grow and desire a godly life for a lot of reasons as well. One would be the benefits of wisdom of God offers. There's a lot of benefits of having wisdom that no money can buy. If you want to know what are these? just look at Solomon and read the book of Proverbs. If you too would read Psalm 1, herein we could see how blessed is a man whose life is God-centered. Reading Psalm 23, we find that a child of God has a Good Shepherd, Who takes care, protects, nourishes & provides everything needed by the sheep, that is God's people. But perhaps an enough reason why Christians should press toward a godly life, is God's Love and God's Grace. If only Christians understand how awesome and amazing God's Love and Grace is; if only Christians can see how precious it is in their lives, I'm sure one can easily be motivated by it. It is enough reason to motivate a person. The only question now is, have we really seen how great God's Grace and God's Love is in our personal lives? It is by this question I hope Christians will consider to go forward, pressing on toward the price. Knowing how magnificent His Love and Grace is and have great meaning to us. And, therefore perhaps, people will see God's awesome glory in our lives.
This is the land of my forefathers... once was a field of rice, where my forefathers till the ground. Now, is the land for planes and of aircrafts... yet I still call it my beloved homeland... Loakan.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Friday, July 3, 2009
"Not even a hint"
Interesting book...
"Not even a hint" by Joshua Harris talks about something most often we people don't even talk about. We usually sometimes neglect this stuff or stay away from it. That is about "lust". Yes, "lust"! And, all the things that are related to it. In the Christian realm, definitely this word has been a secret struggle not only to boys, but among girls as well, as been discussed inside the book.
As I look to it more.. it also talks about God's standard for man, especially for Christians. It redirects or re-sets our focus towards Holiness. But also reminds that our righteousness comes from God's Grace, by which He sent His Son to die for us making a way for us to be saved. Having understand and realize the great impact of Grace towards us should be enough to motivate us to keep on going.. struggling and never give up.
"Not even a hint" by Joshua Harris talks about something most often we people don't even talk about. We usually sometimes neglect this stuff or stay away from it. That is about "lust". Yes, "lust"! And, all the things that are related to it. In the Christian realm, definitely this word has been a secret struggle not only to boys, but among girls as well, as been discussed inside the book.
As I look to it more.. it also talks about God's standard for man, especially for Christians. It redirects or re-sets our focus towards Holiness. But also reminds that our righteousness comes from God's Grace, by which He sent His Son to die for us making a way for us to be saved. Having understand and realize the great impact of Grace towards us should be enough to motivate us to keep on going.. struggling and never give up.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Leadership
Leadership, a word too broad for me to talk about. Too much to say but too few to put it on writing. There’s so much I have in my mind with this word. But I can narrow it to one word, that is “lead”.
I believe there are different ways or methods of Leadership. Or there are different ways on how to lead. Some lead in power, some lead through fame. Some lead with influence, while other lead in authority. Some lead because they are in position, and some lead, perhaps the best, because they are leaders. But the thing that I like most is leadership that comes by the example of the heroes of the Bible. Yes, there are lots of leaders who lived and died, some remembered, some we don’t and forgotten. Some are well known because of what they’ve done and accomplished. But the Leaders of the Bible, are known because of God. Not because of what they have done or accomplished but of what God has accomplished through them.
It’s indeed interesting there’s so much difference on leadership of how man displays, as to the leadership God displays. Leadership of man speaks of self-glory and self-proclaimed victories and such, whereas the leadership of the heroes of the bible displays God’s glory and God’s awesomeness, very distinct and very far from each other. Here is a gap and can see so much differences amongst it. And if I have to make to differ about it, I can perhaps show some. And let me categorize it as Leadership of the world and Leadership of God.
1. Leadership of the world focuses more on power and authority, while Leadership of God focuses on serving and humility.
2. Leadership of the world focuses to seek benefit of their own, while Leadership of God focuses on others.
3. Leadership of the world focuses on self-abilities, whereas Leadership of God focuses on depending mainly on God.
These are few things I may say about the differences. There may be more.
Far more than these, there are a lot of things I may share about leadership, as it is indeed a continuous learning experience. As we lead others and those before us, to a destination we all hope to be and accomplish.
In my experience, being a leader wasn’t exactly a one-day training, or one day job. In other words, experience has taught me much about leadership. Every failure had become a stepping stone to do things better on the next. And every victory serves as a reminder to maintain it and not give it up.
At first, leadership was not in my mind, I’d rather be on low profile mode or something. But it seems people place me to it anyway. I’ve always known, I don’t have all the capacity of knowing everything and having all capabilities, but I do recognize that each individual has its own capabilities and/or skills. Everyone has a gift in doing something and doing it at its best. And so far I try to make use of that knowledge. Trial and error is also has its benefits. It may hurt to have error, but the most important? You learn.
Hmmm? Just remembered the Lakers of the NBA and what Phil Jackson told Kobe before. “You can’t lead them, if they are not ready to follow you.” (If I remember it right) It’s an interesting statement, almost the same when talking about character of a person. When we talk about character, much is really said. Character is one of the most important things when it comes to leadership. I believe it’s one that magnifies the capability and the effectiveness of one becoming a good or even a great leader, for a character tells whether a man can be worthy of following or not. It’s indeed hard to follow someone who is hard to trust, or someone who is not faithful, or does not stand by his / her own word.
Indeed, leadership is about leading a certain group towards a certain goal, and making sure that it can be met. It’s a hard work and requires a lot of learning to become a leader. I’m not the best of it, but it’s certainly a good goal to be one.
I believe there are different ways or methods of Leadership. Or there are different ways on how to lead. Some lead in power, some lead through fame. Some lead with influence, while other lead in authority. Some lead because they are in position, and some lead, perhaps the best, because they are leaders. But the thing that I like most is leadership that comes by the example of the heroes of the Bible. Yes, there are lots of leaders who lived and died, some remembered, some we don’t and forgotten. Some are well known because of what they’ve done and accomplished. But the Leaders of the Bible, are known because of God. Not because of what they have done or accomplished but of what God has accomplished through them.
It’s indeed interesting there’s so much difference on leadership of how man displays, as to the leadership God displays. Leadership of man speaks of self-glory and self-proclaimed victories and such, whereas the leadership of the heroes of the bible displays God’s glory and God’s awesomeness, very distinct and very far from each other. Here is a gap and can see so much differences amongst it. And if I have to make to differ about it, I can perhaps show some. And let me categorize it as Leadership of the world and Leadership of God.
1. Leadership of the world focuses more on power and authority, while Leadership of God focuses on serving and humility.
2. Leadership of the world focuses to seek benefit of their own, while Leadership of God focuses on others.
3. Leadership of the world focuses on self-abilities, whereas Leadership of God focuses on depending mainly on God.
These are few things I may say about the differences. There may be more.
Far more than these, there are a lot of things I may share about leadership, as it is indeed a continuous learning experience. As we lead others and those before us, to a destination we all hope to be and accomplish.
In my experience, being a leader wasn’t exactly a one-day training, or one day job. In other words, experience has taught me much about leadership. Every failure had become a stepping stone to do things better on the next. And every victory serves as a reminder to maintain it and not give it up.
At first, leadership was not in my mind, I’d rather be on low profile mode or something. But it seems people place me to it anyway. I’ve always known, I don’t have all the capacity of knowing everything and having all capabilities, but I do recognize that each individual has its own capabilities and/or skills. Everyone has a gift in doing something and doing it at its best. And so far I try to make use of that knowledge. Trial and error is also has its benefits. It may hurt to have error, but the most important? You learn.
Hmmm? Just remembered the Lakers of the NBA and what Phil Jackson told Kobe before. “You can’t lead them, if they are not ready to follow you.” (If I remember it right) It’s an interesting statement, almost the same when talking about character of a person. When we talk about character, much is really said. Character is one of the most important things when it comes to leadership. I believe it’s one that magnifies the capability and the effectiveness of one becoming a good or even a great leader, for a character tells whether a man can be worthy of following or not. It’s indeed hard to follow someone who is hard to trust, or someone who is not faithful, or does not stand by his / her own word.
Indeed, leadership is about leading a certain group towards a certain goal, and making sure that it can be met. It’s a hard work and requires a lot of learning to become a leader. I’m not the best of it, but it’s certainly a good goal to be one.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Worship & God’s Standards
For a time being, I’ve been trying to debate to myself whether God has a standard on how do we Worship Him. Truthfully, each individual or even every group, as I see it has their own standard of worship or perhaps their own ideal kind of worship. Just looking at other denominations, we would see others jumping up & down, lifting their hands above, and that’s how they worship. And in honesty, I respect that, but I prefer still a solemn kind of worship. Somehow I think culture & traditions change our perspective on how we worship God. And I tried to look back to God’s Word for this matter and it pointed me to the story of Jesus at the well with the Samaritan Woman.
John 419"Sir," the woman said, "I can see that you are a prophet. 20Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem." 21Jesus declared, "Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
Herein, we see the place of worship of the Samaritans and the Jews. The Samaritans worship on a mountain, as the Jews worship in Jerusalem. But see how Christ responds to the Samaritan Woman. Christ declared that the Jews have indeed know Who they worship and acknowledge that Salvation has been passed through the Jews and that the Samaritans do not know whom they worship. Yet, Christ said the place of worship is nevertheless will come to a point that it has no value. Reason? Because God is seeking people who worship Him in Spirit and in Truth. It’s not about the place or perhaps even the method of how we worship, but it’s our heart truthfully right with God worshiping Him through the Holy Spirit. It’s not about HOW we do it right but it’s about OUR LIFE REFLECTING WHO WE WORSHIP and our heart being RIGHT WITH GOD, then our mind should be also right affecting our actions and how we worship God. It’s a chain of cause and effect that it begins with the heart. But if the heart is not right with God, then probably one can not truthfully worship God at all. And, definitely how we act or respond in our every life situations reflects what kind of a heart we have. It would definitely be a bad picture if one who says he worships God, yet his life show God has no part in every decision he / she makes. Now the question now is, “How is our heart, our life and our relationship with the Living God?”
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Change
As what they say “change is the only permanent thing in this world”. Things are really changing. And sometimes expectations are not always met.
It’s quite a long time I haven’t written anything here on my blogsite. It may just be that I have nothing more to say. But perhaps little things irk me to write. Changes I watch and see occur in every part of our lives. Surroundings as well are changing. Sometimes makes us feel uncomfortable or perhaps astonished.
Things always get me to wonder of the future. What it holds? As I continue also to watch and think of the present. My present situation and other matters that matters: spiritual things, as well as physical things. At the present, I’m currently not on a stressful mode or stressful week, as compared to previous months, busy on some kind of projects. Simply just watching and waiting for any thing God might want to lead me on doing. It’s kind’a… actually boring at this time. But as I have prayed for a couple of weeks ago, I made a decision, hopefully God’s leading; the passing of the torch. Well, I’m not sure really, but I believe it is time, as God leads me to make it happen; Trusting the new generation to do their part, as I and other older young people have been laboring, hopefully to also see the fruit of all the things that has been done.
From my youngest age as a young people of Loakan to my oldest age as one, it has been indeed an adventure. Things unimaginable and perhaps unexpected as well, a period of excitement and a period of battles too. I only hope that the enjoyment I’ve had as a young people, the new generation might also experience. But as for the battles, I can not hope it will go away from them, but hope that they can conquer and overpass it. But of course, not everybody will face the same things but certainly they will face a challenge for themselves. For challenges, trials and testings are what make us stronger in our Faith. I can not say it was an easy road, but it helps to know we are never alone.
As I wonder, what might challenges will they face? I don’t know. These times are different. Things have changed and more change is to come. We see a different world, and most often we see a world that neglects God and doesn’t even acknowledge His presence; a world full of physical things and a world where man is the center of it. Of course my battles have not ended yet, for I still live in this wretched world. I’m still a soldier of the Lord, standing for the Lord. I just hope I could be faithful to the end. And I hope the next generation will do too.
Ephesians 6:10-13 (New International Version)
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
It’s quite a long time I haven’t written anything here on my blogsite. It may just be that I have nothing more to say. But perhaps little things irk me to write. Changes I watch and see occur in every part of our lives. Surroundings as well are changing. Sometimes makes us feel uncomfortable or perhaps astonished.
Things always get me to wonder of the future. What it holds? As I continue also to watch and think of the present. My present situation and other matters that matters: spiritual things, as well as physical things. At the present, I’m currently not on a stressful mode or stressful week, as compared to previous months, busy on some kind of projects. Simply just watching and waiting for any thing God might want to lead me on doing. It’s kind’a… actually boring at this time. But as I have prayed for a couple of weeks ago, I made a decision, hopefully God’s leading; the passing of the torch. Well, I’m not sure really, but I believe it is time, as God leads me to make it happen; Trusting the new generation to do their part, as I and other older young people have been laboring, hopefully to also see the fruit of all the things that has been done.
From my youngest age as a young people of Loakan to my oldest age as one, it has been indeed an adventure. Things unimaginable and perhaps unexpected as well, a period of excitement and a period of battles too. I only hope that the enjoyment I’ve had as a young people, the new generation might also experience. But as for the battles, I can not hope it will go away from them, but hope that they can conquer and overpass it. But of course, not everybody will face the same things but certainly they will face a challenge for themselves. For challenges, trials and testings are what make us stronger in our Faith. I can not say it was an easy road, but it helps to know we are never alone.
As I wonder, what might challenges will they face? I don’t know. These times are different. Things have changed and more change is to come. We see a different world, and most often we see a world that neglects God and doesn’t even acknowledge His presence; a world full of physical things and a world where man is the center of it. Of course my battles have not ended yet, for I still live in this wretched world. I’m still a soldier of the Lord, standing for the Lord. I just hope I could be faithful to the end. And I hope the next generation will do too.
Ephesians 6:10-13 (New International Version)
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)