Choose Your Hiding Place Wisely!

“You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in Your word.” Psalm 119:114 AMP

“A hiding place-a place suitable for hiding; a place of escape; or a place/act to separate yourself from an event or calamity or problems.”

What do you do when something bad happens? Where do you go when things don’t go in your projected outcome? What do you do when you think you failed? What is the first thing do you grab when your day was so exhausting and filled with failures, insults and demeaning events or conversation? What do you do when you can’t find a stable source of income to finance your family? What do you do when your doctor told you that your body is failing and you might not live more than a month? What do you do when someone close to you dies? What do you do when you become a victim of betrayal with the person whom you loved so dearly?

No matter how we train ourselves to prepare for these disasters or inconveniences in life, there is no escape from reality. We will go though these painful experiences no matter what (some, not all). That is the bottom line-we will one day be subjective to a very difficult situation.

Many of us had created a few defenses to deal with difficult situations. We turn to friends for counsel. We turn to mature figures like our parents or relatives for advices. Some will resort to alcohol to drown themselves from seeing or feeling the pain. Some will resort to drugs and sex for temporary comfort. Some will inflict pain to the physical body so that the physical pain overrides the emotional pain. A few of us will take up endurance sports to numb our mind from the emotional pain and suffering. Some will pack their bags and disappear to another remote country and start over.

My favorite hiding places:
1. Long distance cycling
2. Long distance swimming
3. Reading books.
4. Solving problems(anything that requires thinking)
5. Organizing my life daily
6. I read the Bible daily right after waking up
7. I blog about what I read in the Bible
8. Prayer
9. I go to Church every Sunday
10. I mentor anyone that comes in contact with me.

My best hiding place-The presence of God.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/psa.119.114.amp

More Than Conquerors; Dream#1,#2

“Yet amid all these things we are more than conquerors and gain a surpassing victory through Him Who loved us.” Romans 8:37 AMP

“Conqueror-someone who is victorious by force of arms”

“Conquer-overcome by conquest; take possession by force; to put down by force or authority”

“Victory-a successful ending”

When we struggle of something, we always think of quitting or shifting our priorities. We are afraid to continue the fight and give up.
“Maybe this is not for me”
“Maybe I am not meant for this”
“I made a mistake on taking up this journey”
“I’ll be glad to start over again”
“When this hardship going to an end?”
“Will I be happy again?”
“When can I feel normal every time I wake up in the morning?”
“When can I be at peace before I go to bed?”
“When will all my troubles be gone?”
“When will I stop worrying about my job?”
“When will I stop worrying about my health?”
“When will my insecurities end?”
“When will my depression stopped?”
“Where can I get money for food?”
“How can I come up of funds for my daily expenses?”

When you start asking these questions, know that the victory is already given to you.

“We are more than conquerors.”

Dream:
#1. Someone at work announced a new leader and we were instructed to write a short welcome note. We started with a small post it note but then the space was too small and suggested that we have to use a bigger paper- we end up using a yellow pad paper.

I did not write anything.

#2. I was lying on the floor when my boss passed by but I was on her pathway, she walked over me.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/rom.8.37.amp

Strength of My Heart

“Whom have I in heaven but You? And I have no delight or desire on earth besides You. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the Rock and firm Strength of my heart and my Portion forever.” Psalm 73:25, 26 AMP

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/psa.73.25.amp

Know More About God

“[For my determined purpose is] that I may know Him [that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of His Person more strongly and more clearly], and that I may in that same way come to know the power outflowing from His resurrection [which it exerts over believers], and that I may so share His sufferings as to be continually transformed [in spirit into His likeness even] to His death, [in the hope]” Philippians 3:10 AMP

“Determined-devoted full strength and undivided and concentrated attention”

“Purpose-an anticipated outcome that is intended”

It is impossible to know somebody without spending time in research about the subject. When I was still chasing my wife many years ago, I studied her literally. I observed her ways, the way she talks, feel etc. I wanted to know more about how she reacts in certain difficult events. I wanted to know more about the way she thinks. I wanted to know more about what makes her mad or laugh. Not that I knew all about her during the courtship phase, but I had a big picture about her. In no time, we became best friends as we spend time together for hours talking just about any subject. We been through storms together and survived. We went through glorious moments also and we celebrated the triumph with each other.

Fast forward 27 years and you will be surprised about the outcome of the closeness we shared in those good old times. We talked less now. We don’t spend 4 hours on the phone talking nonsense. 2 minutes on the phone is already a world record. We are so comfortable without talking for hours when we are side by side. We talked in our minds. We understand each other like we have mind power that we know each other’s next move. My relationship with my wife is personal, too personal and intimate and we are committed to each other. It is really hard to imagine not to think of her every minute of my life. She became a part of me forever.

Our relationship to God is the same way. God is a Person. Jesus is a Person. The Holy Spirit is a Person. In other religion, worshipping and believing God seems so distant and no personal touch. To some, God is out there in the heavens watching us and listening to us but no feeling that He is with us or around us as we walk in our daily life.

Many people were wondering why God send His son Jesus to the world and let Him live for a few years and then let Him die at the cross. Jesus was God and He has all the power to sit Himself free from all the sufferings but He did suffer anyway. It is really hard to understand the concept of Christ’s suffering but the answer lies after the resurrection. When He was near His death, Jesus told His disciples – instructions about the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will come and will give us power. It took me a while to fully understand the presence of the Holy Spirit but when I did, I became fully aware of God’s presence.

The Holy Spirit is a Person. Treat Him as your friend. Ask Him questions. Ask Him for guidance and wisdom.

Once we developed friendship with the Holy Spirit, we will be surprised that we cannot be so alone by ourselves. We found a true friend that can be with us wherever we are and whenever.

It’s not rocket science to know a person. All you have to do is use your curious ways. Be curious. Talk to Him and read about Him.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/php.3.10.amp

5 Levels of Faith

"Let your light so shine before men that they may see your moral excellence and your praiseworthy, noble, and good deeds and recognize and honor and praise and glorify your Father Who is in heaven." Matthew 5:16 AMP

Level 1-Zero belief in God
Level 2-You believe that there is God
Level 3-You believe in God, The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit
Level 4-You believe in God, The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit, reads the Bible, pray, active in church
Level 5-You are living all out for Jesus; “your light is shining before men”; has boldness to tell the whole world about the “Good News”

My faith fluctuates between Level 4 and Level 5. I’m trying to grow but sometimes there are instances that pulls me back to a lower level. It is hard to do it when you are in the battlefield most of the times. Knowing what level of faith you currently in is a good thing. Our faith should grow to the highest level after a few years of being in the faith. We grow in faith by exercising our beliefs. Expect something from God and when those expectations are met, our faith increases. But not just in victory that our faith grows, there are times that we encounter hardship and impossibility, these experiences also can drive our faith to a higher level. Faith is a daily journey. Our victory from yesterday does not promise a victory for the next day. The devil is real and he is always watching us when we feel vulnerable to temptations. Being watchful can help but the best defense is being constantly in the Word of God. Spend time daily reading the Bible and let the message speak to your heart. You don’t have to read other person’s devotional, you can create your own devotional and write the things that is reflected to you and meditate on it. For those who are just starting your faith journey, don’t get discouraged right away when you think you failed your faith. Once you are in The Kingdom, the Holy Spirit will guide you in every step. Be patient and let you inner being listen to the whisper of the Voice of God.

The levels of faith that I mentioned earlier is just for illustration only. I just made that up to quantify faith. There is really no way to quantify how much we believe in God. There are 2 levels of faith, Level 0 and Level 5. You are either for God or against God.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/mat.5.16.amp

Unexplained Favor; 15 Years at Samsung

"Blessed and enviably happy [with a happiness produced by the experience of God’s favor and especially conditioned by the revelation of His matchless grace] are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted!" Matthew 5:4 AMP

"Blessed-highly favored or fortunate"

"Mourn-feel sadness"

"Comforted-experience physical well being or relief"

One of the reason why I am sharing my thoughts here on the web is I want you to know that there is hope. I don’t know who you are and how you struggle everyday. I’m always thinking of people who are less fortunate, that life must have been so difficult for years and you are asking "when these hardship is going to end?".

I gained nothing for doing this except for a simple thought-that a few of you might end up sharing the same cup of joy with me.

I had my share of misfortune (maybe hardship) a few years back. There were times that I thought life is a struggle for survival. You get your shovel and work hard everyday to provide for your family. Then at night, you gather your strength in your sleep and then wake up in the morning and do the same thing over again.

There is one thing that science have not explained to me yet-"God’s Favor".

Looking back through the years since my birth, I have no idea that I will end up where I am today.  I know that you too might have the same theme of life-a journey of defeat and triumph.

Yesterday, I received my 15 years of service award from Samsung. They gave me a cute glass statue with my name on it and the year 2013 engraved just below my name. I joined Samsung in July of 1998, a year after they built the building in 1997. I don’t consider my job at Samsung secured because I know how this technology market can change in a day. I love my job, my team, my co workers and my superiors and I really desire to retire from this place. That chapter of my life still need to be written.

When I got home, I stared at the award for a moment and then all of a sudden names, events, places flashes in my mind. It was like being in heaven where God stood beside me showing all the things He had done through the years. He was explaining to me how my mom and dad felt so excited about my birth. Then He showed me how I cried so much in 1983 when my father died that evening of April 9th at the age of 55. Then He moved on to show me how He let me stumble with the person that became my wife. Then He showed me the flood in Ormoc where 5000 people died and I managed to find ways to survive. Then He showed me New York where I felt so happy to be reunited with my wife but then in 3 months time, took away that happiness and replaced it with sadness when I joined the US Army; the night before I left for training we learned that my wife was pregnant. Then He showed me how sad I was during that moment as I left New York and I even questioned Him. Then He showed me how worried I was during the 2-hour bus ride from the airport to Ft Leonardwood, Missouri (on my way to Army boot camp) thinking that I let my wife and baby down by leaving them on their own. Then He showed my hardship in the mountains of South Korea for a one-year tour of duty at DMZ. Then He showed me how He manipulated my mind to take the AMD entrance test which guided my family to pick Austin as our final place of work Then He showed me how a person called me out of nowhere and recruited me to work for Samsung.

It took me a while to get to my "promise land" but I know in my heart that it was all God’s doing (God’s Favor). But what really got me so excited is when He showed me the people that I met during the journey; that without my interaction with them their life could have been so different. When I look back now and told myself that if I disobeyed God during my hardship and went on to a different direction these people will not be where they are now.

There are more stories like in my life that I consider unexplained. How did it happen? What lead to the event? Why?

God’s existence is a mystery but it does not have to remain a mystery to you. There are so much to expect from Him everyday that no one can ever imagine.

His favor is endless.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/mat.5.4.amp

When Love Matures…

“There is no fear in love [dread does not exist], but full-grown (complete, perfect) love turns fear out of doors and expels every trace of terror! For fear brings with it the thought of punishment, and [so] he who is afraid has not reached the full maturity of love [is not yet grown into love’s complete perfection]. We love Him, because He first loved us.” 1 John 4:18, 19 AMP

“Love-a strong positive emotion of regard and affection; an object of warm affection and devotion.”

“Maturity-the period of time in your life after your physical growth has stopped and you are fully developed.”

The true test of a genuine relationship is the existence of love. The true test of a genuine love is the existence of trust. the true test of a genuine trust is ‘the lack of fear’ in the relationship.

When love matures, there is no more room for fear.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/1jn.4.18.amp

Humility Produces Abundance

“The reward of humility and the reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord is riches and honor and life.” Proverbs 22:4 AMP

“Humility-a disposition to be humble; lack of false pride; marked by meekness or modesty, not arrogant or prideful”

“Superbia-unreasonable and inordinate self-esteem (personified as one of the deadly sins); pride”

“Rich-abundant, affluent, comfortable, easy, flush, loaded, moneyed, privileged, prosperous, wealthy, well-fixed, well-heeled, well-off, well-situated, well-to-do”

There are so many ways we can cross the line between being humble and being prideful. I think humans by design are prideful. We take pride in everything. We take pride in our work and the results it brings. We take pride of our possessions and would like the whole world to notice it. Pride is a motivator (in some ways) it drives us into action. But too much pride has a negative effect specially when it is mixed with arrogance.

The principle laid out in the Bible is always opposite to what a natural man thinks. I’m still amazed by this thinking: do you want to be rich, give to the poor ; do you want to be peaceful, reach out to those who are needy; do you want to be at the top, be at the ground level with the lowly; do you want to be smart and wise, don’t think on your own and rely in your own understanding; do you want joy, make other people happy; do you want to feel superior, be a follower; do you want to increase, decrease; do you want to be the first, be the last person.

So in theory, if you really want to excel in life, do the opposite of what you think.

The theory behind why it can succeed is when your cup is empty or your resources are dipping low, it produces a need. Imagine an empty cup in front of you, if that cup remains empty, there is always room for it to be filled. But imagine that the cup is full, there is no more space to fill.

The purpose of money is for “giving”.

Generosity produces wealth. When you are generous, God sees your heart and He quickly rearranges your life so that you will not run out. Think of yourself as being the pipeline of resources and the Heavenly Father is the source.

So how does humility produces abundance?

When we are humble, we become so dependent with God. We give up our own strength, own power, and own wisdom and we are no longer in control. When God is in control, He has more leverage in all areas of our life and can manipulate our circumstances to produce the best outcome. When we do it on our own, our capabilities are limited because we can only see what is in front of us. God sees the whole, we see only the portion of what we are trying to accomplish.

http://bible.us/8/pro.22.4.amp

The Invention of Fear

“The fear of man brings a snare, but whoever leans on, trusts in, and puts his confidence in the Lord is safe and set on high.” Proverbs 29:25 AMP

“Fear-an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger usually accompanied by a desire to flee or flight; an anxious feeling; a feeling of profound respect for someone or something ex. fear of God”

“Snare-something deceptively attractive that catches you unawares.”

I was awaken in the middle of the night because I heard my wife was talking in her sleep. She had a bad dream. A zombie was chasing her and my daughter. It feels literally that she was out of breath and was panting as if it was real.

The first thing I do when I wake up in the morning is grab my iPhone and open the youversion app and read the message for today. Today’s message is about fear and what a perfect fit for the answer to her dream-“fear God and not man”.

Today marks the 2nd day of us having to wake up in each other’s arms. She previously worked nightshift at the hospital for such a long time that we really missed living like a normal couple. A good perk with her new workplace, a Monday-Friday day job, 8-5.

I came home yesterday with questions about the crash of Asiana flight 214. The incident hits home to me personally because we use that route to travel to Cebu almost every year. We fly to Incheon all the time now because we use Korean Air as our airline since they uses Dallas as port of entry and makes our trip to Austin to just less than an hour.

Somehow, the family was affected indirectly by the accident but I knew that I can hear their fears inside. When I explained to them how the accident happened, they were so attentive about the explanation.

Fear was invented to produce an action-“fight or flee”. But sometimes if fear is not dealt with and explained, we human beings will attempt to play that fear over and over and it becomes an obsession. When fear becomes an obsession, it drives us to act or respond abnormally even though the subject of our fear is not even present. There is a purpose of fear but when we give fear too much attention, it normally brings us unpleasant experiences.

Fear will always be there with us. It has its purpose, just don’t play it over and over in your thoughts. Turn on to the next page and continue living.

There is a different type of fear known to us. The fear of The Lord. The Bible’s meaning is -” the fear of The Lord is the beginning of Wisdom”. It looks deep and hard to explain but play that sentence over and over in your head and you will understand the meaning. It means “profound respect” to God. Knowing God is knowing His Wisdom and knowing His Wisdom makes you wiser than ever.

Be fearful… In a good way!

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/pro.29.25.amp

17 years Trim Tab Event

“Better is little with the reverent, worshipful fear of the Lord than great and rich treasure and trouble with it.” Proverbs 15:16 AMP,

“Reverent-a feeling of profound respect for someone”

“Worshipful-showing adoration”

How do you turn the ‘direction’ of a giant cruise liner? You turn the rudder left or right. How do you turn a ‘rudder’ of a giant ship? They use trim tabs. Read more http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trim_tab

Trim tabs are small mechanism attached to the huge rudder to leverage the movement of a larger system. They don’t actually turn the rudder directly, they turn the “trim tabs” to execute the change of direction of the ship.

Today is a special day for me and my wife. We have those “trim tab moment” again and I am in awe. In 1996, we moved to Round Rock, Texas from the nearby US Army Base called Ft Hood. My 4 years enlistment in the Army ended and I just found a new job at AMD, Advanced Micro Devices, a semiconductor company who was the leading competitor of the giant Intel Corp. Britta found a new job at Round Rock Medical Center. Even up to this day, RRMC is so special to me because we found this hospital by accident driving around at night in the densely wooded road at 620. It was a gift to us that we discovered this new workplace for her. I already had job lined up at that time but my wife did not. Also, my youngest son was born in this hospital on August of 1996, 17 years ago.

For some unknown intervention, her employment at RRMC ended by surprise after 17 years and that is why today is a special day because we are starting over, Day000000.

I used to be bothered by “trim tab events” but when you worship and pray to an all powerful, all knowing God, I think I don’t have to worry at all. God allowed something to happen to us for a very special reason. Instead today I will say to myself “let’s go Lord, I am excited of where this family is going with the change.”

I welcomed this adjustment of Yours and I thank you for not letting us be so satisfied with status quo.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/pro.15.16.amp

Acceptance Then Change

“But He said to me, My grace (My favor and loving-kindness and mercy) is enough for you [sufficient against any danger and enables you to bear the trouble manfully]; for My strength and power are made perfect (fulfilled and completed) and show themselves most effective in [your] weakness. Therefore, I will all the more gladly glory in my weaknesses and infirmities, that the strength and power of Christ (the Messiah) may rest (yes, may pitch a tent over and dwell) upon me!” 2 Corinthians 12:9 AMP

http://bible.us/8/2co.12.9.amp

Exercise Your Hope

“So let us seize and hold fast and retain without wavering the hope we cherish and confess and our acknowledgement of it, for He Who promised is reliable (sure) and faithful to His word.” Hebrews 10:23 AMP

A week ago, someone had ignited something negative in my ears. I was suppose to fight back and say something that would not be so pleasant to his ears also but instead I told the other person in my mind “thank you for training my patience”. I ignored the whole situation and after that … nothing negative happened anymore.

When we hold back and let a situation pass, we disarm anger and revenge so that it becomes harmless and ineffective and then both of you win – no negative consequences after.

My point is – when you face difficult people, tell yourself or the person “thank you for training my patience”.

Honestly, our patience does need training and exercise and to me, it is the best place to practice brain plasticity – adaptation of change.

But what if the situation is at a higher level of difficulty. What if you face an unbearable hardship. What if you are given a terminal disease. What if you lost something precious in your life. What if your hardship becomes a daily occurrence. What if the funds you have in the bank is not able to buy groceries. What if your spouse is not doing what she/he is supposed to do like keeping the sanctity of your vows. What if your kids are rebelling and doing drugs and premarital sex. What if your only child all of sudden decided he wants out from your house.

Can you still say, “thank you for training my patience”. Most likely “not”, because we are humans. We have limitations and we needed someone to help us.

So where do we get help?

The correct answer is from God. We get help and encouragement from Him.

But how? He is up there somewhere!

The other day, I had an interesting conversation with someone who is not a Christian yet but his heart is already wide open and was asking a lot of difficult questions about God, Jesus, Holy Spirit. Simple but difficult questions and it requires explanation. Why did God sent His son? Can’t He do it himself? Who wrote the Bible? What is the Holy Spirit? What is prayer?

I am not an expert in the Bible. I read the Bible daily just like most of you and I’ve never attended Bible school and my knowledge is not to the max regarding Biblical knowledge … but one thing I’ve done to myself is I stopped asking the “why questions”. I just start believing what the Bible says to me in my heart. When you get a chance, try it. It will change your life.

I was able to explain to him most of the questions but I know that even if my answers were believable, he will have to take his own belief to the next level.

“God so loved the world that He send his Son to us that whosoever believes the Son (Jesus) will not perish but will have everlasting life” John 3:16

All we have to do is believe. That simple and why not?

How hard is it to believe in Him? Is it really that difficult to just say “Lord, I believe in You”.

The Christian faith does not end at believing God. That is just the beginning. When you believe in God, you become hungry and thirsty and you want to know more about Him.

The source of information is the Bible. Although written by humans, the Bible was given to man through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Think of it this way – you are alone by yourself and then inside you someone is telling you to write something and then all of a sudden you transcribe the ‘inspiration’ -what was given to you – in words and put it in writing.

Ok, I don’t want to mislead you too much about how the Bible came along. Bottom line is, when you read the Bible daily, you will realize that it’s message does not come from mere human beings – it must have come from a guy who knows everything.

That will be your homework – to find God’s daily message for you.

The reason why I mentioned “believing God and believing the Bible” earlier is because those are the foundation of the Christian faith. God and His Words.

But why the Bible is so vital in our faith?

1. The Bible is God’s way to talk to us. Honestly, I have not heard God’s voice talking to me in my ears. He does sometimes in my heart and sometimes I cried joyfully, but in ordinary days like today, I read His Bible to tell me something. That is why I kept coming back for more everyday and I hope you are doing the same thing.

2. The Bible has God’s promises. Those promises are there for you and me and it is free. No strings attached. All you have to do is believe. You don’t even have to get out of bed to get it.

3. You need the Bible to exercise your hope. Many times in my lifetime I’ve experienced super difficult situation and most often it looks so impossible in my eyes. What I noticed and remembered saying are these:

“Lord, you said in the Bible that You will never leave me nor forsake me”, and He did not.

“Lord, you said in your Bible that you will reward me with long life”. I’m still waiting for this since I had a heart attack at age 42, I’m 46 now.

“Lord, You promised that you will provide for me and my family”. He already did.

“Lord, You said Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be given unto me”. He already did.

“Lord, You said You will give me peace and joy”. He already did.

It’s your turn. Find a promise in the Bible and question God about your request.

Got to go for now. I’ve written this entry while lying in bed using my old iPhone 4. I’m getting up from bed now and get my coffee and clif bar and 42 miles of cycling. If I made some mistakes or typos, I got my excuse – blogging in bed using an iPhone;-( )

Regards to all (specially to Taze)

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/heb.10.23.amp

Guard Who Keeps Watch

“I am the Good Shepherd; and I know and recognize My own, and My own know and recognize Me– Even as [truly as] the Father knows Me and I also know the Father–and I am giving My [very own] life and laying it down on behalf of the sheep.” John 10:14, 15 AMP

“Shepherd-someone who watches over a group of people.”

We constantly make decisions every waking minute. There are times that we choose to do something in a snap and then we realize that we made a mistake . But then when you want to hit the “undo” button, we are brought to a surprise – “undo” is not possible. You really must have to face the consequences if our actions and there are no other choices available.

When we walk in faith, there is a promise in the Bible called the promise of protection, one that says I am a Good Shepherd .. that no matter what we do, He is always there for us to guide us in ways that we don’t even know. When we go astray or veered off from the righteous path, He is there to tell us “hey, you need to get back into the path that I prepared for you”. Imagine a GPS that is constantly telling us that when we follow a road that was not laid out in the direction, the GPS system will constantly remind us, “follow this road” or “exit now” or “make a u-turn”

All we have to do is listen to His small voice and then take actions. It’s there.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/jhn.10.14.amp

Suffering is Temporary

“[But what of that?] For I consider that the sufferings of this present time (this present life) are not worth being compared with the glory that is about to be revealed to us and in us and for us and conferred on us!” Romans 8:18 AMP

We all suffered to some degree in our lifetime. Some of us will experience hardship in the form of sickness, mental torment, financial lack, betrayal, isolation, loneliness, heartaches, loss of a job, loss of a child, loss of a father or mother, loss of pride, loss of a limb or part of a body, loss of faith, loss of trust and the hardest of all – the loss of hope. In one word, it is called suffering and it’s not easy.

I understand that there is no magic word to get out from our suffering. I know that sometimes we have to go through all the hardships before we can appreciate the true meaning of the situation.  Once we fully immersed through the hardest of the hardest of time and we are able to see the effect of suffering and we say to ourselves – “I know why I went through all the sufferings.”

I want to give you hope as Paul mentioned in this verse that these sufferings is nothing compared to the glory that we will experience as we are being transferred to our next final place.  Better yet, even while we are here on earth, we are provided a way out to our bad situation.

Keep the faith!

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/rom.8.18.amp

Give Up Now!

"Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: I am the Lord your God, Who teaches you to profit, Who leads you in the way that you should go." Isaiah 48:17 AMP

Growing up as a child, I’m always reminded by these words in our home library that says: "The greatest mistake is giving up". Up to this day, those words are embedded in me. Part of the reason why I’ve chosen endurance cycling and swimming as my favorite pastime was the mindset of not giving up. You really have to put a lot of negative energy in me before I say "I am done" or “I quit” or I’m abandoning this idea” or “I will choose another path”.

But…

Sometime in the 90’s, I’ve violated that idea of not giving up. I can’t really remember the details but I know somehow I gave up something that changes the course of my life forever.

In my 2nd year in college in Cebu, I discovered the self defense art of Aikido.   I fall in love with the sport and started attending practice twice a week.  I formed friendship with a few group of people in that circle.  At that time, there were only a handful Aikido practitioners in Cebu and the training was held in a private home somewhere in Talamban.  On the weekends, I really have to put an effort to go to the dojo just to get my training for 2 hours but I did not care about the long commute.  It was fun and exciting and I know in my heart that Aikido will become a central core of my life. I started reading books about aikido and I consumed other materials in related subject also.  I was drawn to spirituality.

At the same time, I took up cycling as part of weekly activities.  I was in my 20’s at that time and I had a stable job, no commitments and I just had all the time for anything that I wanted to do.  Basically, I was living a great life.  I counted 5 years of Aikido training in me and I was really drawn to the spiritual side of it too.  One of the likes I have with my Aikido training was the peace of mind and self-control that I’ve attained through the training.  No doubt that I was in perfect peace at those years [I thought] .  I practiced meditation and stillness and mindfulness and become good at it.  I was in total control of my body, mind and spirit. Later did I know that in the coming year I have to give it up.

In 1989, I had two cycling accidents, the first one was only minor.  I hit a pedestrian crossing the road and I did not have time to react and collided the person head on.  My mindfulness and awareness skills failed me.  On the 2nd accident, while I started climbing a steep bridge at the foot of Mactan Bridge, A car hit me from behind. I was dragged for a total distance of 9 feet according to the police report.  My bike was crumpled underneath the car but fortunately I survived with no broken bones.  The injuries I received were a bruised buttocks, bleeding elbows and bleeding knees. Other than that, I was fine.

Looking back now, I learned that the two cycling accidents were the turning of my life.  Through that intervention, I was led to join a local church and became a born again Christian.  While attending church regularly, I resumed my Aikido practice on the weekends and resumed meditation.  I love the calming effect of meditation and the outcome after doing it.  It feels like you are in perfect harmony with life.

One day during the Wednesday service, my pastor called out for a Baptism of the Holy Spirit [read more about it] I was only around 3-month old in my walk as Christian and I was not fully immersed yet of the full effect of the power of God.  I attended church, read my Bible everyday, daily prayer meetings, sing songs, raised my hand in worship but at that point I was just a simple follower of the faith and nothing else [no boldness].  My pastor was preaching the Valley of Dry Bones that evening and at the end of the service, he called out for believers – those who wanted to commit their lives fully to Christ.  I said to myself that I’ve already done that a  few months ago but the altar call seemed like it was calling me again and I was confused.  Then the pastor explained that he was talking about the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and you must receive it.  I was skeptic at that time but in my heart I said, ok, I will go up to the front and do it.  On the background, the church band was playing “Only By Grace” and I closed my eyes and raised my hand towards heaven and totally surrender my life to Him and I said in my prayer that I will do anything for Him.  As silence dominated in my mind, I heard this voice in my heart telling me what to do.  There was a long list of the things that I needed to get rid of and I said, yes Lord, I will.  As the prayer progressed, I felt something in me, it was like a flowing river of goodness flowing through my whole body and then all of a sudden I was speaking in a strange language.  I did not fully understand what it was at that time but all I can say that it was a great feeling.  Later on, I then realized that it was a touch from Heaven.  From that time on, boldness and confidence and trust began to grow within me and it carried me even up to this day. My life was transformed.

After that day, the rest of my life evolved.  I later gave up Aikido and meditation and replaced it with prayers and meditation.  Yes, I was a quitter – for the right reasons.

I know that some of you are skeptics about my experience but please understand that it was real for me and to the rest of the brothers and sisters in Christ.  The experience exists and if you are at the end of your rope, please know that there is one thing that you have not done yet – give up your life for Christ.

To Brent and Brittney, when you come across this journal, please know and understand that without the Holy Spirit in you, things that you do, things that you know well is powerless. May you guys one day stumble upon the mystery I once experienced. It was a great revelation – it transformed my whole life to a new beginning. 

1. Find a spirit filled church
2. Read your Bible daily and ask for revelation
3. Pray

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/isa.48.17.amp

Being Quite

“A gentle tongue [with its healing power] is a tree of life, but willful contrariness in it breaks down the spirit.” Proverbs 15:4 AMP

It’s very odd of me blogging almost daily. I have to teach myself to be more expressive and open. I am normally a quite person who can make anyone feel so uncomfortable with my deafening silence. I used the silence technique very often to weed out true friends.

I’ve learned this truth before that talk is cheap, too much talking can cause you a lot of trouble. I’ve also learned that when you are a quite person, people will carefully listen to you when you speak.

Our tongue has a special purpose, it is designed to uplift others. It’s job is to build up a person and not destroy. It’s for encouragement, it is for giving hope and assurance that everything will be alright. It’s not for gossiping nor for destroying a character or reputation.

So if you find yourself not uplifting someone, it is time to close your mouth.

I better keep quite now since I’m talking too much already.

“The true measure of friendship is when silence is comfortable”.

Regards to all.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/pro.15.4.amp

When You Believe…

“But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift their wings and mount up [close to God] as eagles [mount up to the sun]; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint or become tired.” Isaiah 40:31 AMP

When you believe…
1. Strength/Power renewed
2. Weariness is removed , no mental and physical fatigue
3. Enormous supply of energy [physical/mental/spiritual]

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/isa.40.31.amp

Handcrafted By God

“The heavens tell about the glory of God. The skies announce what his hands have made. Each new day tells more of the story, and each night reveals more and more about God’s power.” Psalm 19:1, 2 ERV

Sometimes we question ourselves why we are placed in a difficult situation. When disaster strikes, we automatically resort to questions such as these:
What did I do wrong to deserve this?
Why me? Why it has to be today?
Can I get a break from problems?
Why betrayal?
Why sickness?
Why calamities?
Why I have to suffer?
Why lack?
Why am I poor and needy?
Why am I always a victim?
Why I worry so much?
Why I’m depressed?
Why my panic attacks persists?
Why I’m jealous?
Why I envy my friends or neighbor or coworker?
Why?
Why?

The simple answer is this-we are asking the wrong question.

The right questions to ask are these:
How can I see my difficult situation as part of God’s workmanship?
How can I connect my misfortune to the Will of God?
What this change meant to me and my future?
What is the hidden message of my situation?

If God can create the heaven and the earth, how simple do you think it is for Him to fix our personal problems. If we compare the design of the earth systems or the inner working of human body or nature itself, our issues in life is really nothing compared to the complexity of how those things were intricately thought of in the design phase. There are even things that we have not truly found an explanation, yet we know that they are functioning well.

Of course, God does not and maybe will not “in a sound of thunder” solve our problems with His magic wand. Although sometimes it happened and miraculous event occurs and then our problems just disappear. But for the ordinary people, we have to listen, we have to open our eyes and we have to be sensitive to His whispers. There is one thing He gave us, the power of choice and obedience. Even by just following His teachings is more than enough to get us in the right direction in solving a problem. Take for example sickness, if you stop drinking or stop smoking, stop having sex outside marriage or stop doing things that are harmful to your body, you might end up with a healthy body. Or in a relationship, if you stop lying or hiding something from your spouse or maybe stop hurling insults you might end up with a stronger relationship. Or at work, maybe you are accustomed to working dishonestly, why not give 110% to your employer, do that and in the long run your boss will take notice of your unparalleled integrity and hard work.

Don’t wait for God to mold you. He already did. Our remaining duty is to just polish and finish what He had started in our life.

Always remember, we are handcrafted by God.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/psa.19.1.erv

Value of Waiting

"Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord." Psalm 27:14 AMP

I needed this verse to encourage me.

A person close to me lost her job as she came back from her month long vacation. She was in her job for 17 years and was already established, settled and so satisfied at this workplace that we thought this will be her last job before retirement (we are in our mid 40’s). The whole family was shocked about the news since we never expected it to happen. As the effect of the loss of the job settled in our heart, I began to wonder where this event is taking us.

My mind is not shaken anymore with this type of event. Having a growth mindset, I know that this event is a gift and not a curse. I know that this has a positive output in general and will eventually produce a better outcome in the long run.

Three days ago, I pulled out my spreadsheet and redo my monthly budget and deleted the "other" income to show only the budget with my sole income. I was in for a shock. In numbers, my budget was showing the negative symbol. I have a college daughter, and another one going to college next year. I have a mortgage payment, 2 car payments which one I just recently purchased because my son just started driving as he finishes high school this year. In short, I will not be able to sustain the family financially for long. Yes, I saved aggressively and had accumulated enough savings to last for a few months but the question in my mind was long term. We had never experienced a job loss in our lifetime and we tend to stay at one workplace forever. We don’t like change and we always had contingency plans to prevent such things to happen, but this time, we let our guard down.

As a firm Christian believer, I know what to do. I know that I have to wait and expect from God no matter what. It might look too crazy at this time but I know that even in the midst of all these uncertainties, I know in my heart that the Lord has a long line of blessings laid out in front of me.

I will wait and I will expect from God no matter what.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/psa.27.14.amp

Dig Another Well; A New Beginning

"Lift up your eyes on high and see! Who has created these? He Who brings out their host by number and calls them all by name; through the greatness of His might and because He is strong in power, not one is missing or lacks anything." Isaiah 40:26 AMP

DIGGING ANOTHER WELL
“Water well-a deep hole or shaft dug or drilled to obtain water”

When your water well is taken away from you, don’t resist, give them your water well and dig another one.

Please read the passage below about Isaac’s ordeal. Pay attention in how he reacted when his water well was taken away from him.

"And the Lord appeared to him and said, Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land of which I will tell you. Now Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found there a well of living [spring] water. And the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, The water is ours. And he named the well Esek [contention] because they quarreled with him. Then [his servants] dug another well, and they quarreled over that also; so he named it Sitnah [enmity]. And he moved away from there and dug another well, and for that one they did not quarrel. He named it Rehoboth [room], saying, For now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land." (Genesis 26:2, 19-22 AMP)

Today, our life will forever change again. Something happened to one of our water well and we have to find another one. I’ve known this Bible truth that when something unpleasant happens, I will not argue or wrestle my way out to keep it. I will just simply "dig another well".

I WANT TO SEE A MIRACLE
Last week, a coworker of mine asked me about the power of my faith. Is it real? Is it just made up? Is God real? What’s your proof? Who wrote the Bible? Where they got the idea? Where was God before He existed? Who is Jesus? Was His miracle real? For the most part, I failed to answer his inquiry. I could not explain to him my faith. I just told him that I used to be like him "full of questions" about the existence of God but then one day, I came to realize that He is real and out of the blue I started believing in Him.

Later in our conversation, he mentioned that his father in-law is lying in the hospital bed with a breathing apparatus and not moving at all – vegetative state. I quickly realized why he grilled me those questions earlier, he needed a miracle. After work, I went to his father in-law’s ICU room by myself and introduced myself to strangers that "I’m a friend of someone" and I could see in their eyes questions of why I was there. I was not related to them but they welcomed me. I placed my hand over to the man in bed lying lifeless but all his vitals are working. I stared at his still and non-moving eyes for 15 minutes without saying a word. In me was just a prayer, "Lord, show me a miracle".

Nothing happened since then and my faith did not produce anything positive to this family. Yesterday, I received a call that he will be kicked out from the ICU and I don’t have any words to say but just prayers to the heavens. I know that God heard my prayer.

Going back to my topic on "Digging another water well", The blessings in my life is the proof that God existed. I cannot put a scientific evidence of His existence, I just simply believed in my heart that He is there for me. You can argue with me with different reasons that contradicts the existence of God but I know in my heart that He really existed through the things that happened and did not happen.

When you live a life filled with blessings, you really cannot discount the fact that there must be someone behind all these. That is my only proof and nothing else.

Regards to all. 

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/isa.40.26.amp

Shelf Life of His Words

“Sky and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.” Matthew 24:35 AMP

When God promised you something in the Bible, He will deliver it. When he said “I will never leave you nor forsake you”, He will not. When He said that “I will Bless you and guide you”, He will. When He said that “I ordered/arranged the path of the righteous, He will and will always put us in a place/circumstance that might be impossible at first, but actually the best place any man could ever imagined because His promises in the Bible has no shelf life and does not contradict itself.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/mat.24.35.amp

Effects/Results of Righteousness

“And the effect of righteousness will be peace [internal and external], and the result of righteousness will be quietness and confident trust forever.” Isaiah 32:17 AMP

“Righteousness-adhering to moral principles”

Effects/results: 1. Peace 2. Quietness 3. Confident trust

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/isa.32.17.amp

Decrease Personal Opinion

“A [self-confident] fool has no delight in understanding but only in revealing his personal opinions and himself.” Proverbs 18:2 AMP

“More facts from the truth and decrease personal opinion.”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/pro.18.2.amp

Inner Uprightness

“I will praise and give thanks to You with uprightness of heart when I learn [by sanctified experiences] Your righteous judgments [Your decisions against and punishments for particular lines of thought and conduct].” Psalm 119:7 AMP

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/psa.119.7.amp

Persistence of Belief/Faith

“Fight the good fight of the faith; lay hold of the eternal life to which you were summoned and [for which] you confessed the good confession [of faith] before many witnesses.” 1 Timothy 6:12 AMP

“faith-a strong belief in supernatural power; the assurance of things you hoped for”

“persistence-refusing to stop; be in unchanged state for a long time”

“confession of faith-admit to humanity your faith; show your faith to mankind; don’t hide your faith; express your faith so others may know and learn; live your faith and make it a part of you and be consistent”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/1ti.6.12.amp

Why Praise and Worship God?

“Sing to God, sing praises to His name, cast up a highway for Him Who rides through the deserts–His name is the Lord–be in high spirits and glory before Him! A father of the fatherless and a judge and protector of the widows is God in His holy habitation.” Psalm 68:4, 5 AMP

“A reason to worship-God being a father for us and a protector.”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/psa.68.4.amp

Being Prudent

“Be wise in the way you act with those who are not believers. Use your time in the best way you can. When you talk, you should always be kind and wise. Then you will be able to answer everyone in the way you should.” Colossians 4:5, 6 ERV

“Wisdom-the quality being prudent and sensible”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/col.4.5.erv

True Freedom

“So if the Son makes you free, you are really free.” John 8:36 ERV

“Freedom- the condition or being free; power to act, speak or think without externally imposed restraints. Being free is to be able to act at will, not hampered, not under compulsion.”

Ever been angry to someone? Ever been offended by someone? Ever been angry at your boss at work that the moment you hear his/her voice, your internal systems starts to boil. Ever been accused of something you did not do and the moment you start remembering the details, it makes you feel down and depressed? Ever been told that you are not good enough and every time you do something, you doubt yourself. Ever done something horrible and you had been keeping it a secret in your entire life? Ever felt guilty that one day back in your younger days you made a “snap judgment” that destroyed a friend’s image or reputation. Ever had spoken a word that had to be kept inside yourself but because you we’re emotional, you said it anyway. Ever been betrayed by someone you dearly loved? Ever betray ed someone’s trust and you did something that you are not supposed to.

Ok, you get the point…

All those examples produces a state of bondage – the state of being under control of a force, influence or abstract power.

I never knew or felt that I did not have freedom until I gave my life to Christ. For some “unknown” reasons, when you say, Lord, “I believe in You”, something happens in the spirit realm. Think of an imaginary shackles in your hand and feet being removed and thrown away and someone telling you “you are free”.

It is hard to explain but when you start believing that Christ really went to the cross for us, you will see amazing things unfold in your life.

Experience true freedom.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/jhn.8.36.erv

The Enemy Is Real

“Control yourselves and be careful! The devil is your enemy, and he goes around like a roaring lion looking for someone to attack and eat. Refuse to follow the devil. Stand strong in your faith. You know that your brothers and sisters all over the world are having the same sufferings that you have.” 1 Peter 5:8, 9 ERV

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/1pe.5.8.erv

852,076,800 seconds of Helping

“Help each other with your troubles. When you do this, you are obeying the law of Christ.” Galatians 6:2 ERV

“Love + help. Helping your partner is an expression of deep love.”

27 years ago [June 16, 1986] was the beginning of my journey with my wife Britta. We met a month ago but on the 16th, that was the official day of “falling in love”. It was a day of unspeakable joy and enormous release of excitement that changes my life forever. Ours is a story most common to man – typical boy meets girl kinda’ thing. It started with a “like” and then got upgraded to “love”. We first met in my little hometown called Merida. A very small town in the Leyte Island, Philippines where I was raised. I am a “province boy” and she was a “city girl” from another island called Cebu. She actually lived in Mandaue City, one of the active city in the Cebu island. She was there in my hometown just visiting relatives because her father was from my place also. Right from the start, my chances of “acquiring” her was already high because her father knows my family and even a close friend of my mother.

In our culture, we marry someone for life. Also we don’t marry just one person, we marry the whole family including pets if they have one. Of course not all marriages are like that but more or less, when you say “I Do”, it is a lifetime commitment and no expiration nor a fine print that you can return them if disagreement exists in x number of years.

We fall in love so quickly. Our relationship was growing strong like a well watered plant. We talked for hours on the phone even after a whole day of spending time with each other. We met regularly at Gaisano Metro card section at 1pm every Saturday and she was always 30 minutes late. There were no cellphones at that time and I have to use a pay phone or someone else’s home phone to talk to her. To me, talking to her on the phone is like launching a space shuttle … it was a big effort but I usually find ways to get in touch with her.

At the beginning, I know this was the girl for me. I had a few relationships before her but I had to make a difficult decision. I know in my heart that I’ve hurt someone when I decided to get serious with this girl but I did not care at that time. To me, “owning” this person was the objective. Looking back now, I’ve realized that I’ve handle the situation in a manner not up to a high standard. My deep apology to those I’ve offended. I will find you someday and explain to you everything.

27 years of being together does not guarantee a lasting relationship. I think we just started on Phase 2. We all know that there are couples who had been with each other for 50 years and yet separates due to some undisclosed/unknown reasons.

My marriage is not perfect at all. We fight, we argue, we ignore each other sometimes. “I want this” “You don’t listen to me”. “Why do you have to go to the mall every week?”. “Why your decision always get carried out?”

Even now, my wife is on vacation without me. There are no more 4 hours of phone talk. Even if we have FaceTime at our disposal to connect face to face, we can only last at most 5 minutes max.

Did we lost traction in our relationship? Are we falling out of love? Are we going to split up one day? Have we forgotten the great memories we had during the first 2 years? Does the excitement to see each other forever gone?

I don’t expect those things to happen in my marriage. I know that there is season for everything. We have kids now, we have greater responsibilities. We have a different schedule therefore it produces different sleep patterns and then produces an non synchronized mood. I’m tired and she just woke up and ready for work. Her being in night shift created a change to each others emotion.

Overall, I’m not concerned at all because I know that our relationship was not built overnight. Our relationship was built with joy and sorrows altogether for years and going through those tearful moments of desperation build inner trust that is hard to disassemble and forget. We might be silent for most of the time, we might be showing an act of “unloving” and “uncaring” but I know that we don’t mean it so deeply that we will end up a decision one day to forget each other forever.

Back to my point on today’s verse that “we ought to help each other with our troubles”. I think relationships specially marriage should be centered on that idea.
Are you helping your wife?
Are you doing things to help your husband/wife?
Does your hobbies contribute to the well being of you partner?
Does your crazy shopping build your relationship stronger?
Does your spending time with friends help your husband/wife?
Does your partying with friends without your spouse build your relationship?
Does your mindless tv watching all day help your partner?
Does your drinking helps your wife/husband?
Does your chatting/ flirting helps your marriage?
Does your abusive words helps to strengthen your bond?
Does your questioning of judgment helps the other person feels freedom and respect?
Does your obsession on something builds your marriage?
Does your nagging helps?

When we began a relationship with someone, we always start with “I like you”. Then in a few months, the closeness develops into something called love and so we say “I love you”. But love does not carry us forever. We can say “I love you” daily and not helping our partner physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually – the result will not be pleasant. We need more than the word “love” . Couple part ways not because they fall out of love, they separate because one becomes a burden – instead of a helper. Always creating problems instead of solutions.

A helper on what? On everything! On anything!

Be a helper and not just a lover. Love is an action word.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/gal.6.2.erv

Marketing Strategy or Truth?

“When people sin, they earn what sin pays—death. But God gives his people a free gift—eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23 ERV

On December 22, 2008, I was 42 then. A healthy cyclist and a distance swimmer when I had my 2nd encounter with death. The first one was in 1989 during a bike accident when a car hit me from behind. I was dragged for 9 feet holding on to the right front tire. I saw everything happened and even to this day I can still picture the actual event. I survived with only two wide scars in my buttocks and no broken bones and was not admitted to the hospital because my injuries were more like an emotional one than physical. The 2nd experience was in 2008, three days before Christmas. I got up early that morning and rode 10 miles in my indoor bike. My body was tired but I pressed on thinking that it was just a flu. I took a shower and ate breakfast and then proceed to my household chores – ironing the laundry. I was halfway in the ironing of the pile of laundry when my left arm felt numb and a pressing pain in my upper left chest close to the left shoulder persisted and did not go away even after relaxing my hand. I asked my wife Britta to give me some water but after 3 minutes, the pain was still there. I know something was wrong but I did not know what it was. With the help of a search engine, I entered the phrase “numb hand upper left chest pain”. The search engine indicated that it is a ” heart issue”. There was no urgency, I changed clothes and walk to the car as normal. As I sat down very still and calm with the front seat reclined, I was wondering if this was the end of me. Many questions crossed my mind; Did I prepare my family for my departure? Did I mentored my two kids to the best of my ability? Did I loved my wife to the fullest? Did I left enough notes at work so that my coworkers can crack the code of all the things I’ve worked on. When did I last talked to my mother? When did I last talked to all my sisters? Did I left a mark in my lifetime?

The pain was steady at threshold somewhere in 9 or 10. My breathing was fine and pulse was around 50. When we arrived at the ER, the medical team went into a full alert. After 2 hours of studies on my symptoms, they ruled out everything but a myocardial infarction – I had a full blown heart attack, my left anterior descending was 100% blocked. Some people said that I was lucky but my doctor explained to me why I survived. My collateral arteries were opened and during the interruption of blood flow, those alternate pathways sustained my heart to keep going. This is only possible when a certain individual raises their heart rate at a longer time during exercise. I biked and swim regularly.

Noticed on the questions I had earlier, I did not remember thinking about heaven or eternity. What I do recall was the thought of “I will miss this world”. I was puzzled for years why I had that thought instead of being so excited about the promise of eternal life – the streets of gold, the endless singing, the interaction with angels and the 24/7 access to the throne of God. The Bible said that there will be no more tears and no more pain.

But why would I not think of that?

The answer to that question is found in this verse – eternal life is a free gift.

When things are free, we tend to forget that it is there. Think about the air you breathe or the sunlight or the water flowing in the river. Those are priceless things and we don’t even take notice of their existence.

My point here is, why not take the free gift? You are not going to lose anything. Ok, no one really knows that those promises existed but think of it wisely, if you do not believe that heaven is real and comes the end of your life and it is real, what would you do? Now if it is real and comes your expiration on earth, all you have to do is transition to the new place, did you lose anything? No. Did you gain anything? Absolutely yes! A safe passage to the Kingdom of Heaven.

But please, don’t think of heaven like that. I mentioned in that manner because some of us here in this earth are so smart and stubborn and we want logic or science to explain everything for us before believing.

I was carefully studying scientists and their findings but the more they found molecular level truths, the more I am convinced that there must be a creator of all these things on earth.

Don’t pass on the free gift, it is indeed free and the only thing that you have to do is believe in Christ.

How simple is that. It is not a marketing strategy.

P.S. There are more benefits after you take the free gift. More on this later.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/rom.6.23.erv

Wealth Generator

“Don’t ever say to yourself, ‘I got all this wealth by my own power and ability.’ Remember the Lord your God is the one who gives you power to do these things. He does this because he wants to keep the agreement that he made with your ancestors, as he is doing today!” Deuteronomy 8:17, 18 ERV

“Generator is someone who originates, causes or initiates something”

In 1990 back in my New York days when I just arrived from a different country to be with my wife, she is an RN. I could not see my future in this country. Although I had BSEE in my résumé and two years of industrial experience right after college, somehow finding my dream job was a blur. 2 months after I came here, I could not stand still knowing that there is really no available jobs for me. When I received my immigration papers to be able to work, I took a wild step into the unknown – I joined the US Army. Little did I know that my actions will bring me to places that I’ve never been. I’m not talking about just physical places but places in my heart that will shape me as a person. I spent 4 years in the service and on the first year – puts me back to Asia again away from my then pregnant wife. My daughter Brittney was born when I was in mountains of South Korea near the DMZ in 1991. I was a 2 years old Christian at that time and my faith was already in my heart settled as a rock. But during my solitude in South Korea for one year, I had doubts and full of questions about my faith. Most times I ask God in prayer why He brought me to a place of despair. I was suppose to be with my wife in America enjoying the abundance of life and fulfillment. Although I met good buddies while in Korea and had become accustomed to military life, my recollection of that chapter in life is not pleasant.

When my 1 year tour of duty ended, I received orders to report to Ft Hood Texas. I did not even know where that place was but I was excited.

Little did I know that everything was a divine setup even from the beginning, I finished my last 3 years in the Army in Ft Hood. The surprise was coming to my way and two great things happened, Brent was conceived and I landed a job at AMD (advanced micro devices). Fast forward 2.5 years after AMD, a recruiter from Samsung stumbled upon my old Army resume and invited me to join Samsung Austin. It’s been almost 15 years since I started working for Samsung and all is well.

I live comfortably now. The financial lack is not there anymore.

The reason why I mentioned my story here is not to brag about my life.

I want you to know that I would not be where I am today without my faith.

If you are still in college or just beginning your career, please don’t be afraid to take a wild step into the unknown. God has a surprise for you. I am in my mid 40’s and I know that my life did not just happen because of my own effort. Someone from above did it for me.

Be encourage to go on even if you don’t see brightness in front of you.

It will come.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/deu.8.17.erv

More Forgiveness = Less Bitterness

“Never be bitter, angry, or mad. Never shout angrily or say things to hurt others. Never do anything evil. Be kind and loving to each other. Forgive each other the same as God forgave you through Christ.” Ephesians 4:31, 32 ERV.

When a form of disease is discovered, it is given a name. Naming a disease and the cure is a very critical part in solving a medical problem. Can you imagine if they just say that you have ” a thing” in you and this is the cure. Having a name and identifying what it is makes the battle for the cure seems easy.

Identifying bitterness at an early stage is a great step towards inner peace. We are humans. We feel something because we have emotions. This negative emotion [bitterness] needs our attention often times.

Bitterness can become bigger if not being dealt with. One must be able to identify such feeling at an early stage so that it will not turn into a complicated problem. This habit of identifying and dealing with bitterness does not come automatic. Every person need to teach our inner being how to acknowledge it and know the signs that it exists and then take actions.

One way to deflate/diffuse bitterness is to expose it. Talking about it can sometimes help in disarming the ticking bomb inside you.

The Bible has a better solution – forgiveness.

The ultimate cure for bitterness is forgiveness. For some reason this seems to be the best antidote for being bitter.

More forgiveness = less bitterness

Forgive yourself for not meeting your high expectations .
Forgive yourself for not being so successful as your old classmates.
Forgive someone who offended you in some way.
Forgive your husband/wife when you think she/he offended you.
Forgive your boss for being an unfit leader.
Forgive your friend for the silence.
Forgive your kids for not satisfying your dreams.
Forgive your co worker for being so insensitive.
Forgive your parents for not being there when most needed.

There are so many situations where we can use forgiveness to melt down the bitterness in us.

Exercise your ability to forgive.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/eph.4.31.erv

Invention of Sin

“All have sinned and are not good enough to share God’s divine greatness. They are made right with God by his grace. This is a free gift. They are made right with God by being made free from sin through Jesus Christ.” Romans 3:23, 24 ERV

Sin by definition “is an act that is regarded by theologians as a transgression of God’s will”.

A few weeks ago, I’ve finished reading the book “The brain that changes itself” by Doige. Last night I just finished Chapter 8 of Rewire your Brain” by Arden. One more chapter and I will make a short summary. The main point of the two books is to expose the mechanics of the human brain. How does it work? Why we feel sad? Why are we happy? How did we get so excited about love and romance? And why it dies? Why are we brave? Why are we timid? Why are we so sensitive sometimes? Why are we tired? Why are we addicted to drugs, thrill and beautiful creatures? Why do we obsess on something that is not real? It is good to know the science of our thinking. When you get a chance, grab the book.

Once I’m done reading, I am planning to write my first book called “The antidote of unhappiness”. In it will be one chapter, with one page and the word “Sin no more”.

Seriously, if I will to summarize the things that I’ve read about being happy and peaceful, it will come to this – walk in the righteous path – that’s it.

Try cheating your spouse for example, how will that action affects you? Or hurt another person, will you be happy or sad? Or be lazy at work. Try gossiping. Try being jealous and envious. There is a science behind all the effects after we do things. It’s like a cause and effect explanation of things. You do something and there will be consequences.

The Bible mentioned “sin” long before we even realize the severity of the consequences. There is a negative consequence.

I’d like to suggest though, don’t be running around thinking “I will not sin”. It does not work that way. Read the passage at the beginning of this post over and over until you fully grasp the antidote of sin.

Always remember, we cannot do it on our own strength. No way. No other way except believing that it is given to us freely.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/rom.3.23.erv

Cornerstone-The Only Stone

“Jesus is ‘the stone that you builders thought was not important. But this stone has become the cornerstone.’ Psalm 118:22 Jesus is the only one who can save people. His name is the only power in the world that has been given to save anyone. We must be saved through him!”” Acts 4:11, 12 ERV

When we build something, they always remind us that we must have a solid foundation or else the structure will crumble.

I wish I have known this truth long time ago and I would not have wasted a lot of effort and time on something else.

When I was a child, I remember a booklet given to me about Christianity. In it was a picture of 2 chairs, one chair – the word “you” was sitting on it and the other chair, a “cross”. I never understand the true meaning of the symbolism until I began my journey of faith.

It means that Christ has to sit in my chair. It means that everything I do must be Christ centered. It means that my beliefs has to revolve around the teaching of Christ . It means that my other business in life must also be connected to Christian principles. It means that when I make a decision, I have to consult Him. It means that when I face adversities, I must refer to His promises. It means that when people persecute me, I must remember that He also went through the same predicament. It means that my mind will always have a online connection to Him.

These sounds like an impossible task to take on. “I have to do all that?” you may ask.

The truth is, No. Once you have connected your life to Christ, the reprogramming starts and the transformation will change your heart daily as you walk in your own journey. The change is gradual and fulfilling.

Jesus, the Cornerstone. Our Cornerstone.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/act.4.11.erv

Did we invent God?

“This is how God showed his love to us: He sent his only Son into the world to give us life through him.” 1 John 4:9 ERV

At the church yesterday, in front of me was a 6 years old boy with his mother. During the praise and worship part of the service where we sing songs, clap our hands and raise our hands towards heaven, I had a short lesson regarding “beliefs”. In my mind, I was asking how can this little boy expresses worship from the bottom of his heart? How can he know God at such an early age? How come he is able to clap his hand so freely and sing joyful songs as much as the other people beside him do? I was just so amazed by his actions because I know that when I was his age, I did not do that. Did we just invent God and then through examples, bible studies, storytelling and nurturing, conditions our children to believe what we adults think about God? Or was his gesture genuine and it did really comes from his own beliefs and not from his mother.

We learn and come to know God because someone in someways somewhere told us so and we believed.

In the most basic sense, that is how we learn about something… and then we believed it.

Many scientists nowadays has more resources to use at their own disposal to explain our beliefs in God. They discovered amazing theories that explains how things come into being and it’s interconnection to something called faith. Some had came out with published materials exposing our invention of God in our minds.

I cannot explain my faith. When someone told me that God loved me, it just so happen that I latched on to the idea but then things around me started to change. So I decided, God must be there and all I have to do is keep believing in Him daily and so far all I got are all positive things. Why would I not believe in God?

Why not?

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/1jn.4.9.erv

Standard of Living-2 Sides

“People who work for peace in a peaceful way get the blessings that come from right living.” James 3:18 ERV

Standard of Living-2 Sides

Is there a standard of living imposed to man? Are we really bound to do something a certain way? Who said this is normal? What is normal? What is righteous? What is the right way and what is the wrong way? Is insulting people a righteous action? Is hurting a spouse or a friend a normal thing to do? Is my lustful thinking abnormal? Is looking at beautiful objects and adoring them normal? Is drinking alcohol normal? Is my gossiping normal? Is telling a lie abnormal? Is my obsession normal? Is my anxiety and depression normal? Is my anger normal ? Is going to church normal? Is praying normal? Is praising and worshiping God normal? Is blogging normal? Is telling my life story normal?

Who draws the normal line?

When I engaged in a deep conversation with a friend, I’m always asked “what is normal and where do you get it?” Is there such thing as “normal”?

[I don’t engage in debates of moral and ethical standard. I normally just leave it hanging and then let my life speaks for itself.]

Then comes next week, he comes back with a story of failure, misfortune, unnecessary loss, an issue with the spouse, problems, fights, arguments financial mistakes etc.

Digging deeper to the issue, I will find truths why the event occurred. The misfortune happened as a consequence of not doing the right thing. Subconsciously, we carry thoughts that are out of the norm and then we come into a situation and we respond the wrong way. Our response to the event produces something unpleasant.

The world is filled with laws. Speed limit for example is there to provide safety to the public. Violate the law and you are in trouble. But life is more than just speed limits. There is always a fine line drawn towards perfection. It will always be there. So what is the secret?

There is no secret.

I have a Christian belief deep down in my soul. I read and study the Bible daily. But what about those people that don’t know Christianity? How would they know that there is a Christian standard and it is coming from the book called the Bible? Does the standard applies to them? Can I just say “hey, I did not know that”. Will that excuse me from following and doing the right thing?

The truth is there is a hidden standard. Some call it a “code of ethics”, moral values, Biblical beliefs etc.

You have to have one or else life will be chaotic or each day you will be tossed like a flotation device in the middle of the ocean and no specific direction.

Follow those standards and you will not any negative consequences – they call it in simple terms “Blessings”.

What is blessing?

Blessing by definition is “a desirable state”. Do you want it? It is all up to you.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/jas.3.18.erv

Verbal Output Anomaly-Cure

“We use our tongues to praise our Lord and Father, but then we curse people who were created in God’s likeness. These praises and curses come from the same mouth. My brothers and sisters, this should not happen.” James 3:9, 10 ERV

As normal human beings, sometimes we open our mouth and express a totally out of the line statement and then later on we recognize that “Oh, I’m not suppose to say that”. The same thing with writing or even visual gesture. There is a person deep in us that needed some taming/training/subduing. The bad news is that we cannot do that on our own. The good news is, there is a way to do it.

1. Establish your belief system.
2. Practice your belief system openly.
3. Do it 24/7 if possible.
4. Pray
5. Praise

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/jas.3.9.erv

Presence of the Holy Spirit

“No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us. If we love each other, God’s love has reached its goal—it is made perfect in us. We know that we live in God and God lives in us. We know this because he gave us his Spirit.” 1 John 4:12, 13 ERV

Scientists are trying to explain the presence of God or make sense of extraordinary things that happen to the faithful. In some ways, their explanation s are “almost” correct, but something is missing – the personal experience – the things we personally feel and experienced. Even myself will always come to the conclusion that He must be there somewhere. Sometimes I question the situation but most often I know He is real.

I never understood my transformation to a new life until the Holy Spirit came. Things just changed dramatically. Habits are now refined and polished and well in obedience with the Word. Mind is well at peace and emotion are well in check.

I can’t explain His presence fully and I know why, He wants you to experience His presence yourself.

To those who come in contact with me in person or through this blog, I encourage you to keep your heart open. Try something different. It’s not places, material things, fame, nor power – it’s the presence of the Spirit that will fill your empty cup.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/1jn.4.12.erv

Unshakeable Kingdom and Us

“So we should be thankful because we have a kingdom that cannot be shaken. And because we are thankful, we should worship God in a way that will please him. We should do this with respect and fear,” Hebrews 12:28 ERV

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/heb.12.28.erv

Mentoring Starts At Home

“Always remember these commands that I give you today.
Be sure to teach them to your children.
Talk about these commands when you sit in your house and when you walk on the road.
Talk about them when you lie down and when you get up.”

Deuteronomy 6:6, 7 ERV

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/deu.6.6.erv

Purpose of Abundance

“When you are living in the land the Lord your God is giving you, there might be some poor people living among you.
You must not be selfish.
You must not refuse to give help to them.
You must be willing to share with them.
You must lend them whatever they need.”

Deuteronomy 15:7, 8 ERV

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/deu.15.7.erv

Endurance Strength

“But the Lord is faithful. He will give you strength and protect you from the Evil One.” 2 Thessalonians 3:3 ERV

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/2th.3.3.erv

Be Aware of Temptations But…

Hebrews 4:15 ERV

“Jesus, our high priest, is able to understand our weaknesses. When Jesus lived on earth, he was tempted in every way. He was tempted in the same ways we are tempted, but he never sinned.”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/heb.4.15.erv

Be aware of temptations but don’t give in.

Our responses to an invitation to cross the line between good and bad is a conscious decision we make. Although it might look like it is an auto pilot response, we do have at least 1 second to say yes or no and it is always our own choice. Someone wrote that decisions in life is very simple-it is either 1 or 0 like in the computer language; yes or a no, turn to the left or right, proceed or don’t, call or do not call, talk or do not talk, stay or go, engage or ignore, read or do not read, view or do not view, watch or do not watch, write or delete, yell or stay calm.

But how would you know when to use 1 or 0?

The simple answer lies in your belief system. What is your moral code based of. You have to have a set of life principle to follow. Pick a good and descent principles to live by and these 1’s and 0’s in life isn’t that complicated to execute.

Key to Greatness

“Be humble before the Lord, and he will make you great.” James 4:10 ERV

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/jas.4.10.erv

Motive Matters

“People think that whatever they do is right, but the Lord judges the reasons for everything they do.” Proverbs 21:2 ERV

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/pro.21.2.erv

Motive Matters
“Motive-The psychological feature that arouse an organism to action toward a desired goal; the reason for the action; that which gives purpose and direction to behavior.”

A few years ago, my actions were interpreted as ungodly. The incident reminded me of how brutal misconception is. When a person interprets your action as negative or wrong, they start thinking- oh he must be this or that, or he is …., it is called “labeling”, one of the psychological self defeating belief. This belief if left unchecked or unproven most often leads to a greater damage.

There are deeper reasons why I do what I do and sometimes simple human beings outside my circle are unable to fathom the reasoning. Even my own family sometimes is unable to crack the code of why I do the things I do.

How do I select my next action?
1. If the action can benefit others.
2. If the action can glorify the Father.
3. If the action can be learned.
4. If the action can enhance the body, mind and spirit.
5. If the action can uplift someone.
6. If the action can produce a peace of mind.
7. If the action can build endurance and patience.

Sent from my iPad Mini

Source of Joy; Day1059

“Your help made me so happy. Give me that joy again. Make my spirit strong and ready to obey you.” Psalm 51:12 ERV

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/psa.51.12.erv

Source of Joy
It’s not riches.
It’s not material things.
It’s not physical sensation.
It’s not sexual satisfaction.
It’s not your spouse.
It’s not your friends.
It’s not your family.
It’s not travel.
It’s not good health.
It’s not intelligence.
It’s not jobs or work.
It’s not the ministry.
It’s not the accomplishment.
It’s not receiving praise or compliment.
It’s not reaching the highest mark.
It’s not watching your child succeed in life.
It’s not surviving a calamity.

The source of joy is knowing that you have a genuine and real and personal connection to God.

Sent from my iPad Mini

God can …; Day1058

“Jesus looked at them and said, “That is something people cannot do, but God can. He can do anything.”” Mark 10:27 ERV

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/mrk.10.27.erv

God can…
I’m trying to find answers why sometimes I experienced impossible circumstances in my life and every time, I came empty handed. Last week a co-worker saw my fried chicken in my lunch plate and automatically declared that I violated my cardiac diet. I told him that I am in >1000 days after stent#2 and left the statement hanging.

When we believe on something, I think that we must also take a step towards faith even deeper by just saying “God can …”

God can heal my heart.
God can protect me.
God can protect my wife and family.
God can give me wisdom at work.
God can heal my broken relationship.
God can heal my mind.
God can help me find a job.
God can provide me a lifetime partner.
God can extend my arms to reach out.
God can use me in a special way.
God can …

24/7 Connection; Day1057

““I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you stay joined to me, and I to you, you will produce plenty of fruit. But separated from me you won’t be able to do anything.” John 15:5 ERV

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/jhn.15.5.erv

24/7 Connections
We can know everything, we can gain new insights from books, we can acquire great truths from education and experience but always remember that the bottom line is we must always be connected to Christ 24/7.

I won’t be here forever for the three of you but always remember that you saw something in me and it is real. You too must make that connection – faith.

Hoping that new horizons brings joy to you even for just a few days.

Self Control; Day1056

“People who cannot control themselves are like cities without walls to protect them.” Proverbs 25:28 ERV

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/pro.25.28.erv

Self-control-the act of denying yourself, controlling your impulses; the trait of resolutely controlling your own behavior.

Beyond Beauty; Day1055

Proverbs 31:30 ERV

“Grace and beauty can fool you, but a woman who respects the Lord should be praised.”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/pro.31.30.erv

Against the Norm; Day1054

Mark 8:34, 35 ERV

“Then Jesus called the crowd and his followers to him. He said, “Any of you who want to be my follower must stop thinking about yourself and what you want. You must be willing to carry the cross that is given to you for following me. Any of you who try to save the life you have will lose it. But you who give up your life for me and for the Good News will save it.”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/mrk.8.34.erv