8 Attributes of True Wisdom

“But the wisdom that comes from God is like this: First, it is pure. It is also peaceful, gentle, and easy to please. This wisdom is always ready to help people who have trouble and to do good for others. This wisdom is always fair and honest. People who work for peace in a peaceful way get the blessings that come from right living.” James 3:17, 18 ERV

“Wisdom-accumulated knowledge or enlightenment; the trait of utilizing knowledge and experience with common sense and insight; the quality of being prudent and sensible”

But the Wisdom that comes from God is …
1. Pure
2. Peaceful
3. Gentle
4. Easy to please
5. Ready to help people
6. Ready to do good to others
7. Fair
8. Honest

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/jas.3.17.erv

Faith Is What Makes Real…

“Faith is what makes real the things we hope for. It is proof of what we cannot see.” Hebrews 11:1 ERV

I was in my home office just reading a book after doing my 2-mile run. The garage door opened (which was unusual) since everyone was out. I looked outside and saw my daughter who just arrived from San Antonio (90miles away from us, she is currently attending college at UTSA, this is her third year). She knocked at the door and I opened it and the first words that came out from her mouth was “dad, I had an accident on my way here”. I looked at her and gave her a hug for a few minutes. I noticed right away that she was so terrified by what happened and saw a need that she needed to diffuse her emotion. So we went to her truck at the driveway, a black 2009 Chevy Colorado V8, and asked her to tell me the story. The exit to Austin right at I35 by Loop 1604 was closed and diverted and was barricaded with large safety cones, she did not have enough time to react because of her speed and the tactical driving environment that she crashed to one of the cones. She showed me the badly scratched front left side fender. From the appearance of the impact of the car, I know it was terrible. The exit to Austin from Loop1604 is very tricky to maneuver since it is a 2-lane road in a Y with the exit to the southbound lanes. I know that it was a hard decision to make when you are there at the moment of impact since the road is a little bit curved and you are driving on a very high overhead bridge. A fatal mistake, one can end up 100 feet down below.

Fast forward…

She kept talking and relating her incident as her face lightened up. I told her not to worry about the damage of the car since I can DIY the scratch damage – I have all the tools needed to fix it. I told her that what’s important is she survived the accident without any physical damage. I told her that I am impressed how she managed to regain control of the situation. It could have been a terrible accident knowing the fact that the event happened in a flyover bridge suspended high above the skies.

Fast forward…

At the end of the day after washing the car, personally buffing the paint job and polishing, the accident never left any mark. The black pickup truck looks new again and the cost was $0.00. I repaired it myself.

After all her hassles and worries, we realized that nothing really happened. Yes, there was an accident but she made it through.

The reason why I’m taking my time to relate to you her story is because it was a story of my faith again. Last year, we drove 90 miles in the middle of the night because she could not move any parts of her body that she has to be brought to the hospital by an ambulance. It turned out that it was just a tight muscle in her back that paralyzed her (temporarily)

I get bad news such as these ones almost every month or year. Remember I posted here once that my wife recently lost her job in 17 years after taking a vacation. But then within a week, she found a very fulfilling job as an OB office manager. That too was bad news at first but we breakthrough. A few months ago, my 80 years old mother had a car accident that placed her in bed for months due to the impact of the crash but in the following month of physical therapy she slowly recovered. Another bad one was my heart attack on December 22, 2008 that forever changed my life and that too was a game changer but then it drives me more to train for a 100mile bike ride and encourage me to swim more and run more. All those incidents were out of my control and brought me worries at some point of time but in the end I was triumphant.

Long time ago, I started believing that somehow God is watching me and my family. The Bible says, “I will never leave you nor forsake you”. I don’t have a lot of explanation why I believe what I believed but when things (special incidents) like these happens in my life, what else can I do except appreciate what the good Lord has done for me. I cannot deny that every situation that I mentioned could have a different outcome. My daughter’s small road accident could have turned into a big one – but it did not. When I was praying for my mom for recovery, one day I had a dream that we were walking together without her wheelchair and in a few months, it became a reality.

Faith is really hard to explain. I don’t have the theological knowledge and background to convince you about it. I don’t have the eloquent words of a great preacher to convince you that faith works.

The same concept with the reality of God. How can I say that God is real. How can I say to you to step into the boat of faith. How can I say that there are angels all around you protecting you wherever you go. How can I say that God provides protection to you and your family and your properties and possessions and your precious investments in life. How can I convince you that God can provide you with good health. How can I say that God can give you wisdom and knowledge to improve your quality of life. How can i tell you that God can provide for your needs.

Faith is a mystery. Sometimes it can be a form of “make believe” and at times, it is. You start imagining that somehow things can be different because you want it different or you want it to go away and when you thought that your wishes are all forgotten, you realized that the things you hoped for, the things you wished for – were granted.

How can you ‘not believe’?

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/heb.11.1.erv

Before You Die, See Something…

“I have enemies, Lord, so teach me your ways. Show me the right way to live. My enemies have attacked me. They have told lies about me and have tried to hurt me. But I really believe that I will see the Lord’s goodness before I die.” Psalms 27:11-13 ERV

I woke up sluggish today. I had to swim indoors now since the water in the outdoor pool is now cooler. Even though the temperature peaks at 90’F, swimming outdoor is not pleasant anymore. Yesterday, was my first day back at the indoor pool at Clay Madsen Recreation Center and I did not realize the contrast between the two pools until yesterday. The outdoor pool has a lot of variables in it. Weather is unpredictable, pool temperature, bugs and insects floating, bacteria level, maintenance, ph of the water and the most significant is people. My outdoor swimming is very lonely and boring because most of the time, I swam at noon where no one is around. At the indoor pool, there is always at least one person – the lifeguard. In short, the indoor pool is much safer to swim because it is a controlled environment and has the benefit of a lifeguard and emergency equipment.

The only downside of swimming indoors are :
1. I have to swim harder since people here tries to beat each other every lap.
2. I will not get my tan anymore. Right now my skin is so dark like the color of a mild roast coffee bean.
3. No more thrill of danger, it feels like I’m in a protective cocoon, if I’ll have another heart attack, the lifeguard can help me in seconds and call 911. The ER is just 10 minutes away. At the outdoor pool, I always have this thought that I might die floating waiting for help until someone sees my lifeless body.

The reason why I brought up the contrast between the outdoor pool and the indoor pool today is because I saw some similarities to the Kingdom of God. The indoor pool is like the Kingdom of God. A safer place, lots of people overseeing the entire operation and well maintained and the presence of a lifeguard – the lifeguard is symbolic to the presence of God, he is always watching.

Ok, I am not really a good writer so please excuse my poor analogy and explanation.

What I want you to see is there is a Lifeguard in our life. He is always watching us 24/7 and He does not go home or go to sleep or take a break. All He does is make sure that good things will happen to us at any given moment.

I’ve known a person who is so angry to the world that even at the counter at the grocery store, he is mad at the lady who is very slow to put his groceries to the grocery bag. To him, this lady is his enemy. Try cutting him off in the line and you will know how really mad he is. (This is one method to test yourself if you are really angry to the world or not. What would you do or feel when someone cuts the line in front of you?)

Those are just symptoms of a disarray life. If you look under the hood of his angry life, you can find a sick and suffering body, an unstable mind, a depleted bank account, a poor job performance, a failed relationship, a high cost of living that he cannot afford, an unreliable vehicle which breaks down very often and a lonely heart.

How can I offer help to this type of person?

The problem with humanity is we don’t normally follow people’s advice. We seek out our own solution more than anything else. When we see that a strategy of one person works for him, we quickly discredit – “it will only work for him and not on others”. See for example faith, if I tell you that my life is filled with goodness because of my beliefs, will you believe me and mimic my ways? Most of you will say “well, you got lucky”. Not for me, “I will try to invent another type of wheel that is not round”. “I don’t want to copy you”. Yes, that is what we do all the time. We are very skeptics on how we view Christian men and women whose lives are filled/gifted with goodness from God and in return they do good things to others.

The main point here is — I want you to see the goodness of God. You don’t have to do anything but believe in your heart that He is real.

Can you at least try that?

5 reasons why believing God works:

1. You will have a different heart. A different heart = a different mind = a different views in life = different actions = different outcome

2. You will have access to the Wisdom of God. Imagine that when you think of a solution of a difficult problem, God will be whispering in your ears or in your dreams ideas and thoughts and plans that you’ve never heard before. Sometimes He’ll guide you or led you to read an article or a book or a blog to give you foresight.

3. He can cause things to happen. You will be amazed how these things will unfold in your life. Extraordinary things will surface in an extraordinary way.

4. 24/7 protection. God promised that.

5. Inner peace. I know that people want ‘hope’ more than ‘peace’ (when we are in the storm) but I think the greatest need of man is “peace” because once you have the hope, there is still one more thing that you want – peace of mind. (You hope to win the lottery but when you do, you want to have peace to enjoy the luxuries you just miraculously received.)

If there is no peace, the good things that just happened to you is worthless.

Before you leave this earth, see God’s goodness and then experience peace through the process.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/psa.27.11.erv

Command: Don’t Be Troubled, yet…

“Jesus said, “Don’t be troubled. Trust in God, and trust in me.” John 14:1 ERV

“Command – an authoritative direction or instruction to do something”

Many times we face a difficult situation and many times we respond with panic and uncertainties and worries.

I’d like to reprogram my mind so that whenever trouble comes, my default response is “trust” instead of “distress”.

I understand that this is no easy task. We are human, we see things and then believe, we hear things and then we say there is something out there, the wind blows in our face and we say there is a presence of the wind, the rain comes and we got wet and we believe that the water molecule is present, we used to not able to do things the normal way but all of a sudden our body is able to perform what it is suppose to do and then we say we are healed and we rejoice.

Trusting God is not believing that the things that we desire will come to pass, it is believing that whatever the bad situation is, God always has a better plan of why things are happening the way they are in the physical realm.

Though sometimes we do not understand why humanity has to suffer deeply, know in our heart that God is always in our side.

If He said “Don’t be troubled”, then then do be troubled.

How simple is that command … yet many times we disobey it.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/jhn.14.1.erv

Don’t be a “DNF” Participant!

“I am sure that the good work God began in you will continue until he completes it on the day when Jesus Christ comes again.” Philippians 1:6 ERV

“DNF-an acronym that they put at the end of your name in the race list (cycling, marathon, triathlon, ironman race) indicating that you did not finish the race .”

I am an endurance athlete (not professional, just recreational for my heart rehab). I can swim (2.4miles) and bike long distance (100 miles) but I cannot run 2 miles comfortably. So my ironman goal is not realistic because I cannot finish the 26.2 miles of running during the ironman race, I will have DNF after my name at the end of the race – I don’t want that. So what I do now is just train the best I can and set realistic goals – not to win a race but to sustain a healthy lifestyle. If I can swim and bike comfortably, then I know that my heart is pumping just normal. To me, this is an indicator of my lifespan (if I don’t get hit by a vehicle in the street).

Our life is like an endurance race. Although life is not really a race, it is more of an event – a lifetime event. There is a preparation phase, beginning, mid of race and then the finish line. The preparation has been done already for us – we’ve been chosen to be an ambassador for Christ before the foundation of the earth, each one of us was given a calling. That’s what the Bible said, so I am just going to believe that premise and I hope you will too.

Like any other races, the beginning of the race is enjoyable and fun and full of excitement. It is when we reach the halfway mark or close to the finish line that the struggle starts. Any professional endurance athlete knows best with this phenomena/difficulty and that is why they trained their body so well for this phase. To finish an endurance race will take more than the physical elements, one will need a solid mindset that when the body refuses to go on, you tell your body to keep going even if you cannot take another step and you keep trying anyway until you crosses the finish line.

Our real life journey is the same way, that is why there is a thing called “midlife crisis” – the time when we are so confused that we start thinking:
“I need to change jobs”
“I’m in the wrong profession”
“I need to divorce my husband or wife”
“I’m in love with another person”
“I used to love you to the bone”
“I’d like to be be someone else”
“I’m bored”
“I feel I have not accomplished anything”
“I have nothing to show for”
“My life is a failure”
“I want change”
“I’m confused and don’t know what to do anymore”

Those are just my short list and I know that you have a few in mind.

My main point is – don’t DNF on these things I mentioned above. You started it – then you have to finish. The desire to be in that race was not your idea-someone placed that desire in your heart when you first started it.

Rest if you must, but get up and take one more step and keep going because you are not running the race by yourself.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/php.1.6.erv

The Person We Don’t Know Much About

“People made fun of him, and even his friends left him. He was a man who suffered a lot of pain and sickness. We treated him like someone of no importance, like someone people will not even look at but turn away from in disgust. The fact is, it was our suffering he took on himself; he bore our pain. But we thought that God was punishing him, that God was beating him for something he did.” Isaiah 53:3, 4 ERV

We don’t pay much attention to the name “Jesus” until the time comes when we need him. A preacher once told a story of a church member who was one of the survivors of a tragic plane crash. He witnessed it all – how humanity desperately cries for God or the name “Jesus” as the plane was shaking hard as the captain of the plane instructed his crew to prepare for the worst. As the captain yelled “brace, brace brace”, he can hear people shouting “oh God help us”, some yelled the name is desperation “Jesus, help us” people crying out and moaning for help. As the plane hits the ground, his prayer was “Lord, Here I am”. Fortunately, he survived with a few others and told the story.

I was almost on the same story line awhile back but it was not a plane crash. Maybe you too experienced a similar incident when you thought that it was the last day of your life.

Why do we wait to call his name? Why do we allow difficult circumstance to dictate us when to know God? Why can’t we just believe in him now that we know everything is fine? Isn’t it logical to get to know our Savior now so that during the times of trouble, all we have to say is “Lord, take me in”.

It is not normal for us to seek God in the good times. We don’t see a need of God when everything is well. When our bank account is filled with resources, when our health is superb and we are able to wake up everyday without pain, when our mind is peaceful and not confused as we manage to make our day so productive, when our heart is not overwhelmed with troubles and problems – there is hardly a need for God.

Why is that?

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/isa.53.3.erv

Stop Editing Your Life, Let Someone Do It!

“Don’t change yourselves to be like the people of this world, but let God change you inside with a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to understand and accept what God wants for you. You will be able to know what is good and pleasing to him and what is perfect.” Romans 12:2 ERV

There are two ways to change ourselves, DIY (do it yourself) or let somebody do it for us.

Really? I don’t have to do anything?

Of course not, but what this verse is saying – don’t let your own effort make/implement the change. There are inner workings that needs to happen in our heart before we can make changes to our life. I know for a fact that I can put persistence to the new habits that I want to form/learn/activate in my life but I know that it will take an enormous amount of time/effort for the effects to take place. There is an easy way – let God do it for you from the inside out, meaning – that the change has to be internal first and then the actual transformation follows in the physical realm which can be visible by other human beings.

My son is now 17 and in senior high school. His academic ranking is close to top 5 (not percent, but the actual #). He is a tennis varsity player and ranks #2 in the team. No girlfriend (zip, nada). Does not drink or smoke or do drugs. He is somewhat obedient at times but can be rebellious 15.5 % of the time.

But…

Yes, there is a but.

He is very unorganized, his room is like a mad scientist lab and his bed looks like it was meant to be occupied 24/7 – meaning he does not make his bed at all. My background is military. When I was in the US Army, I was trained to become a soldier ready for battle at all times. I did not understand the meaning of boot camp at all when I was still in boot camp training but when I arrived at my first duty station in South Korea in 1992, I realized that the training/indoctrination that the army did to us was for real – there was a purpose in all the individual tasks that we trained for. The purpose was to mold us to become the same individual in body and mind and being able to follow orders and execute a mission and accomplish an objective without failure.

It’s been more that 20 years now since I joined the army. I served for 4 years only but the things that I’ve learned and grasp during my 4 year enlistment was worth every minute. Even now, I still missed the life in the military. I love the structure, the discipline, the brotherhood and the mindset.

Lately, I’ve been wishing that I could send my son to boot camp and let him go through the hardship and strict training that I’ve been through. But that is not possible so what I’m doing lately is showing him examples of how a soldier is trained for battle. Each day, I spend time with him chit chatting (not lecturing) about life in general (gentleman way). We talked for a few minutes each day regarding positive and negative things that happened and what countermeasures I put in place to prevent from something to reoccur. I have less than a year to mentor this guy since he is leaving for college next year and I need to make sure that he is equipped with the right internal knowledge on how to live a good life.

I understand that I cannot edit my son’s life to the way that I wanted it to be. Nor does he can by himself. I’m doing the best I can to mentor him and show him that life can be made much easier if we slow down and listen to our heart and values. I’ve demonstrated to him that I believed in God and study and read the Bible regularly. I’ve showed him how to conduct business with other human beings with utmost respect. I’ve displayed my extra ability to organized my material things such us books, utensils, tools, computers, files, library, paperworks in file cabinets. I’ve showed him how I disciplined my body to perform the right amount of training in my swim, bike and run program. In short, I’ve showed him a lot already.

To Brent – May what I’ve showed to you today may become a guiding light in the days to come. You can’t change yourself, I certainly cannot , but surely God can.

To my dear readers – to some of you that are thinking of changing for the better, I want to encourage you, don’t do it on your own. Let the Holy Spirit guide you in your transformation. It maybe hard at first but one day you will say “God did it for me and it was not in my full effort”.

I have not attained perfection in life yet but I can truly tell you that the changes that I’ve been through internally we’re not because I willed and forged myself to change, it was God’s hand holding me throughout the process of change.

See it at YouVersion.com: http://bible.com/406/rom.12.2.erv

Our Objective-To Finish The Work

“I don’t care about my own life. The most important thing is that I finish my work. I want to finish the work that the Lord Jesus gave me to do—to tell people the Good News about God’s grace.” Acts 20:24 ERV

“Finish-come or bring to an end; finally be; do something; have an end in quantitative state”

“Work-an activity directed toward making or doing something”

Our objective as a Christian: To tell people the Good News about God’s grace.”

There are many ways we can look at our objective in life. Many of us will say that the reason we are here on earth is to live a good life and enjoy it like a precious gift. Some will say that we are here to help others. Others will say that they are here to raise a generation and mentor anyone that comes in contact. Some will say, to fulfill my callings. Some will say, to work and save money for retirement so that when I’m in my 60’s, I can enjoy the fruits of my labor and not worry about supporting/sustaining myself for the rest of my life. Or others will say, I am here to change the world and create something extraordinary. Some will say, I’m just here to live a life and not analyze it or create it – I just want to live a life – a simple life.

We all know that living a life with no objective is pointless. Everyone should have an objective in life because without an objective, we always end up in a place of confusion and dissatisfaction at the end of our day. Take for instance today, what is your objective? What do you want to accomplish? It’s been a habit of mine to grab 1 or 2 objectives per day and accomplish it and so far this strategy is working for me. Today, I’m going to run 2 miles and visit my financial adviser to help me sort out my retirement plans. Aside from that, my other objectives are to write an entry to my journal (this one) and read a chapter of the Hyper-V book. By the end of the day, I am expecting that these objectives are completed. I always do this everyday and so far it’s been positive.

Life in general needs to have an objective. As a Christian believer, we need to know what our real objective is. Yes, we can say – to be faithful and trustworthy to God and avoid a sinful life but that is not why we are here on earth. Apostle Paul clearly stated his objective-to tell the people the Good News.

The church has to evolve. Sometimes you hear people say that I’m tired of church and I don’t want to be a part of it anymore because all I hear are condemnation, judgement, do this, do that, missions, be holy, be sinless, pray at all times, read your Bible daily but at the end of the day, one can’t even summarize that there was even a Good News being given to them.

We veered off a bit in our objectives as a Christian. Visit a modern church and you can visibly see the lack of Good News. It breaks my heart to listen to a pastor or a leader that confesses Christianity but not even fulfilling the simplest obligation at all – to reach the unchurched, instead we drive them away by the way we present ourselves in our speech, actions and sensitivity to their needs.

Our objective is very simple – to tell the Good News about God’s grace. That’s it and not anything else. If every Christian does that, there is no reason for us not to reach anyone that is open to hear about God.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/act.20.24.erv

Being Forgiven = Being Free

“So now anyone who is in Christ Jesus is not judged guilty. That is because in Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit that brings life made you free. It made you free from the law that brings sin and death.” Romans 8:1, 2 ERV

“Free- able to act will; not hampered; not under compulsion or restraint”

I struggled with this idea that when we become a follower of Christ, we are being set free. What does it mean to be free? Is it really true that we are set free? Is it really true that we don’t become slave of our sins once we become a true Christian? What is sin? Who originally named it as a sin? I don’t believe in Christianity or God, am I a sinner?

People sometimes does not want to be around with Christian believers because they see hypocrisy or double standards. We confess that we read and study the Bible and do what it says but 90% of the time, we crosses the line of morality in our speech, actions, thoughts and feelings. It seems that the cycle of good and evil is there 24/7. We sin/make horrible/do or say harmful things and then at the end of the day we ask for forgiveness and try to cleanse ourselves from our bad act. It is a cycle and it always comes at the most convenient time when we thought that we are strong spiritually and have gone through all the measures to become a true believer.

The question now is why aren’t we free?

The Bible declared clearly “free from the law that brings sin and death.” Romans 8:1, 2 ERV

Why am I in the cycle of sinning and feeling guilt and condemnation?

Many Bible scholars and preachers tried to explain this dilemma of guilt. At times, I grasped/understood what they tried to convey but after a few months or years, the feeling of condemnation comes back. It puzzled me and even up to now I’m still cooking the idea that being free is not really being free.

Yesterday, a friend of mine wanted to ride bikes with me (we did >30 miles) He has been talking about riding together one day and I kept distancing myself from this guy because he does not believe in God at all and he has no problem/hesitation explaining to me why there is no God. His background is Jewish but then as he grew up, he rebelled against his parents’ beliefs and went on to his solidly grounded belief that there is no God. 4 years ago, he was suffering from an undiagnosed back pain in which doctors have him only in pain medication to relieve him from the dreadful pain. The pain subsided when he took his medication but gave him a side effect of an unstable mind. He told me yesterday that one time he contemplated of taking 100 pills to finish everything. Obviously, he came to his senses and moved on. A year ago, a very smart doctor in Austin figured out his real problem and gave him a new hip – he had a hip replacement. We rode 30 miles together and I can’t believe what I was witnessing. This guy was in pain a few years ago and could not even move an inch without pain and here we are 3 hours later riding our bikes as if nothing happened. After the ride, he brought me to his house and had a cup of Americano coffee from his very expensive coffee maker. Over a cup of coffee, I’ve learned a lot about him and I am becoming interested of how this guys life would end up in the future. The funny thing is his house is only 5 minutes away from Celebration Church where I attend every week. As I was about to end our conversation, I told him that he had been set free from pain. He looked at me and smiled, yes, I am pain free.

I still have to pedal at least 10 miles to get back home and on my way back, I was just thinking out loud about how this guy can ever see or believe God that during his pain and suffering, God’s presence was not there. And to make it more difficult on his faith, how can he believe that there is God that through his hardships, he made it through without even an ounce of faith.

I am not the type of person that sells Christianity to people. You will notice that I am a believer because you can see me as a different/unnatural person. In here, I talked more about my faith because many of you does not really know me. I know that many of you are coming back every day as I see in my stats. My purpose in life is to show people what God had done for me and maybe by writing it here for people like you who are strangers can make a tiny difference. No, my new cycling friend will just have to get more cycling miles with me before I can open my mouth and convince him about God. One day…

Honestly, like my unbelieving cycling friend, most of you are not really fully convinced about the presence and existence of God. I don’t have answers on how to convince my friend/ or you that God truly exists. Knowing God takes time, it is a process. Look back to your past and connect timelines and see if you can find connections between you and God.

Start a journey to explore God. Once you know Him, you can truly know the true meaning of freedom which is being truly forgiven.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/rom.8.1.erv

Mark of A True Christian

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”” John 13:34, 35 NKJV

“Love-have a great affection or liking for”

“Hate-dislike intensely; feel antipathy or aversion towards”.

The hardest thing that we ever have to do – love one another. It’s not climbing the highest mountain, it’s not reaching to the moon, it’s not discovering the cure for a disease, it’s not inventing the newest technology that can transform the society, it’s not leading men and women to become greater individuals, it’s not keeping a nation to become financially stable, it’s not mentoring a child to mold him/her as a successful citizen for the future.

A week ago, I watched the full CNN video showing the evidence of how the Syrian forces used chemical weapons to civilians. I almost cried as I watched the lifeless bodies being laid out side by side with each other. Some are children which had nothing to do with the conflict. This was a copy of the video being shown to the Senate and Congress to assess the decision of an air strike or some form of military action to the Syrian government. My initial reaction after watching the video was “let’s execute the air strike”. I’m not sure what your point of view is to military actions but a normal person, 90% of the time will want the conflict to be resolved as quickly as possible. The content of the video produces an automatic hatred to the Syrian government immediately. I don’t know much about politics and I don’t really care about what other countries are doing. All I know is that this world is God’s dwelling place specifically created for us to be developed and not destroyed so that human beings can experience life to the full. Any actions to stop the fulfillment of that premise is not considered good.

There is no easy answer for conflicts. Bring the subject to your own personal circle. Look around you and examine your relationship with other people. Do you love them? Do you really care for them? Are you jealous? Are you full of envy? Do you hate that person next to your cubicle? Or what about the smile of a friend who is enjoying his or her vacation in the beach? Or what about thinking that your spouse is abusing or abnormally just using you as a crutch in life to get by with his/her own selfish agenda in life.

The hardest thing to do in life is to love the person next to us (this includes everyone). The sad part about that command is — that is how we are identified as a true follower of Christ. There is “no ifs and buts” – that is bottom line Christianity.

Yup, I have to love you… all of you.

See it at YouVersion.com

http://bible.com/114/jhn.13.34.nkjv

Our Transformation Is A Gift

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Ephesians 2:8, 9 NKJV

“Gift-something acquired without compensation”

Sometimes I think that my transformation as a Christian was my own effort.

I wake up every morning reaching for my smartphone and directly opens the youversion app and start reading the “Today’s Verse”. Who would do that normally? I would look and observe my wife as she wakes up in the morning and what she does first is check her email or messages or Facebook account. (I don’t have a Facebook account anymore because I deactivated it because of no purpose in my life except that I used it as an alternative to keep in touch with people that I don’t know deeply. I wanted a real way to connect with other people aside from posting my activities, pictures and updates randomly showing that I’m trying to get in touch… this will be another post.)

On Sunday morning, I will always wake up at 0730, drink a cup of coffee and then off to church. To me, this used to be ‘not the normal’ thing many years ago.

Is this discipline? Is this being so organized? Is this because I was in the military that when I have an objective for the day, I must execute and complete? Am I forced by my rigid principles in life? Is my action was a part of the brainwashing of my mind as I devote my life to Christ?

So one day, I stopped reading my daily verse and tried to be normal. I would not read the Bible for days and just be doing my normal routines without the “Bible Stuff”. If you had been following this journal, you will notice that I always post the daily verse everyday without fail but lately I had been missing days.

It turned out that I cannot get away from the Word of God anymore. I just realized that it is not the reading of the Word that matters most. It is the heart inside me that has been given the privilege to become a follower of Christ. This heart has been transformed already that even the external things that I do apart from the Christian way does not matter anymore. A seed has been planted deep inside me that no matter what my actions are, my conscience will always lead me back to the place where God inspired me to do – to listen to Him in whatever way possible.

For those of you who are struggling to read the Bible and get up and attend church, don’t be discouraged, the desire will come. Don’t force yourself to do things that you don’t like to do. One day your transformation will be completed and you look back years from today and say to yourself, “I did not do this by myself, it was a gift given to me”.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/eph.2.8.nkjv

Promise: Forever Companion

“The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:9 NKJV

“Companion-a friend who is frequently in the company of another”

Loneliness can be so painful at times. Many people tried to avoid it by keeping them company with other people such as good friends and relatives. Sometimes we uses an inanimate objects to accompany us in our loneliness such as books, computer, smartphones, music etc. All those I mentioned can be a good cure for loneliness. But what if you have zero access to those things? How would you keep yourself out of loneliness? What if you are in your death bed at the final hour of your life? What if you are in the brink of your departure towards the end of your life? Or what if you are in a place where there is only you to talk to?

I’ve been to places like that and it’s not pleasant to experience such a moment. When I was in the cardiac cath lab during my MI, I did not know if will make it and all I feel was loneliness – death is something that only ourselves will go through. Even if our family are there at your bedside, we still go though death on our own.

But…

There is one promise to keep in mind, the God of Peace will be with us forever.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/php.4.9.nkjv

Simple Christianity; Dream-Worn Out Shoes

“In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.” Ephesians 1:13, 14 NKJV

“Sealed-established irrevocably”

Simple Christianity

1. Hear the Word

2. Trust God

3. Believe in Jesus

Then, sealed by the Holy Spirit

Sometimes I wonder why we make Christianity so complicated with a lot of rules and regulations, do’s and don’ts, guidelines, doctrines when in reality there are only a few things that we have to really do. Hear the word, believe in Jesus, and then trust God. Repeat those 3 steps daily. That’s it.

If you are following this blog and reading the scriptures daily, you already accomplished step#1 by reading the Word. Don’t stop there. Keep going…

Of course, as we mature spiritually, we bear fruits in our walk with Christ and we begin to do things that are beyond our ability and expand the Kingdom. But in its simplest form, study the Word, trusting God and believing Jesus is the most basic foundation of our faith.

Those 3 things can be be accomplished right where you are right now.

Dream: Worn out shoes
I was attending an awarding ceremony and a friend approached me and whispered “why are you wearing a worn out shoes”. I look down to my feet and saw two black mismatched shoes that was so old and so worn out. I was also wearing a short pair of pants which makes my shoes more visible and obvious to everyone. At the end, I did not really care.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/eph.1.13.nkjv

Intrepidity-Resolute Courageousness

““I have told you these things so that you can have peace in me. In this world you will have troubles. But be brave! I have defeated the world!”” John 16:33 ERV

“Resolute-firm in purpose or belief, characterized by firmness and determination”

“Courageousness-a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing gear”

We like encouragement especially when the timing is really perfect.

I’ve included a screen capture from my iphone using the New King James Version of the YouVersion app. I hope that seeing it in ‘red font’ can provide more voice and authority of the encouragement.

In some Bible version, the font color are made red to indicate that Jesus is speaking – that tells me that I need to pay closer attention.

Day after day, we faces victory more than defeat. At times, I’m more excited about my triumph than anything else in life. When I solve a difficult problem at work of fix a personal issue that has been putting me down so long, I get excited internally (although not shown in my real face), I do celebrate with God all my victory. It’s been many days since I survived my heart attack in 2008 and I think I’m physically, emotionally and psychologically well now and feel renewed – being able to function in my body far greater than a normal individual who did not experienced anything like I had.

But I’m just like you, I am in the world living and working side by side with other people and I experience the normal daily things in life and its difficulties and struggles and worries. There are times that I feel so down and empty and hoping that someone might rescue me from the deepest discouragement of all. I don’t have a lot friends around me. Not that I am not friendly but I choose to be alone most of the time. If someone had to assassinate me, they really can find me in my regular spot every day. Being alone for most of the time can be so peaceful and fulfilling but there are times that it becomes an enemy in the mind especially when the time comes for a need of someone to talk to. I read a lot of books and I’m always doing something positive in every waking moment. I make wise and slow decision most often to avoid regrets. I calculate what I say to people and even what I write. I treat everyone around me with respect and honor so that I can make more friends than enemies. In general, I’m contented with my life and the way I lived it. All is well 80% of the time. My routines are rock solid and my discipline is superb. But even with that, there are times when I battle a difficult enemy in life and sometimes I feel defeated and thinking about doubt and unbelief that maybe somehow my beliefs in Christ was just a pigment of my imagination that I utilized as a way to help me survive through my difficult days.

Where do I get my encouragement?

The answer to that question is in the red letter words below. I want you to examine/meditate verse 33 and read it over and over until you feel the voice of God is speaking to your heart.

Be encouraged!

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/jhn.16.33.erv

Will you offer help if given an opportunity?

“When we have the opportunity to do good to anyone, we should do it. But we should give special attention to those who are in the family of believers.” Galatians 6:10 ERV

“Opportunity-a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances; a chance”

The hardest part of having a lot of money is giving it away to somebody.

I don’t have millions of dollars but me and my wife live a comfortable life. We both work hard to save money to support our two children plus the unnecessary extra stuff in life. One is in college now and then next one is going next year. Many years ago, people come to us for financial help and we supply their needs and some came back and return the amount but some just forgot. I have no plans of collecting them and I will let their heart decide if they really want to return the favor, we don’t need it now.

Personally, I don’t have problems giving away money to help other people. To me, it is an opportunity to show kindness to the world. If someone ask you for money, will you refuse and say no? But how do you decide when to help and who to help?

I struggle with this situation sometimes. When you and your spouse work hard and put an effort to improve your life and there is someone on the other side of the phone asking for help and you have a few minutes to decide to say yes or no, how do you get to decide to help or not help. Sometimes we end up saying – “oh, I have to ask my husband or wife about it, I ll call you back”. Most of the cases, that is what we do because we want to make sure that the other party involved in the gathering of resources agrees to what you are going to do.

In human terms, we don’t automatically offer our help to other people. Maybe because there is always that self-preservation mindset. Of course we will take care of ourselves first and worry about the people that are not in our circle.

Part of the reason why we have to read the Bible and study daily is to be able to equip us with questions like this one. It won’t be hard to say yes if we are aware of the principle that is laid out in the Bible. The Bible says help them, lend your hand, offer your help, extend your mercy irregardless of any reason you think is unreasonable. When they come to you, it means that God guided their footsteps towards you.

Sometimes it is hard to become the person that God wants us to be especially in the realm of generosity and helping people. Very few people have attained that mentality of mercy.

I’m not there yet but I will try to. I think it is a form of mental or spiritual exercise to offer help to those in need at any given time, not to save the world or save the individual but just to show that I have tamed/mastered my unselfish attribute and being able to execute a form of self sacrifice. Not to show the world that “hey, I am generous” and you should be also – but because you have given the opportunity.

Will you offer help next time?

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/gal.6.10.erv

You Plus God = Possibility

“Praise the Lord! Every day he helps us with the loads we must carry. He is the God who saves us. Selah” Psalm 68:19 ERV

There is a God who is willing to help us carry our burdens and solve our earthly problems. Life is much easier if we change our mindset that God and His Wisdom is always there for us to be utilized. Sometimes we lean to our own understanding of issues, we rely on our own intellect, we are confident on our own personal experience and knowledge that somehow it seems like we know it all. But doing so just limits our capability to become the person that God wants us to be.

‘You plus God’ are not just 2 person working together, the power and capability and potential is far greater than that.

‘You plus God’ is infinite possibilities.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/psa.68.19.erv

Basic Needs … Plus

“Jesus answered him, “The Scriptures say, ‘It is not just bread that keeps people alive. Their lives depend on what God says.’” Deuteronomy 8:3” Matthew 4:4 ERV

Man’s basic needs are food, clothing and shelter. During a catastrophe, these are the items that needs to be secured first and established to be able to survive. In some way the list or category is very easy to remember and is very helpful to simplify the categorization of needs and prioritize the tasks at hand. Anything that cannot be categorized in those 3 categories are labeled as unnecessary to survival.

Maslow expound the list and came up with his own hierarchy of human needs such as physiological, safety and security, love and belonging, self-esteem, and self actualization. For the most part, I think Maslow was right. We do need breathing, food, water, shelter, clothing, sleep, health, employment, property, family, social stability, friendship, intimacy, sense of connection, confidence, achievement, respect of others, the need to be a unique individual, morality, creativity, spontaneity, acceptance, experience of purpose, meaning and inner potential.

The list is missing one more thing: The “Word of God”. Without the hope of Christ, survival can be very hard to attain. We can have all physical and psychological needs in our backpack but without the spiritual component, surviving can be harder or maybe next to impossible.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/mat.4.4.erv

What’s Better Than Sacrifice?

“Do what is right and fair. The Lord loves that more than sacrifices.” Proverbs 21:3 ERV

“Doing what is right and fair”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/pro.21.3.erv

Pre-Planned Action Items

“God has made us what we are. In Christ Jesus, God made us new people so that we would spend our lives doing the good things he had already planned for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10 ERV

“It’s not our plans, it’s God’s plan in our lives that we will be working”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/eph.2.10.erv

Why Not Believe?

“He even let his own Son suffer for us. God gave his Son for all of us. So now with Jesus, God will surely give us all things.” Romans 8:32 ERV

“God will surely give us all”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/rom.8.32.erv

9 Things To Keep In Mind Daily

“Dear friends, you are like visitors and strangers in this world. So I beg you to keep your lives free from the evil things you want to do, those desires that fight against your true selves. People who don’t believe are living all around you. They may say that you are doing wrong. So live such good lives that they will see the good you do, and they will give glory to God on the day he comes. Be willing to serve the people who have authority in this world. Do this for the Lord. Obey the king, the highest authority. And obey the leaders who are sent by the king. They are sent to punish those who do wrong and to praise those who do good. When you do good, you stop ignorant people from saying foolish things about you. This is what God wants. Live like free people, but don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do evil. Live as those who are serving God. Show respect for all people. Love your brothers and sisters in God’s family. Respect God, and honor the king.” 1 Peter 2:11-17 ERV

I love to read books especially a book that can help me become a better person. In my bookshelf are books on leadership, motivation, discipline, psychology, Christianity etc. One time I was helping a friend who was suffering from “panic attacks”. I did not know that this psychological dilemma ever existed. Try to search the web about the subject if you really want to know what it is. I could not give a friendly counsel at that time since I did not even know or aware of the disorder. All I did was open my ears and listen for hours about his story. So the next day, I went to a bookstore (Half Price Bookstore, my favorite place) and picked a $9.99 book entitled “When Panic Attacks” by Dr. David Burns. I finished reading the thick book in a week and took a lot of notes. I felt like I was so educated after reading the entire book. (If you are suffering from panic attacks or some form of panic symptoms, you might want to read this book). It’s not a ‘cure it all’ book but at least you will learn about the psychology of the disorder and some remedies to help you to get back on your feet. It’s good to know the inner workings of the illness. The reason why I’ve mentioned it here is not to promote the book or psychology but to share what happened after reading the book.

No, I did not cure my friend with it and I have not even heard from him for months.

Ive learned that panic attacks are the effect of the things that we do and think. It is like a hidden underground volcano which are collecting enough energy later to be released to the surface of the earth. Our mind is very tricky, elusive and deceiving and even neuroscientists are still puzzled by what our minds can think and produce. Try to do something bad for a week and do it repeatedly and you will realize that your peaceful mind will disappear. Try to think of negative things all day like – the world is going to end, or think that you will lose your job, or think that you will have cancer or think that you will suffer a severe medical illness or try to think that you really is a bad person and you are worthless and has no value and purpose in life. Or try to think that you cannot succeed since you failed more than once already. By the end of the day, I promise that you will end up panicky, frightened, terrified and down. Repeat this step the rest of your life and you will have a 100% chance of getting a “panic attack” disorder and you will always feel miserable and bitter and angry towards yourself, others and to the whole world.

After reading the book, I sat down in a prayerful mood and contemplated and ask God to enlighten me and give me wisdom on how to deal with the panic disorder. I waited for hours for God’s enlightenment and out of nowhere these words came to my heart “my Words is enough”. At first it was not clear to me of what it means. I could not comprehend or connect it to what I was asking about. Later in the day, the meaning of the statement becomes clearer. The Holy Spirit was telling me that life’s difficult issues was already addressed in His Words – the Bible.

I spent hours digging information to help someone but the answer to the issue was just right there in Bible.

I could not disagree. Even until now, every time I opened my Bible every morning, I can see that it is telling me something. The Bible indeed contains all the answers but the problem with the message of the Bible is not so clearly stated and even if it is translated to a very common language, still the message is hidden in a layer of confusion that only a receptive and open heart can comprehend.

As for a counsel to a troubled friend, from now on, I will stick with this statement — What the Word says about your issues? Then the next step is just to obey what is written. That’s it and you will be all healed and restored. Of course this takes time, but from the bottom of my heart, the fix to our troubled life is already written and is ready for us to take in.

For a micro life improvement activity, even by just executing #2 below is more than enough to get us out from a bad situation. Evil things includes: lying, cheating, not being honest to self and others, holding grudges, unforgivingness , violating the law of the land etc.

Here’s a few list of things to study and do. I believe that the message/context of each sentence is already clear. Feel free to study each line and then tell yourself to do it.

1. Live like visitors and strangers

2. Keep away from doing evil things

3. Be willing to serve to those above you.

4. Obey your superiors or authority

5. Live like free people

6. Live to serve God (not man)

7. Show respect for all people (don’t be selective)

8. Love your brothers and sisters (this is the hardest)

9. Respect and Honor God (#9 overrides #1-8)

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/1pe.2.11.erv

Someone is Paying Attention

“I love the Lord for hearing me, for listening to my prayers. Yes, he paid attention to me, so I will always call to him whenever I need help.” Psalm 116:1, 2 ERV

2013 is a challenging year for me and my family. There were work changes, kids going to college, rising cost of living, budget etc. Then there is my health risk. It’s been 1151 days since my stent #2 but the more days added to the count, the more I anticipate that stent #3 is coming although I am in perfect health and has been keeping up with my weekly 40miles bike ride and 2 mile swim and running. I know that I don’t really have a real problem but as a normal human being, I feel burdened at times about life in general. As for now, my focus is long term planning for the kids. Brent is going to college next year and I had been influencing him to stay at UT Austin for the undergrad and he can go out of state for the med school later. We already setup his Texas Tomorrow Fund for 4 years and he can use that with less cost for us since the tuition is already paid off.

As I contemplate on these matters daily, I’m always reminded that I worship a God in heaven that can manipulate my circumstance to make it favorable for me.

I don’t really know what the future holds for me but I know that in every move I make, someone is watching over me.

I will remain faithful regardless of what I see, hear, feel or experience because I know that in my heart someone is paying attention.

To some of you who has far greater issues in life, hang in there. Be patient, be still. Don’t make a lot of big changes in life without consulting God in prayers. Sit down for hours and get a piece of paper and a pen and ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten you on your next move. I don’t believe that roses will drop from the sky into our lap but I do believe that God imparts us with wisdom to handle any difficult situation in life. Write them down for deeper study.

My 2-week mandatory vacation is coming to an end and as I look back in the things that I planned (me and the Holy Spirit) to do for the two weeks of downtime, I made some great advances. I gave credit to God’s enlightenment as He guided me in every step. So far, things has been a little different. I’ll enumerate the wise things that I came up during the 2-week downtime later on. Some ideas were brilliant that I would not have thought about it without the Wisdom from God.

I know that when things get so difficult, we tend to run away from our beliefs and faith and we start to doubt of everything we believe in. We imagine that we might just had a hallucination of the things that our faith brought us. Sometimes I feel that way when I see an impossibility in front of me. I think it is normal for us to doubt. Without it, then our journey of faith does not produce excitement and anticipation. It’s ok to doubt because even the Bible is filled with stories of people who tends to question the presence of God. One thing that I’ve seen throughout the Bible are the stories of struggles and despair but one thing common to all those stories are the triumph at the end.

Please know in your heart that all these tiny life difficulties are just “a setup/prelude” for your triumphant victory at the end.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/psa.116.1.erv

Always Payback With Goodness

“Be sure that no one pays back wrong for wrong. But always try to do what is good for each other and for all people.” 1 Thessalonians 5:15 ERV

“Goodness-that which is pleasing, valuable and useful; moral excellence or admirableness”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/1th.5.15.erv

If You Suffer

“But if you suffer because you are a “Christ-follower,” don’t be ashamed. You should praise God for that name.” 1 Peter 4:16 ERV

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/1pe.4.16.erv

Our Unseen Influence is our Legacy

“There is a very sad thing that I have seen happen in this life. People save their money for the future. Then something bad happens and they lose everything. So they have nothing to give to their children. People come into the world with nothing. And when they die, they leave with nothing. They might work hard to get things, but they cannot take anything with them when they die. It is very sad that people leave the world just as they came. So what does a person gain from “trying to catch the wind”? They only get days that are filled with sadness and sorrow. In the end, they are troubled, sick, and angry.” Ecclesiastes 5:13-17 ERV

“Legacy-a gift of personal property by will”

At an early age of 16, (I’m now 46) I’ve experienced a horrifying separation from someone very close to me. My father died at the age of 55 of kidney failure. He was a diabetic and I’ve known him that way since I can remember. I was at his bedside when he passed away. At his early years, he was doing well in life. He finished his Electrical Engineering degree with honors sometime in the 1950’s but an event in his life took place which led him to join the US Navy. When he was done with the Navy, he met my mother and that is how our family started. I don’t know much about him then because I was growing up emotionally distant and I thought that my friends and the world was the best thing in life.

Looking back now, I find it so amazing how he lived his life. Financially, he left us with something to survive. My mother was able to send us to college (5 of us) and managed the family needs on her own and plenty of left over.

When I’m trying to ask this question, “What did my father left me?” — these comes to mind (It was not the materials things that matters most)

1. Patience

2. Hardwork

3. Never complains about any bad situation

4. Being quite

5. Being a thinker

6. Writing a journal

7. Photography (life documentation)

One thing funny about these items is he did not even showed me or trying to teach me these. I’ve only noticed it when I tried to recollect in my mind on how he lived his life.

Our unseen influence is our legacy and it can be transferred to the next generation.

To Brittney and Brent, I do hope that in some ways I can deliver the same good stuff to you — an invisible but lasting legacy.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/ecc.5.13.erv

Open Invitation: Be Reconciled To God

“that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.” 2 Corinthians 5:19, 20 NKJV

“Reconciliation-the reestablishing of cordial relation; getting two things to correspond”

“Cordial-diffusing warmth and friendliness; politely warm and friendly; sincerely or intensely felt”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/2co.5.19.nkjv

Being Forgiven

““Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool.” Isaiah 1:18 NKJV

“Forgiven-absolve from payment; let off the hook; not anymore responsible to pay/repay; being excused of a mistake”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/isa.1.18.nkjv

Reprogram Your Desires

“With my soul I have desired You in the night, Yes, by my spirit within me I will seek You early; For when Your judgments are in the earth, The inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.” Isaiah 26:9 NKJV

1. Desire God — Think about Him

2. Desire Righteousness

3. Seek God before going to bed

4. Seek God right after getting up.

5. Find God in everything you do.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/isa.26.9.nkjv

You Are Not Alone

“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” Romans 8:31 NKJV

“When things go wrong, as they sometimes will. When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill, when care is pressing you down a bit — rest if you must, but don’t quit”

I can recite the whole poem anytime. These words are embedded in my heart and it is really a good encouragement for everyone. Please find time to read and reread and memorize the whole text.

I just want to add another sentence at the very end of the poem.

“If God is for us, who can be against us”

That is the reason why we cannot quit — because when God is leading us, there is nothing but success. Yes, we will experience hardships, tears, pains, frustrations, doubt, physical illness, and impossibilities but in the end, we are designed to be victorious because He already wrote our destiny long before we existed. We are over comers, always victorious and triumphant because we fight our battle with Somebody who manages the heavens and the earth.

Who really can be against us.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/rom.8.31.nkjv

5 Keys to Fortunate Circumstances

“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” Joshua 1:8 NKJV

“Prosperous-in fortunate circumstances financially; moderately rich; very lively and profitable”

“Success-an event that accomplishes its intended purpose”

1. Establish the Bible as the answer to all your life questions (life roadmap)
2. Study and meditate daily making the habit a part of your existence.
3. Take notes when you can and reflect to your present circumstance and events
4. Speak about it
5. Do what you confess
6. Repeat step #1 to step #5.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/jos.1.8.nkjv

Doorkeeper or A Dweller?

“For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.” Psalm 84:10 NKJV

“Doorkeeper – a person guarding access to an important or restricted place; the stewards of the treasures of the sanctuary; someone who guards at the entrance”

“Dweller – a person who inhabits a particular place”

“Wickedness – morally objectionable behavior; absence of moral or spiritual values; Estrangement from God; the quality of being disgusting to the senses and emotions”

Which one are you?

Or are you the one who is coming to the tent — an outsider who have not decided yet on what to do in your life.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/psa.84.10

16 Attributes of a Sound Mind

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV

“Fear-an emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger; and anxious feeling”

“Sound mind-a mind in excellent condition, free from defect, damage or decay; showing good judgment”

16 Attributes of a Sound Mind

1. No fear, No worry, No anxiety
2. Extremely Generous
3. Verbal response is always appropriate
4. Emotional response to negative events is always positive
5. Never runs out of hope
6. Not selfish
7. Not envious or jealous
8. Does not keep a record of wrong; forget/forgives easily
9. Very Super Patient
10. Exceedingly Kind
11. Never happy when others do wrong
12. Always happy with the truth
13. Never gives up on people
14. Never stops trusting
15. Never loses hope
16. Never quits

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/2ti.1.7.nkjv

One Source, One Strength, One Truth

“You accepted Christ Jesus as Lord, so continue to live following him. You must depend on Christ only, drawing life and strength from him. Just as you were taught the truth, continue to grow stronger in your understanding of it. And never stop giving thanks to God.” Colossians 2:6, 7 ERV

“Depend-be contingent upon; have faith or confidence in”

“Draw-get or derive in mind”

“Only-and nothing more; without any other being included or involved”

Life sometimes become much simpler if we only have one choice. Having too many choices in front of us can take out the decision making to a slower pace and confusion. When it comes to a handbook for life, don’t mix anything other than your faith in Christ.

Sometimes we mix our personal foundation with many other things such as philosophy, religion, science, medicine, psychology, humanitarian etc. There ought to be one source that we draw upon, but sometimes we are clouded by the invitation of “the others” on how to live our life abundantly.

I am aware that the other sources just work as well but in the long run, when we are at end of our time here on earth, we loses those material things and its benefits and then we realize ” oh, I need to find my faith in Christ.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/col.2.6.erv

Words=Good; Actions=Better

“My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.” 1 John 3:18 NKJV

“Deed-something that people do or cause to happen”

“Truth-a fact that has been verified; conformity to reality or actuality; a true statement”

We can say a thousand words that we love them (spouse, our children, boyfriend, girlfriend, people, neighbor, humanity, boss, superiors, leaders, job) but one action done at the right moment can mean a million times. It’s our action that counts and not the words we say.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/1jn.3.18.nkjv

What Keeps Us Going?

“I will love You, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” Psalm 18:1, 2 NKJV

“Strength – the property of being physically or mentally strong; physical energy or intensity”

There will be times that nothing else will work and we need a drop of hope to help and encourage us to take one more step to go on.

It’s not our own strength, knowledge, wisdom, wealth, health, mind, power, experience, luck, connections, family, friends, talent, resources, vision.

Know that our fellowship with God is what keeps us going.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/psa.18.1.nkjv

Faith in the Simplest Term

“And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.” Mark 12:30 NKJV

“Love-have great affection or liking for”

“Heart-the locus of feelings and intuition”

“Soul-the immaterial part of a person; the actuating cause of an individual life”

“Mind-that which is responsible for one’s thought and feelings; the seat of the faculty of reason”

Sometimes faith can be confusing and complicated, but it can be summarized into one thought – loving God and loving our neighbor.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/mrk.12.30.nkjv

Endurance Secret-Waiting

“Even the youths shall faint and be weary, And the young men shall utterly fall, But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40:30, 31 NKJV

“Endurance-the power to withstand hardship”

“Waiting-to remain inactive in one place while expecting something; remaining ready and available for use”

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/isa.40.30.nkjv

Live For Righteousness

“who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness— by whose stripes you were healed.” 1 Peter 2:24 NKJV

“Righteousness-adhering to moral principles”.

“Principle-a rule or standard especially of good behavior”

Knowledge comes first before actions. One cannot adhere to proper learning if knowledge is not imparted. We get our knowledge from studying the Bible through self study or from the church or though group study or through reading a book or reading a blog which studies the Word or at least explain it plainly. We have to hear the Word or else nothing gets embedded into our heart.

When it comes to knowledge of moral principles, where can we get it? What will be our source of standard of living? How can we know that we are doing the right things. Do I need to be checking the Bible every time I do something and contrast my actions with what is written? Is there a measuring stick to tell me every time I do something?

The moral detectors of our actions are implanted in the deepest part of our heart when we gave our life to Christ and through studying His Word. So when we do something, we are guided by the Holy Spirit. When we disobey the message from our heart, a negative consequence is provided for us to remind us to get back on track. This comes with experience. The mature we are in our walk with God, the clearer these inner voices are.

Living for righteousness is a process of learning and doing and obedience. It is a lifetime daily process. We are not perfect, sometimes we are tempted to cross the line and we give in to some temptations. Please don’t abandon ship immediately, knowledge of our disobedience is a sign or a reminder that we need to get back in the path of righteousness. Do so without questioning and start over again.

Reminders are close loop feedback system of the Holy Spirit, to keep us attached to Him.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/114/1pe.2.24.nkjv

Our Personal Life Is Our Worship

“So I beg you, brothers and sisters, because of the great mercy God has shown us, offer your lives as a living sacrifice to him—an offering that is only for God and pleasing to him. Considering what he has done, it is only right that you should worship him in this way.” Romans 12:1 ERV

“Worship-show devotion; love unquestioningly and uncritically or to excess; adore; revere”

I’m a little tired today and I’ve tried to think of something to write about today’s verse but nothing comes to mind except for the title.

Can someone out there fill in for me?

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/rom.12.1.erv

Delete “Should Syndrome”

“Try to live in peace with everyone. And try to keep your lives free from sin. Anyone whose life is not holy will never see the Lord.” Hebrews 12:14 ERV

“Peace-harmonious relations; freed from disputes; the absence of mental stress or anxiety”

“Sin-an act that is regarded as a transgression of God’s will”

“Holy-consecrated; committing righteous acts; a sacred place of pilgrimage”

It is easy to live a holy life when you are living in a community with holy people. It is easy to be peaceful when you are surrounded by people with peaceful attitude. It is even easier to live a “sin-free” life if your environment is rich in spiritual activities like prayer, Bible studies, praise and worship and fellowship with our fellow brothers and sisters.

But reality is not even close to those ideal Christian living conditions. We are still partakers in this world, we are still bound by the earthly rules where both good and evil kingdom exist. We exist to touch the heart of the nation or the world and we are not to be isolated from anyone else. As Christians, our new life does not end our relationship with others who does not share the same views with us when we gave our life to God. We are expected to go on with our lives as normal but with a different heart, different eyes and different ears and different perspective.

I have a regular job just like everyone else. I wake up in the morning, do my morning routines and mingle with coworkers everyday for 8 hours. I interact with people almost every minute while I’m at work. With these interaction with people, I’ve noticed a few commonalities or theme of why people are drowned so deep into their troubles and problems. Some of the statements/stories I’ve heard are the following: I should have not gone out last night, I should have left early, I should have went home straight, I should have not drink last night, I should have said ‘no’ when they asked me to go with them, I should not have over ate, I should have exercised, I should have read a book instead of watching tv all night, I should have not talked to that girl or guy, I should not have said that word. You get the point … those are the “should syndrome” of life. It occurs when you do things that you know is not right and you did it anyway.

There is a shortcut to peace. When we engaged in activities driven by peer pressure or impulse, we usually end up with regrets. Cracking the code of life is not rocket science. Do things which are based in moral and ethical standards and you will not have to worry about regrets later. Violate the moral standards and you will end up with so many “shoulds”.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/heb.12.14.erv

Share: Permission Slip-Part3-The Horn, The Sword & The Robe

http://elevationchurch.org/sermons/this-is-your-permission-slip#

Website: http://elevationchurch.org/
App: Search for Elevation App in Playstore or Apps Store
Sermon Archive: http://elevationchurch.org/sermons/archive

Network: http://elevationnetwork.com/

God’s Guiding System

“The Lord says, “I will teach you and guide you in the way you should live. I will watch over you and be your guide.” Psalm 32:8 ERV

“Teacher – one who impart skills or knowledge”

“Guide – one who accompany somebody somewhere to show them the way”

“Watcher – one who observe with attention; one who look attentively”

Have you asked yourself how did you end up reading this journal today? Who told you to click a certain Internet link and then end up reading this random post?

Life is filled with connections. If you study your past carefully, you will learn that most of the events in your life are interconnected. It might look like it is a coincidence or some form of a “perfect timing” but in reality it is not. In my own experience, I’ve seen hundreds of those those coincidences already and after so many occurrences I got tired of calling it as coincidences and I started calling it “God’s Guiding System”.

One of my favorite one was after my cycling accident, I stayed home for 3 weeks to recover my wounds. While at the house just flipping channels on tv, this guy on tv (a preacher) was pointing his finger towards the camera and said “your accident is not an accident”. Later on, I learned that that particular event was a turning point of my life – I gave my life to Christ.

Another one was my miraculous survival of the 1991 flood in Ormoc City, Leyte Philippines, I was in a bus terminal when the rain started to pour. The water in the street rose to about 4 inches and then I prayed, “Lord, tell me where to go”. There was really no voice guiding me to a certain spot in the city but I end up in the corner of the building where the water was blocked. That day in the spot where I parked, the water rose to 8 feet but the car was untouched. 5000 people died that day and when I surveyed the bus terminal where I was originally, the place was ruined and received all the impact of the flood.

Another one was my enlistment to the US Army, I did not have a job in New York in 1991 and I just got reunited with my wife who is an RN. I was searching for a job but none was for me and so I went to a local Army recruiting station and signed up. The night before I left for boot camp, we found out that my wife was pregnant. One of the heaviest part of my life was leaving a pregnant wife while I embarked to a new place and environment. Boot camp was not too easy for me because of those circumstances but I kept going. I received my military orders for a one-year South Korea assignment and then was reassigned to Fort Hood Texas. Looking back now, my enlistment in the Army brought me to where I am now. I’m now on my 15th year at Samsung Austin and my wife and kids are enjoying the effects of a one time decision that I made many years ago.

Was that a coincidence?

Before, I thought it was but when so many of those events showed up in your life, you realize that someone was making those adjustments for me so that I will end up in the place where my heart wanted to be.

It’s your turn, why don’t you look back in your life’s history and connect the dots. You will be amazed of how much great things were laid out in your paths. Yeah, you got sick or lost your job one time or incurred debts or lost a relationship. But think of it this way, God has something better for you.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/psa.32.8.erv

Imperfect But Complete

“I say this because all of God lives in Christ fully, even in his life on earth. And because you belong to Christ you are complete, having everything you need. Christ is ruler over every other power and authority.” Colossians 2:9, 10 ERV

“COMPLETE-perfect in every respect; having all necessary qualities; having every necessary or normal part or component or step; having everything that is needed”

Part of the mystery of our walk in faith is the feeling or state of completeness. Although we are not perfect as we are far from perfection, there is this a state inside us or maybe a quality – we are made complete.

Yesterday was a stressful day for the family. A family member was recommended to see an endocrinologist due to an abnormal levels of insulin after the yearly health checkup. In my life, there are so many little things like these popping up. Last month, Britta lost her job after taking a vacation to the Philippines because she failed to submit a paperwork. A few years ago, I had my MI. Lately, the stability of my work is shaken and we have to take a mandatory vacation till the end of 2013.

Am I shaken? A little bit but I know that our Lord comes before us and that He already laid out the great path for me and my family.

Same as you are, our world is not perfect. We have issues, we have little inconveniences, we have medical and psychological cases. We don’t know what is next. But all what the Bible said that we are complete and so we are.

We are not perfect but we are made complete through Christ. That’s all it matters. The world can take away all that we have but there is a greater promise ahead of us. In the end, we are already a “finish product” and declared complete.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/col.2.9.erv

Delay Tolerance (patience); Dream

“You must be patient too. Never stop hoping. The Lord is coming soon.” James 5:8 ERV

“Patience-good natured tolerance of delay or incompetence”

“Hope-expect and wish; intend with some possibility of fulfillment”

Many years ago, a close friend of mine decided to separate from each other. I did not know when they separated at that time until he was always late in coming to work. He moved to a small town 50 miles away from our workplace . One time, he did not show up for work and a week later, he came in with a bandage on his head, he fell asleep on his way home after a 12-hr shift and flipped his car on the side of the road. He was fortunate enough that no car was behind him or it could have been a fatal accident. This guy is a very quite guy and won’t even open up his situation to me. After having spent time with him, he finally opened up his heart without my prying. He told me that he and his wife decided to get a divorce and that he was living with a new girlfriend from a small town 50 miles away (compared to his current home which was 12 miles away from our workplace). Our conversation was about 2 years late already but I tried to listen to him without judgment. They had 2 children about the same age as mine – all girls. They were married for 7 years already at the juncture. They had a very nice home and both of them worked at a good high tech company in Austin, TX. They were Asian from the same country and culturally there were no differences. Age gap was about 2 years, he was older. I’m not an inquisitive person but I am always curious why couples separate. So I asked a simple question as I always do to any type of failure investigation. I made it sound scientific to him to imply that I was not really prying too much about his situation. “What was the cause of failure?”, “Was it infidelity?, “Was it money?”

He told me that one day, they were arguing about a small thing and then from his mouth came out “do you want to separate?”. That moment, he decided to distance himself from her and then rented an apartment. Fast forward a few weeks, they started the dreadful paperwork. And to my amazement, I asked him loudly “that’s it?”. Yup, that was their separation. A simple out of place words being delivered at the wrong time and the wrong place.

It’s not rocket science to pinpoint the cause of failure of my friend’s failed marriage – tolerance for someone, impatience of the situation. He did not give the situation an extra few days, weeks, or years. He instantly decided to end the relationship. The consequences were very fatal, he lost his wife and 2 children, lost his house, had to pay a child support, had a fatal accident just because his patience ran out and then later he quit from our workplace for good. I will always remember him because our date of hire were the same. I just had my 15 years of service award from Samsung last month and I wonder what could have been the outcome if he only was extra tolerant of his situation.

The most common action when we are impatient of an event or a situation or a relationship or solving a problem is to use the TRIZ principle #2, Taking Out. It means to separate an interfering part from an object. Common examples are: amputate that leg, remove a bothersome tooth, arrest the criminal and put them in jail, replace a tire if it is flat, trade-in that malfunctioning car for a new one, divorce. Taking out principle is the “shotgun approach” of problem solving. Normally, if “taking out” is not carried out, the problem solving can take a long time to reach resolution. When I’m pressed for time, I am quick to using this principle but seldom I use this as my initial troubleshooting step. As normal human being, we love quick fixes and instant gratification. We normally resort to replacing the whole system because we don’t have time to deal with the current issue. We want an instant fix and so we press the “delete” button without calculating the enormous undesirable effect that follows from an instant and impulsive decision.

How do you get patience? Can I train my patience?

Yes, like doing repeated physical exercise, our mind can adapt to a new trait. Do some reading about “brain plasticity” in your spare time. Why don’t you start with your impulses, try to suppress it. Examples, “I would like to use the Internet now-Fb, twitter, read news etc”, tell yourself that you can’t for now. While driving, calm yourself down and don’t react to those aggressive drivers. While talking to your spouse or girlfriend/boyfriend or child, try to listen more and hear them speak from the bottom of your heart. While worrying for a diagnosis, tell yourself that I will trust my doctors and God Almighty for my healing and not put too much emphasis of the “what ifs”. While going to college and you are confused and lost focus and direction, keep going no matter what even if your dreams are hazy and not even visibly possible. While at work, give yourself time to climb up the ladder by doing honest hard work and always waiting for your time to move up without stepping other people’s shoulder to get your glory. While alone, don’t pull your smartphone to read something or do something, instead open your eyes and ears and ask God to show you something you have not seen before.

Sometimes, a delay is there for our own benefit. Delay tolerance is patience. A daily dose can go along way to a better you and me.

Next time you are mad at someone, go tell them “Thank you for training my patience”.

Dream#1-A co-worker who lost her job a few months ago was in my mother’s home. She had one suitcase with ropes tied to it to secure the luggage safely. She was hired at a local company where my sister is currently working. I was wondering what she was doing there and was silently inquiring where she will be staying. I end up with a statement to her that she can stay in my room upstairs.

The only thing weird about this dream is I am here living in Texas and the dream happened in my hometown where I grow up in Merida, Leyte Philippines.

Hmmm, I love dreams.

Today is my last day of the 6-day vacation. I think I spent more time writing than anything else. Time to get back to work and fix technical/electronic/robotic problems. At least I know now what to do when I retire in 10 years-daily typing exercise using a smartphone.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/jas.5.8.erv

(not full) is Empty

“A thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy. But I came to give life—life that is full and good.” John 10:10 ERV

“Full-containing as much or as many as is possible or normal; constituting the full quantity or extent; complete; filled to the satisfaction”

There are two forces on earth in operation, evil and good. There are two kingdoms, the kingdom of darkness and the Kingdom of Light. If I have to give an account of each kingdom and describe each and what it does or what it can do to your life, which one would you choose?

Many of us are deceived or do not fully know what the Kingdom of Light looks like or know what are the perks of living in the light. From the surface, we know that it does not make a difference or make any sense. The enemy clouds our minds that there is no such thing as a good life or a life filled with goodness. Some of us will say “I’m OK, I’m not a bad person, I don’t cheat, I don’t lie or I don’t abuse people, I follow the rules of the land, I help the poor, I attend to the weary, I give to those who are in need, I’m honest at work, I’m a good father, I’m a model parent, I’m an obedient child”. If you are doing all these things then you are living a good life already. But there is something that you are missing. Feel inside you, even though you are doing all the good stuff and you are prosperous and has everything you can ever imagined – family, friends, possession, life status, job security, career, material things, success, beauty, sharp mind; you still feel that your life is empty (not full).

There is a longing in the human heart that we experience that can only be filled with the touch of God. We are always searching for it in terms of a missing person or a life partner, it is an endless search of a soul mate or a forever partner in life. In other forms, we seek the fullness through our career – we want to be the super worker. Seeking achievement and feeding our ego that we have made a difference in this world though our accomplishments is one indicator of unfulfilled life, we longed for top surface pleasure of human appreciation but even if we have all those, we come home and lie in bed feeling unfulfilled . Until that moment arrives, you will always be searching for something. Observe your personal life. Do you feel fulfilled? Are you satisfied with what you have? Do you want more? Are you seeking for a better “something”? If you really study and pay attention and ask yourself what are you searching, I can assure you that never really know and your answer will always be “something”.

You are missing something and until you find it, your life will never be full. There is a spiritual component of a man – the body, mind and spirit. Man also is a spirit being. Until that spirit entity in us comes alive, we can never experience the fullness of life.

So what am I am searching? How can I fill this void in my life?

I’m going to give you a homework. Find it. It is better for you to find it for yourself. There is a greater satisfaction in the end when you are able to figure it out yourself. It’s like finding a treasure or climbing the highest mountain by yourself – you feel satisfied and accomplished when you reached the summit and you say to yourself, I’ll pass for anything else, I’m done searching – I am already full.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/406/jhn.10.10.erv

3 Special Toolkit: Grace, Love and Presence

“The grace (favor and spiritual blessing) of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the presence and fellowship (the communion and sharing together, and participation) in the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen (so be it).” 2 Corinthians 13:14 AMP

1. Grace of Christ

2. Love of God

3. Presence and fellowship of the Holy Spirit

I was planning to write something about today’s verse before heading out for my Saturday 40-mile weekly cycling training but I slept late Friday and had to stay a few hours extra in bed to get my daily 5-hour sleep. The temperature was already at 70’F at 0900 and when I left the house, the outside temperature was already creeping to around the 80’s. I am we’ll aware that by the time I’ll finish my 40 miles, the temperature will be near 100’F. I normally take with me 2 water bottles, one with Gatorade and one with just plain water. I also take with me one Clif bar and one bag of power gel. In my back jersey pocket are my cycling tools, tire repair kit, an iPhone, a map, a spare tube and 2 canister of CO2 and a dispenser and a $20.00 for a taxi cab if needed although in my route (there is none). In short, I am 100% prepared for any cycling disaster. The ride normally is about 3 hours to finish and at the first 20 miles, the journey is pretty normal and easy and I can be whistling or singing along the route. The real challenge is when I’m at mile25 that no matter how I hydrate and take food and water, my energy starts to deteriorate and it is always a struggle going home.

This is when the my survival strategy starts to kick in. I have something with me that are more useful than the tools that I carry. When difficult times shows up, I dig deeper on those special toolkit.

For some of you that are new to this blog, I am also a cardiac patient. I had my first heart attack in December 2008 (age 42) after my indoor cycling training.

So going out there for 3 hours in a hot weather is not guaranteed that I will be back home safely. My life is already at the end as I imagined that I will disappear one day for good, it is just a matter of time. I’ve accepted the facts of my health. Although I’ve recovered fully after the cardiac event, I know that my body is not perfect anymore and I know how much risk I am taking when I jumped on my bike for a long ride.

Many of my close friends and family members had been asking me why I’m doing what I’m doing even if I know the dangers.

My short answer is always simple – I still can do it, so why not.

The other true answer is a I have a special toolkit with me. I don’t normally tell that verbally. It’s something that I hide like a cheating athlete who is taking extra illegal pill to boost performance. (It is a well guarded secret… until now).

Seriously, it’s not arrogance nor it is a suicidal thought, I am just exercising my faith and my beliefs as a Christian. If I isolate myself within the boundaries of my safe environment, then I will not know if God’s promises are real. I’m not testing or challenging God but I am just claiming the promises in the Bible that He will always be with me. Also, He said that He will give me a long life and also He said that I will have a great life and will have it abundantly.

Back to the basic toolkit, I can bring all the things that I need for my 3-hour journey but those material tools or food or water can only go so far. The water I brought with me will run out eventually, the Clif bar will disappear in a few hours, my cycling tools can be lost. What I’m implying is that those material things that I have in my possession will not propel or help me when I’m really in a big trouble.

What if the journey that I’m taking is a journey of having lost a job. What if the journey is about a failing or a failed relationship or a stage 4 cancer or a rebelling daughter or a son who is addicted to drugs. What if the journey is about a betrayal of a love one. What about a psychological issue like depression, panic attacks, worry, anxiety and hopelessness. What if the journey is about a failed career or a shattered dream or a lost expectation. What kind of toolkit should I have in my backpack?

Sometimes the message from the church is not so clear and straightforward that it produces confusion to those who don’t know anything about Christianity yet. True Christianity is really a simple concept.

In modern Christianity, we multiply and complicate things. We placed rules and guidelines. We create groups and committees just to manage the so called church. We invent all kinds of worship enhancements and spend valuable times in stage preparation and rehearsals. In creating sermons, pastors uses so many materials to aid them to create a sermon that can touch the people. One can listen to sermons online or pickup a book about faith or come to church with a friend but sometimes you end up more confused about God and who He really is and what or who the Holy Spirit is.

I don’t want to confuse you much more than ever. Read and understand what Apostle Paul had mentioned in this verse. Think and meditate on these verses until it becomes clear to you. This is bottom line Christianity.

1. Christ is merciful. He sees our struggle and always willing to reach out to us no matter what. Let Him in.

2. God loves us. It means that He is not mad at us when we make a terrible mistake. It means that He is on our side. He is not against us. He does not carry a whip or a belt that when we cross the line, He is ready to punish us.

3. The presence of the Holy Spirit is real. He is a person who is with us 24/7. This is more than the gut feeling or your intuition or your sixth sense.

Know these 3 things about God and any difficult journey becomes an enjoyable experience.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/8/2co.13.14.amp

3 Indicators: True Prophet

“BELOVED, DO not put faith in every spirit, but prove (test) the spirits to discover whether they proceed from God; for many false prophets have gone forth into the world. By this you may know (perceive and recognize) the Spirit of God: every spirit which acknowledges and confesses [the fact] that Jesus Christ (the Messiah) [actually] has become man and has come in the flesh is of God [has God for its source]; And every spirit which does not acknowledge and confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh [but would annul, destroy, sever, disunite Him] is not of God [does not proceed from Him]. This [nonconfession] is the [spirit] of the antichrist, [of] which you heard that it was coming, and now it is already in the world. Little children, you are of God [you belong to Him] and have [already] defeated and overcome them [the agents of the antichrist], because He Who lives in you is greater (mightier) than he who is in the world. They proceed from the world and are of the world; therefore it is out of the world [its whole economy morally considered] that they speak, and the world listens (pays attention) to them. We are [children] of God. Whoever is learning to know God [progressively to perceive, recognize, and understand God by observation and experience, and to get an ever-clearer knowledge of Him] listens to us; and he who is not of God does not listen or pay attention to us. By this we know (recognize) the Spirit of Truth and the spirit of error.” 1 John 4:1-6 AMP

“False prophet-one who falsely claims the gift of prophecy or divine inspiration or who uses that gift for evil purposes; someone who perfectly promotes a theory but the theory is false.”

The other day, a friend of my daughter came to the house and I had the opportunity to asked her about the church and how she felt. I was just looking for a reaction if she would continue to come on a regular basis. Two weeks ago, she came to the church with us. It was a very rare occasion because even my wife and kids does not come very often with me on Sundays and there she was with us.

She told me that she used to go to the same church a long time ago but never really liked the church or the pastor. But that weekend, she said she will give it a try but then her conclusion was – she does not like the pastor (again). But as soon as she ended her dislike statement, she pulled out her iPad mini and told me “but I’m listening to this guy in North Carolina and I’m really enjoying and connecting to his teachings”. Then she showed me the Elevation Apps and the contents of the site, “see these, I’ve watched almost all the videos”, she interestingly pointing out all the free video sermons to me. (She is by the way 21, a college student but also works at the same time).

Honestly, I enjoyed watching her hunger for God. It looks like my footsteps when I was still at the beginning of my Kingdom journey. To my daughter’s friend, please keep going and don’t stop!

Later, I looked up Elevation Church on the web and even watched two sermons in one setting (I was just curious). Indeed, she was right, this pastor is gifted to preach. I’ve watched two sermons only and I kinda’ know why she was so excited to listen or watched him online. We are in Texas and North Carolina is thousand miles away from us. Me too, how I wish I am with that church. There were so many things I’ve learned in just two sermons. Please visit their website at http://elevationchurch.org/sermons , your cup will be filled. Watch the “Permission Slip” first.

Let me count the churches that I’ve attended in my lifetime. The Protestant church (very early age), the Catholic Church (my high school was a Catholic school), Maranatha Christian Fellowship in Cebu Philippines (the place where I started my journey), then I immigrated to the US in 1991 and attended The Time Square Church, the Military Chapel in US Forces Korea, Potter’s House in Ft Hood, Victory Christian Center, Shoreline Christian Center then lastly Celebration Church. So the count is almost a handful.

There were a few geographical reasons why I changed venues but also there were reasons that I considered unique in terms of my liking and preferences and so I choose to be where I am right now and will continue to be with this church until further notice.

The reason why I’m telling you all these “church liking stuff” is to let you know that this is normal. Just think of it us a “school selection”, you just want to learn something from that particular school and I prefer to go to this school. The learning or education is the same – the Gospel of Christ.

Will I get offended that you stopped coming with me to church? Will I get offended when you say “I don’t like your worship team or the songs they sings or the people or the message or the sermon or the length of the service or the clapping and raising of hands or the quietness or the taking of the offering and tithing or the building or the parking or the air conditioning is too cold or too hot. Absolutely not, because the church of Christ is not the building or the structure or the institution that man built, the church of Christ is “us”, the members and no single building can contain us, it will be too small. The church is the movement of the Gospel in us and it comprises not just our beliefs in Christ but also the ways in which we respond to his movement and the way we reach out to others. So if you are in a different school out there but yet studying the same thing then I am glad because we are expanding the Kingdom by learning His ways (just in a different school)

You will sometimes say or hear this from someone, “oh, he is a false prophet or a false teacher or a false leader”.

How can you know that your pastor or priest or leader or the author of the book that you are reading is a genuine messenger for Christ and not a false prophet?

Reading and studying the passages today brought me these 3 indicators. Many Bible scholars might be able to crack more but with my humble and limited scholarly Biblical knowledge, I came up with these:

1. He/she clearly confesses or declares that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God

2. He/she uses the Bible as “the source” of information

3. He/she loves God so much and also loves his/her brother so dearly.

I believed that #3 would be the greatest test. The first two are just inputs – meaning the direction is towards self. The #3 is more comparable to an output signal – meaning it is coming out from you and it is directed as a reflection of #1 and #2 which is towards others. All 3 indicators must be there though.

The mathematical formula is:

1 x 2 x 3 = true prophet; if one item is zero, then the equation is false, therefore false prophet.

Ok, it 9am in the morning, Day003 of my 6 days vacation. Let me get some of my todo moving.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.com/8/1jn.4.1.amp

Good Things Will Happen To You; UTSA Relocation Mini Storage

“Lord GOD, you are God, and I can trust what you say. And you said that these good things would happen to me, your servant.” 2 Samuel 7:28 ERV

The life of King David was not all that great and perfect. Please read the whole story of his life to understand why, especially the Bathsheba incident and his cover up of the incident with more wrong actions. To some, he was a perfect example of a great leader who failed during the pinnacle of his military command, a mighty king who misused his authority and most of all a perfect example of why infidelity in marriage is not a good thing.

But David had good side that I admired. He was an excellent writer and was not afraid/ashamed to show/declare his emotions to anyone especially when he is talking to God in prayer. I do believe that his life story was meant to be an example to us in a good way. I wish we are like him in our daily prayers or the way we write in our journal or blog- his writings comes from his heart and even if it was written many years ago, his message are still so relevant even up to this day.

May his prayers becomes yours. May good things happen to you. Even if you are in the middle of a storm, believe in your heart and see the goodness of the Lord unfolds in front of you.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/2sa.7.28.erv

Step #1-Establish Ultimate Hope

“I know that there is someone to defend me and that he lives! And in the end, he will stand here on earth and defend me.” Job 19:25 ERV

“Hope-expect and wish; be optimistic; intent with some possibility of fulfillment”

Many of us will go through difficult times in our lifetime. If you have not experienced it, brace yourself because it is coming. There are issues in life no matter how rich or poor we are. It does not matter if how healthy or sick we are, we are in equal footing in facing the real test in life. For the poor that has nothing to eat or nowhere to sleep, they are already of much need of a greater hope. So as the rich and the famous, although they have everything at their own disposal, they too has the same equal opportunity of any type of suffering. Even the super athletes with super human strength and stamina, they too suffer just as well physically or emotionally.

The truth is we will suffer in some form or manner as we progress in our short stay here on earth. Job’s story in the Bible is a one of a kind story ever told about pain, suffering, loss but in the end – triumph. When you get a chance, read the full story in your own time so that you may know the extent of his sufferings. He lost his possessions, lost his family and lost his health. What sort of things that you can imagine to do or think of when you experiences it all – the ultimate suffering.

#1. Hope that God will stretch out His hand to help you. This is the ultimate hope and the only true hope.

Never lose hope that there is someone out there trying to help you.

Hope is not something that is transferable from one person to another. I can influence you or tell you that “yeah, there is hope and that God one day will eventually pluck you out from your misery”. In a 911 distress call, the person at the call center always (per protocol) ends the conversation like this “Ma’am or sir, help is on its way, hang in there”. Although we received the message “loud and clear”, in our mind, we always say “are they really coming to help me”. When? How? For our own survival, we make a concrete decision to believe that help is coming our way even though our situation feels like or look like next to impossible. You have to have your own hope deep inside you. The Emergency Medical Team or the the Rescue Team might be coming but you don’t really know if they can really get to you.

There are situations like this that you know that even if there is an available help out there, some of you feels that they won’t be able to reach you and you start losing your ability to live or go on. Discouragement sits in and slowly like a dripping water from a leaky water tank, your hope is dramatically drained to zero.

When you reach to “zero hope”, please know that there is still one string in your parachute that you have not pulled yet – the hope that God never abandons His children.

Please, establish that hope in your heart. It is such an endless hope worth having.

http://bible.us/406/job.19.25.erv

Read Job’s Story
The Trial of Job
Job: The Hardest Lesson

See it at YouVersion.com:

What to do with worries?

“Give your worries to the Lord, and he will care for you. He will never let those who are good be defeated.” Psalm 55:22 ERV

Worry is relative to our status in life. When you are a caveman and know nothing about civilization then most likely you have zero worries. I you live in a third world country where poverty is so desperate, your worries are food, clothing and shelter. If you have cancer or suffered a life threatening illness, your worry is about the question – do you have enough time to spend with your love ones. If you are an astronaut in space, your worries are survival in the unknown world and the reentry. If you are a surgeon, your worries are the wellness of your patient after the hour long surgery. If you are a parent with many children, your worries are the future of your kids. If you are a student, your worries mainly is passing the class. If you are a softworking person (opposite of hardworking), your worry at work is when are you going to be let go.

Yes, we have worries and it is a fact of life. But worries are there to help us attain a better future. When we worry, we start to become creative and inventive. Our minds goes in overdrive and it is amazing what we can do during a time of distress. What we can do in times of trouble are far beyond what we can ever think of.

A few years back, I was in my weekly 40 miles bike ride when two dogs attacked me at mile20 (this is Texas country roads where no one is around to help). I was arrogant and had too much confidence and thought I could outrun the two vicious dogs. Well, my 20 mph sprint was not good enough and the dogs were successful in their ambush. I crashed hard at 20mph. My right knee hit the paved road and had a huge open wound about an inch square. I was bleeding all over. My elbow were bruised too. I checked for broken bones and joints and all were accounted functioning. I checked my bike then and that too was ok. The owner of the dogs was scared because it was his fault that the dogs got away from the cage. In Texas, there is a thing called Leash Law where dogs has to be at all times be tied upon a leash. Well, this house were out in the countryside and no law enforcement to impose it. The owner offered to take me home but I insisted that I was ok and so I left the accident site on my own with a bleeding body and still 20 miles away from home. I don’t worry too much but that day I underestimated the extent of the damage to my body. The trip home was so agonizing and slow and I began to think the “what ifs”. What if I will pass out in the middle of the road? What if I will bleed to death? What if I can’t pedal anymore? What if I did really have a serious injury and I just did not know it? Too many what ifs but in the end, I was able to reach home just fine. Moral of the story is, when we are placed in a very difficult situation, as normal human beings, we feel worried and anxious that sometimes it can cripple us to reach our destiny. I know that I could have just get a ride home with the guy or maybe called home for help but I did not. Looking back now, that event taught me a great lesson regarding human survival. We worry when a certain event does not go in our way but if we drive on, pushes ourselves outside our comfort zones, we can achieve the impossible.

I know that your worries probably are far greater that I can ever imagined. You have the right to be worried but don’t let that stop you or cripple you to keep going. Worry or concerns are there for a purpose and to forget and disregard of its meaning is foolish. But excessive worry cripples us to our knees. Putting too much emphasis on our worries can drives us to insanity(sometimes).

What to do with worries?
1. Read the first line at the beginning of this entry.

2. Do something about your worries:
If you worry about your health, go to the doctor and get a check up or start an exercise program.
If you are worried about your job security, do your best every moment when you are at work.
If you are new to a workplace, write down what are the things that you need to learn.
If you worry about your relationship, be the first one to show love and compassion.
If you worry about the things that you cannot change, flip to the next page in your life and don’t dwell in the things that you have no control of.
If you are worried about your future, think of it as “the future”, you are not there yet.  Enjoy the excitement of what is happening today even if it is not that good.

3. Familiarize yourself with the book “How to stop worrying and start living” by Carnegie, He already wrote a lot of pointers about worry.  See my notes here.

Do not worry… Pray.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/406/psa.55.22.erv

Source of Ability, Efficiency and Might

“But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends (the very bounds) of the earth.” Acts 1:8 AMP

We are powerless. Our human nature always overrides our ability to do things. We can manipulate in the way we talk, the way we think, the way we feel and the way we act but give yourself a longer time and you can observe that we will end up doing/saying the same things over again. Neuroscience said that our brain can be molded or changed or transformed. We can train the way we perceive events so that we won’t respond irrationally. We can forge a new habit into our new life just like a New Years resolution. We can say “I can” to whatever we creatively imagine to accomplish. We can set out to change our mindset to improve our ability to face adversities. Part of those are true but there is a “but sandwich” (the other side of the coin), no matter what we do using our own strength, we can never attain true perfection without the supernatural help from God.

I do believe that we have the power to transform ourselves to become a better person. I do think that we have a part to play in our self-rebuilding. But our own strength alone is not enough to propel us throughout lifetime. One day we will fail again and be seen or heard “oh, he/she is back doing the same thing”. Nothing is wrong with that, we are humans, we are not a machine or a robot that can be pre-programmed to execute a task forever.

September 20, 2012, I made a promise to “not do something” and yesterday, July 25, 2013, I violated my promise. For months I was so successful but then all of a sudden, out of nowhere I broke my promise without even feeling guilty about it. Now, i have to start over again. I know as a person that my will power is strong. I am an endurance athlete and I trained myself to do things repeatedly even if it is painful. My workout log shows how good is my ability to sustain a habit. Take for example, for 50 days, I have not missed a single day of my daily workout. For years, I have not stopped my cycling and swimming training – even after I suffered a heart attack in 2008, I still kept the same objectives even up to this day. Every year, I never missed the Outlaw 100 miles bike ride. Or even writing a journal everyday right after waking up and using just an old iPhone4 only (yes, I’m typing all these using my iPhone). Can you see my ability to sustain a habit? Very impressive, don’t you think… but I know that one day it will not be there. It has been proven to me many years that man’s own promises/habits are meant to be broken. It’s not sustainable. We can willfully say or do something or not do things but without the help from someone, those efforts will not materialize.

Sad to recall but I used to do things the “unChristian way”. Name it and I’ve done it. But one day, the Holy Spirit came over me and started to minister me from the inside out. This small voice was trying to say, “don’t do it”, “your actions offends me”, “I’ve already redeemed you”, “walk with me at all times”, “come back to me”. This inner voice is the secret power that can transform you and me forever.

The Holy Spirit is the real source of power. It’s like the sun that never turn off its power.

One last note regarding quantifying change. God looks at us in a daily basis only and He does not keep a score of how many days we have been keeping our promise. It is a daily renewal and when we fail, we have the ability to be forgiven again. That is the beauty of the Kingdom life.

Regards to all. RA

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/act.1.8.amp

Do you want “true freedom”?

"Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty (emancipation from bondage, freedom)." 2 Corinthians 3:17 AMP

"Freedom-the condition of being free; the power to act, speak or think without externally imposed restraints"

Be in the Spirit 24/7/365.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/2co.3.17.amp

Today is a New Life!

"This is the day which the Lord has brought about; we will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24 AMP

There has been changes at work yesterday regarding work days. I will be going on a 2-week vacation three times until December.

Today is such a great day. I am not talking about ‘today’ in reference to a day in a week. I am talking about the present day which is today (the right now kind of today).

When I was 16, after the death of my father, I came across these words – "Today is a new life." It was popularized by Carnegie in his book "How to stop worrying and start living". During my darkest moment on earth, those 5 words helped me wake up each depressing day after I lost my father. I created a handwritten poster on card board and position it where every time I wake up in the morning, those words are the first thing that I think about. Even up to this day even without the poster, I still think of those 5 words as I prepare for the day doing my 100 sit-ups in a stay ball or drinking my morning coffee and eating my bagel breakfast.

So what’s in the word today that is so powerful?

It’s the power of "now". Jesus said "do not worry about tomorrow". It is not a suggestion, it is a command.

Many times we fast forward our time table and by doing so, we become partakers of the future instead of a participant for today. Indeed, the best way to live a life is to live it today for tomorrow may never comes. I’m not discrediting the preparation we do for the future, I am just implying to focus at least 90% of effort of today and 10% for tomorrow. And oh by the way, the things that happened in the past should get 0% of our attention. History are meant to teach us only and not to be replayed over and over in our head.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/psa.118.24.amp

Where Do I Start?

“The reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord is the beginning and the principal and choice part of knowledge [its starting point and its essence]; but fools despise skillful and godly Wisdom, instruction, and discipline.” Proverbs 1:7 AMP

In 1970, there was a popular song called “Where Do I Begin”, the central message of the song is the story of love. The song can be interpreted as the great love of a man to a woman, or woman to a man or God to man. But the song was only about a story of a great love. It was only describing what a great love is.

Anyway, I love the song. How I wish mankind can confess that song everyday so that families does not have to suffer separation or daily exchange of sharpened words that hurts so deeply.

[I am not selling anything in this blog. Please understand that so deeply in your heart as you follow this journal everyday. My inspiration in writing almost everyday is the joy of passing along what the Holy Spirit is giving me as I wake up in the morning. I’ve recently discovered that I am normally inspired in the morning right after I wake up. So I have to obey or…]

There are people that are in huge trouble but never take a chance of asking for help from someone. They rather keep their problems inside and hope that someday that huge problem will go away. No, it will not go away until you start a new life. What if you are on your own and no friends or family around to help you get out from the cycle of defeat and sorrows. What if you can’t even talk to people because you are afraid to be judged or ridiculed. What if you are just so disoriented in life and you asked yourself many times “where do I begin?”

Where is your starting point ?
1. Where you are right now.
2. Start believing the existence of God. Feel His presence.
3. Imagine an invincible wire that is connected on top of your head and it is connected to God in heaven.
4. Think that everything that happened to you (good or bad) were a setup by the almighty God. He was planning your life for years and you just did not know.
5. Read the Bible
6. Listen to Hillsong

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/pro.1.7.amp

Kingdom Auto Enrollment Plan

“All whom My Father gives (entrusts) to Me will come to Me; and the one who comes to Me I will most certainly not cast out [I will never, no never, reject one of them who comes to Me].” John 6:37 AMP

I am currently helping my son find a school to go to for college. I am amazed by the quantity of requirements before you can even be considered. He has a choice of going to a local university (UT Austin) but in his mind he wanted to venture out away from home (UCLA). He scored 2200 in SAT and 34 on ACT and ranks Top 8 in his class at high school and he thinks he can go anywhere he likes to.  Doing so will place us in a financial burden because we already saved money for his tuition many years ago through Texas Tomorrow Fund and if he goes out of town, the tuition cost is tripled. My prayer is for God to guide my son’s heart to stay local.

The enrollment in the Kingdom of God is not the same as enrolling for college. There is no paperwork to do, there is not even a requirement that you must be at a certain state of purity to join. No SAT or ACT tests to take. There is not even a cost involved. Whoever you are, you are invited to join. We are all sinners. We made mistakes. We violated rules and policy. We crossed the line sometimes. We cheated. We lied to people. We slandered a person. We assassinated a character. We hated someone. We are jealous. We are sick in mind and body. We envied others who are successful.

It’s hard to name all our negative attributes but it does not matter because there is only one requirement to join the Kingdom of God – “you come to Him”. That’s it and you are enrolled automatically.

You will never be rejected.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/jhn.6.37.amp

Mystery of Being Spiritually Alive

“[It is He] Who has qualified us [making us to be fit and worthy and sufficient] as ministers and dispensers of a new covenant [of salvation through Christ], not [ministers] of the letter (of legally written code) but of the Spirit; for the code [of the Law] kills, but the [Holy] Spirit makes alive.” 2 Corinthians 3:6 AMP

Many years ago, I made a decision to become a full time Christian believer. It’s not that I took a job in the church and work full time as a church worker, it’s about believing totally for God, Christ, the Bible and His teachings. I am a full time worker. I have a day job Monday to Friday and worked from 7am to 4pm every workday. No, I am not a preacher nor a teacher or a missionary. I am just your normal guy in the block that do the same things that you do as a human being. I wish I can go to full time ministry but I have 1 college kid now and another one next year and I needed to finance their future by working full time. My wife has the same attribute also-a full time worker. Maybe in the future after my retirement.

Being a Christian believer is something that changes my life for the better. I don’t go out to places anymore without having a “greater purpose”. My desires for material things are still there but in a mild dose only. I still buy premium items but for good reasons. My attitude changed from a reactive mind to a full blown “ready to accept anything” type. Give me a situation or an event and in no time I will accept the fact/consequences without questioning. The other symptoms I have is I can’t miss church. For some reason, I am always looking forward to be at church on every Sunday. I take notes at church, I have a medium size notebook filled with notes with scribbles of highlights and timelines and key points.

Other interesting facts about me is I only listen to Christian music. I destroyed all my non Christian albums many years ago. I just did not have the desires to listen to other types of music anymore. My children and wife still listen to “other types” because I don’t want to impose my own beliefs to them. But when I’m driving, the car will play praise and worship song only.

Also, I give money to the Church regularly and I found out that the more I give, the more I get in return.

The reason why I’m telling you all these is to let you know that these changes were not imposed by me or the church or some code of ethics for Christian life. No, these desires came as a gift given to me and I don’t even understand myself why I behave this way. That is the reason why I called it a mystery of being spiritually alive.

There is no “HowTo” to become “spiritually alive” except to start believing God for who He is. Let the Spirit change you from within. Don’t even try to do it yourself. You become more satisfied watching your life being transformed to a better you with the hands of God molding you to become the person that He wants you to be than by manipulating your life with your own manly ideas. Of course you still have to take your own steps when He put some instructions in your heart but that’s about it.

Living spiritually for Christ has its own benefits-joy, peace, love, hope, wisdom etc. The Holy Spirit gives life.

Regards to all.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/2co.3.6.amp

Build a Stable Self

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right, persevering, and steadfast spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10 AMP

The spirit realm is a very difficult subject to explain. Many scientists believe that man has a body and mind (physical and mental) only because there are evidence that they can tap or measure and get feedback. The Bible teaches us that man is not just physical and mental but a spirit being and so as God. It is hard to comprehend the messages from God throughout the Bible without establishing the concept that man has a spirit attribute.

God is a Spirit and they that worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth. John 4:24

So what the word heart means In the Bible?
http://www.ancient-hebrew.org/27_heart.html
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_does_the_word_heart_mean_in_the_Bible#page1

1. Examine your heart daily.
2. Purify/fine tune your intentions and purpose.
3. Repeat step 1 and step 2 until the process becomes normal and automatic.

When the heart is in good working order, the Spirit man becomes healthy and stable.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/psa.51.10.amp

Experiment Worth Trying

“[If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God which] I command you today, to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His ordinances, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land into which you go to possess.” Deuteronomy 30:16 AMP

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/deu.30.16.amp

Step #1 – Call Me.

“Offer to God the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and pay your vows to the Most High, And call on Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall honor and glorify Me.” Psalm 50:14, 15 AMP

We had a difficult day at the factory yesterday and one problem was my specialty but I was consumed on another big issue. After almost 3 hours of troubleshooting, a coworker told me that they needed help. In my mind, I said “why did you not call me right away?.” In a matter of seconds, I was able to give him pointers of where to look and there it was, the issue was resolved. In another case, a coworker needed some of my help but instead of calling me first, he printed all the documentation I made and fixed the issue.

We have a pride. We don’t normally ask for help immediately. Part of us sometimes think that we can figure it out ourselves without calling for help.

Every other day, I get to watch a movie from Netflix or Amazon Prime during my 10mile indoor cycling to ease out the boredom of indoor training. The movie I picked was Prozac Nation http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prozac_Nation . Please be reminded that this movie is not suitable for kids. I’ve learned a lot about depression. There were things that I did not know about the illness that could have helped me deal with a friend long time ago. If you are a parent, a wife or husband or a friend and wanted to improve your knowledge of what depression is like, this is your movie. My depression before was only mild as it was triggered by an event and I could not really connect to people who has deeper problems so my counsel to a friend normally sounds like these-“you can make it”, “it’s going to get better”, “other people has much worst case than you are”, “it will go away with the passage of time”. Some of you might counsel like these-“let’s go have a drink”, “tell me about it”, “go on a long vacation”.

Some of our advices are valid. In the movie, I was waiting for something to happen. I normally watched the movie for 50 minutes at a time because I only needed it for my 10mile workout. So the next day, I completed the last half and I was still expecting that a friend or a family will come up with something that I was looking and helped Elizabeth deal with her depression. Towards the end, it was the medication called Prozac that aided her to find herself again. The doctor’s explanation was Prozac will give you “breathing space” so that she can function as a writer again and she did and became a good writer and wrote the book Prozac Nation.

The thing that I was looking for was a “call on God”. I wonder if we do that at the very first step of our troubles.

My advice now for a troubled friend or spouse or even myself when a disaster strikes – call on God first. It should be step #1 at all times.

See it at YouVersion.com:

http://bible.us/8/psa.50.14.amp

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