DiSC Profiling

The DiSC Profiling is one of the many personality test that's out in the market. One of the more widely used is the Myers-Briggs Personality test, however, it's comprehensiveness tends to turn off people as many are not to excited about filling up a hundred questions. I personally find DiSC to be more practical, and even though it is not as comprehensive as Myers-Briggs, but I find it to be eeriely accurate. Take a online test and find out what your personality is.

http://www.testsonthenet.com/disc/ww-info.htm

To those who have taken the test, why don't post your results in my comments. I've taken the test and scored a high for D and C.

For more info on DiSC, check out this link: http://www.discprofile.com/whatisdisc.htm

When silence speaks...

It's funny how sometimes silence can speak more than audible words, and even more interesting is how we ignore these "silent words". Some call these body language, but I want to call it, the language of the heart.

For some people, their heart and tongue are next to each other, but for some others, the distance is like a million miles. And these people, with the distant heart and tongue, struggle in their everyday lives to let people know what they feel. I'm beginning to feel that I'm in this category. Sometimes when I reflect on myself, I find myself speaking some stuff that didn't come from my heart. And there are times when I do try to speak from my heart, it comes up all wrong.

To make things worse, the distance of the tongue and the listener's ear is another million miles, and is another million miles from the ear to the heart. Thus, what goes out from a speaker's mouth, might not necessarily arrive correctly in the listener's heart.

What are we to do then? What am I to do?

I'm glad that in times like this, the word of God brings forth wisdom. James 1:19 says: "My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires." This now make greater sense to me. Everyone wants to be understood. Everybody wants their point of view taken. But very few choose to understand. Very few choose to see other's viewpoint first. And honestly, I struggle with this. I'm struggle with pride in my heart. This pride rides on the horse of arrongance, pompousness and lack of love.

But there's a way thru this. If we continue reading James, it says in verse 21: "Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. " This means that I've got to trust God more than ever. Whether I can understand the situation or not, or "fix" the problem, it's not the main priority. The point that James is trying to make here is "obey God". Obey with whatever knowhow I have of Him. Even when it doesn't make sense. So, in situations where communication fails, I've got to obey God by being "quick to listen, and slow to speak" even when I feel I might have the words of solution to the issue. It's once said that you can't argue someone to the kingdom of God. I now understand that better, and by faith, take that principal to my relationships, that is, "I can't solve problems by merely words". I've got to, even when it doesn't make sense, to trust in God, that even when I have the "right" to say stuff, I should still shut up, and only speak when He asks me too. This, is my struggle.

Reading the lyrics to the song "When you say nothing at all" which was written by Don Schlitz and Paul Overstreet, and performed by Ronan Keating and also Alison Krauss, I really wonder whether I can ever reach to that height of communication in relationships, where words become secondary to express feelings, heart and love. I'm a man of words. But as the bible goes, it convicts my heart to tell me that words alone are not enough. And it will never be. Faith in God is what it takes. Faith that He (God) is in the process of making all things right.

"God, make me a man of few words, and the few words that I speak, may it bring hope and life to those who hears it. If it doesn't, then, shut me up for my own good. Amen."

"When You Say Nothing At All"
by Don Schlitz and Paul Overstreet

It's amazing how you can speak right to my heart
Without saying a word, you can light up the dark
Try as I may, I could never explain
What I hear when you don't say a thing

The smile on your face lets me know that you need me
There's a truth in your eyes saying you'll never leave me
The touch of your hand says you'll catch me wherever I fall
You say it best when you say nothing at all

All day long I can hear people talking out loud
But when you hold me near, you drown out the crowd
Old Mr. Webster could never define
What's being said between your heart and mine

The smile on your face lets me know that you need me
There's a truth in your eyes saying you'll never leave me
The touch of your hand says you'll catch me wherever I fall
You say it best when you say nothing at all

Confidence

It is said that the three hardest words for humans to say is "I am sorry", and probably the four hardest words for us to say is "I Could Be Wrong". The worst thing is that it is just as hard to say to ourselves as it is to say to others. This then brings me to the issue of "self-confidence". I've learned that self-confidence is needed to get thru life, as there are many out there who suffers from low self-esteem, and find difficulty in getting anything done. But self-confidence can be a stumbling block, if it is not used properly.

Most people obtain their self-confidence from truth. And these truths can come from experiences in life as well as teachings, advice, and resources from other people. Thus lies the issue of the "validity" of these truths. What if we were confident of something that is false?

Without getting into too much philosophy (meaning of truth, reality, bla bla), I've learned that the Jesus is the only truth that is unshifting. Even though we can twist and turn His words to conform to our ways, but we can't do that in sincerity of heart. And plus, if we lean on the leading of the Holy Spirit, we will have the reassurance of God in our lives. What I'm trying to say is this, that even having the "knowledge" of Christ as our confidence can be dangerous. Even with the revelation of what Christ have done for us, we could still have hearts that are not fully surrended to Him. I guess this is probably why the apostle Paul warned the early church to "work out their salvation with fear and trembling". He is not telling us to ask ourselves whether we are saved daily, but rather, to check our hearts and mind daily.

"I could be wrong". When was the last time we asked ourselves this question, especially in the context when we brought forth a certain issue to a family or friend. Even if the issue was about Christ as a Savior, but did we bring forth the issue with love and gentleness, as instructed to us by the Holy Spirit, or did we do it in arrogance and pride? I believe that perfect love drives out fear, and we can still present the gospel in a loving way, without watering down its message, if we were to wholly be dependent on God for our confidence.

Pride brought down Lucifer. Who are we to say that it won't happen to us. May our confidence never be built on our ability to comprehend the gospel or anything else, but may it be on the fact that we, who are unable to save ourselves, have a King that loves us with a love that's beyond comprehension. May our confidence be built of Christ Himself.

"Search me O God, and I will be found. In Your will, is where I will find rest."

28th May, 2005 - Ambrose & Geraldine's wedding. 

Marriages

Ambrose and Geraldine (I call her Yee Woon) tied the knot on the 28th of May, 2005, approximately about 11:00am (Brisbane time). Standing beside Ambrose as his best man was one of the most memorable experiences for me as I watch and hear him recite his commitment to Yee Woon before God and the congregation. And as Yee Woon recite hers, tears role out from her eyes as she try to contains her emotions, knowing the weight of each word that was spoken.

The wedding was good, the ceremony running without any glitches, with the dinner following the same fashion. But as I come to find out that the planning for this wedding started 8 months back when Ambrose proposed to Yee Woon. Thousands of Australian dollars were spent, as well as tens of people were pulled in for their effort in coordinating this event, which all in all, lasted for just little over 2 hours.

Something crept into my mind as I stood and pondered about all this: Does our "I will" have more "commitment" weighed to it if we were to plan more for the wedding day? I mean, what if a wedding (I'm not meaning Ambrose's) was done without any frills... would that have given it a less "meaningful" association?

This year, I've had the privillege to see 3 couples say their vows before God and before men, to stand with each other thru all the possible calamaties of life, and till death do they part. Up till now, I can still sum up that weddings, when compare to the maintainance of marriages, is still far far much easier to pull off. Though planning for weddings can be tedious (and more than often, they are), but yet many couples do not prepare themselves for marriages. It is then not surprising to see that 1 in 2 marriages in the United States end up in divorce, and also how this trend is slowly creeping into the other countries of the world.

I guess that's probably why the Apostle Paul encouraged the early church to stay single, and only to marry when they cannot control themselves ("burn with passion"). But yet, without belittleling Paul, God's plan for mankind is a wedding, and how Christ will be our bridegroom, and we'll be His bride. Spotless bride. One of God's intention, I believe, is to continue to reveal His love through marriages. And I continue to believe that it is essential for a marriage to be filled with the love of God, because it was never meant to be sustained independent of God, but rather, it is His love that sustains the husband and wife, allowing them to draw love from Him as they love each other and love Him back.

I pray for Ambrose and Geraldine that may their marriage continue to flourish with love for each other as the grow deeper in love with God each day.

God's still on the throne

The journey of life is full of ups and downs. Nothing new to that. For some reason, even though we as people have gone thru these experiences countless of times, yet it doesn't prepare us, at least emotionally, for what's to come next. It's sort of like riding on a roller coaster. You can ride it a hundred times, and yet, you can still be thrilled with the next ride.

My faith continues to be tested. And I continue to learn more about myself. I now see a different side of myself. I guess I would never have known that side should I never have gone thru what I've just been through. Life's like that, I guess.

However, one truth remains the same in my heart, that is God's still on the throne. He's been there since the beginning of time, is there, and will always be there. It's sort of something that gives me the hope to believe that God is making all things good.

And I still believe in love. I believe in the eros love that driven by the God given agape love. I believe in fighting for a loved one. I believe in love. I believe in love...

Where does the road leads now? I'm not sure. But of this I am... God's still on the throne. And as long as He's there, I have hope.

"Take me to the place You want me to be Lord. I'm Yours."

Forgiveness... (Part 2)

God never intended for the impartation of forgiveness to based on the basis of "worthiness"; whether the person deserves it or not, but rather, from love, grace and mercy instead. Because once the forgiveness is extended, the healing process begin, not just on the receiver, but on the giver as well.

Pope's attempted assassination... 

Pope with Agca 

Forgiveness

As the world prays for the Pope John Paul II, many websites take the opportunity to publish the story of his life. One that caught my attention was the slideshow on MSNBC. It portrays the early life of Karol Wojtyla, which was the Pope's name before he took the name John Paul II at his election. Two slides that caught my attention was the one on his attempted assassination and the one when he met up with the would-be assassin in prison. The pope quoted that it was Christ's teaching that instructed him to forgive Agca, his would-be assassin.

Forgiveness was why Christ came down to earth. It was his purpose to die on the cross so that we would receive the forgiveness of God that we never have nor would ever deserve. However, unforgiveness continues to plague the world, and the church itself is not spared. Taking the Pope's example, one could say that John Paul could forgive Agca because he has fully devoted his life to God, and if the attempted assassination was done on someone else close to him, the Pope might have a different reaction. I beg to differ on this because I see that the Pope will react the same way because of his stance of Christ's teaching on his life. John Paul acknowledged that Christ's teachings is more important than anything else in his life, including his own personal feelings.

I had a wonderful time yesterday sharing on the issue of "sin". One point that I highlighted during my sharing was that sin simply means disobeying God. As we look at the people around our lives, we notice that there are plenty of non-Christians that behaves a hundred fold better than some Christians. And yet, the bible terms them as "sinners". I pointed out during the sharing that the reason for this is because non-Christians do not know God, and therefore, CANNOT obey God, no matter how "good" they are in the eyes of others. Christians, on the other hand, have the choice to obey God, or disobey God (hence "sinning"). Non-Christians will continue in their blindness until someone bring them the light, or the truth. However, coming back to the point that I want to make, we as Christians now have the choice to obey God. And one of God's imperative for us is to forgive others just as Christ have forgiven us. There is just no excuse that we can come up to justify our disobedience on this commandment. Period. No matter the crime or the atrocity that has been committed, we are still left with only one way to obey God, that is to forgive. Any other outcome would result in sin.

The reason why people struggle with forgiveness is the intense desire for justice. The reason why we have this desire is because God gave it to us. It's a good trait to have. Animals lack this desire. However, God said that He, not us, will take care of justice (Romans 12:19). The moment we take justice into our own hands, it shows that we lack faith in God. Our lack of faith will basically state that God is not whom He claims to be (not Almighty), thus making Him a liar, and finally, making Him anything but God. However, God has called us to trust in Him (Proverbs 3:5), and when we do this, we will reap the rewards of our obedience to Him, and for our faith in Him.

Until we understand the value of forgiveness by obeying God in forgiving others, we will never be able to receive that forgiveness from God (Mark 11:22-25). God never made it a prequisite for us to be perfect before forgiving us, but rather, in His infinite love, Jesus died for us while we were still sinners.

Easter has past for bout a week already. I pray that in my own life, I would see everyday that the cross Jesus has died on would be enough proof for me to obey God without the need to know why.

"Oh the wonderful cross, oh the wonderful cross,
Bids me come and die, and find that I, may truly live.
Oh the wonderful cross, oh the wonderful cross,
All who gather here, by grace draw near, and bless Your name.."


“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” - Luke 23:34

Thank You Jesus...

Bread of life...

Maundy Thursday... Christians all over the world commemorate the last supper of Jesus on this day. The scriptures records down these events in great detail. One of the most memorable part of the events that took place during the last supper was when Jesus had communion with His disciples. Though such a simple act, but yet, I find it so significant and deep in meaning.

And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me." In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
Luke 22:19-20 (NIV)

I wonder how many Christians understand the significance of the elements of Holy Communion. I believe it must be more than just Jesus wanting us to remember Him or what He has done for us. This is what I believe: Everytime when we take communion, we are instructed to remember Christ and what He has done. But I doubt many of us have trouble remembering these events. I would think that by watching the movie "The Passion of the Christ", we would have an even greater picture that will make us remember these events for a long long time. My belief is that more than this, Jesus wants us to understand that we are now His body, which was broken on the cross for us. Therefore, the punishment that was upon Him, was actually meant for us, but He paid the price for us. He didn't do it so that we can just escape punishment, but instead, with this new freedom, we can then carry out His will. Therefore, everytime when we eat of the bread of communion, we are to remember that the body we have is no longer ours, because somebody else paid for it. The truth is that it was never ours, because we used to live in sin, and death owned our very souls. But then, when Christ have set us free, we are now no longer slaves to sin, but slave to righteousness. And by this, since we belong to Christ, we have a new master, and He has given us a new purpose. Oh, how many times have we taken communion but yet our hearts are still consumed with ourselves and our own desires. We should be receiving communion with a heart that acknowledges that our body is no longer ours, but that we are now the body of Christ, and with that, we are to carry out the purposes that Christ has initiated when He came to earth until we die or when He comes back for His church.

In the same way, the blood that was poured for us for the remission of sin, is represented by the wine that we take during Holy Communion. Thus, as we are reminded that the blood that was shed for us have cleanse us from all sins, so are we to take this blood to the world to tell them how they too can be cleanse of their sins. Christians who understand their faith holds the power of the blood of Jesus in their testimony. They know the power of the blood that was shed for them, and how it can turn the darkest sin white, heal the deadliest disease, and free captives from the law of sin and death. But yet, we live lives that does not reflect the power of this blood. Oh may God have mercy on us all for treating His sacrifice with contempt.

I love the song "You are my king" because each time I sing it, it reminds me of not just what Jesus have done, but what I should be doing for Him...

You Are My King
I'm forgiven because you were forsaken,
I'm accepted, you were condemned
I'm alive and well, Your Spirit is within me
Because You died and rose again

Amazing love, how can it be
That You, my King has died for me?
Amazing love, I know its true
Its my joy to honor You
In all I do, I honor You

You are my King
Jesus, You are my King
You are my King


Lord Jesus, thank You that in suffering, You remembered me. I praise You for Your amazing love that gives me another chance to love You back.

Our cause

Listening to Teresa Conlon's sermon titled "Never Drawing Back" dated January 30th, 2005 made me realize how often we give up so easily in our own battles. God has given each one of us a battle that we are to fight. However, the good thing about these battles is that He has also promised that He will be with us through each of these battles. Our instruction is to fully obey Him and rely on Him for all the provisions that we need to win these battles.

What are the battles that're placed before us? Most of the time, it's our own struggle with sin and other weaknesses. Though we have been set free from all these, yet Satan deceitfully comes to remind us again and again about what we've done. With shame and lies, Satan will use it to make us stumble into our past, and cause us to be captured by it again. But there's another battle; it involves our loved ones that are still not saved. They are caught in the web of sin and hopelessness, and often, turn to the wrong things or people to get free.

However, I feel there's a need to concentrate more on the battle that involves our love ones. I feel this because our struggle with sin is a perpetual thing, at least till the day with die. This battle is something that we've to fight daily. But for our loved ones, we are called to fight for their salvation. We are to be the "light of the world, and the salt of the earth" to them.

Over the weekend, I've come to know about people that close to me struggling with their marriages. They told me about the hopelessness they are facing with their spouse whom they thought they knew, is but a stranger to them now. Then, there are the cases where discipline becomes an issue that affects not just their studies, but also their own livelihood. Relatively speaking, some of these issues are actually considered "normal" when compared to other families that I know of who are struggling with drug abuse, alcoholism and physical abuse. But for some reason, I refuse to accept this as a norm, because I believe that God in His sovereignity is capable of making things work for the good of those who loves Him. The more I think about it, the more I realize how Satan is plotting to destroy my family. I begin to realize that there's more than meets the eye. The spiritual realm is in a chaotic frenzy of spiritual beings waging a war between good and evil. And that's why we need to rise up in our Spirit being to join with the forces of good to destroy the forces of evil and to release those who Satan has held captive for so many years. But often, we are addicted to "peaceful" living, not wanting additional problems or "inconveniences". Until our spiritual eyes are opened to see how the souls of our loved ones are crying in agony, loneliness and hopelessness, we will continue to live a "mediocre" christian life so that we will just be good enough to enter into heaven.

I now believe even more in the cause that God has given me. This is because I see how Satan has deceived and abused my family for too long. I know the promises God has given in Acts 16:31, and believe it with all my heart that "he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus". And the greater promise is this, that "..the battle is the LORD's...", and I know with all my heart that thru Christ Jesus, victory is mine already. Thru the cross, Jesus have given that victory to those who believe in Him. We just need to claim it.

I love this song:

When the mighty men
From the tribe of Judah
Faced the enemy
They were told by God
Not to be afraid
He would give the victory

He said lift up a song
And lay down the sword
For the battle is mine
Says the Lord

Sing unto the Lord
Make a joyful sound
Lift your voices
And let your praise resound
Sing a victor song
In the time of war
Trust in Jesus
The battle is the Lord's

When the evil one
Comes against you
To fill your heart with fear
You can trust in God
He will never leave you
He promised to be near

You can lift up a song
In the midst of the war
For the battle is mine
Says the Lord

Sing, Sing, Sing
Sing, Sing, Sing
For the Lord is good
And His mercy endureth forever
For the Lord is good
And His mercy endureth forever
Forever and ever

The battle is the Lord's

Family...

I was going thru some old photos as I was preparing a slide show for Sue's wedding. Little did I expect to be sucked into memory lane, as thoughts and events of old suddenly came flashing into my mind. I look at the pics, and I've got to say that I was a very blessed kid. I mean, I used to tell people that I had a unhappy childhood, but these photos proved otherwise. But something happened along the teen years.. the joy died, and resentment and unforgiveness crept in...

Mike and the Mechanics' "The Living Years" teaches us that we ought not to take people around us for granted. And, the song also stressed the importance of finding out that fact during the "living years". When I look at the stained and faded photos, my heart is crunched as I suddenly desire so much just as to be able to go back into time and relive those moments, and also to undo the wrongs and to make things right. For some reason, hurtful memories tend to always resonate louder in our minds, and are more memorable than happy ones. I remember the hurtful words that I've spoken to my parents, and how I was disobedient to them. If I knew what I know now then, I would have smack myself in the face and told myself to shut up. But life goes on. Words that have been spoken can never be retracted, like fresh water that runs into the sea.

What is family then? Why strive for its survival? And why is it that so many of them fail?

I learned that family is more than just time spent together. It's more than birthdays, graduations, new year's, and christmases spent together. I learn that family goes beyond vacations at the seaside, and the welcoming of the new TV set. Family is from God. And only God can keep the family together because it is His love is the source of all that's good, and the only thing that's worth living for.

In the past 10 years of my life, I have seen with my own eyes how families that are close to me break down. They stopped functioning, and altogether dissolved into something society can't even define. How did it happen? I don't really know. I know some of it could have started from a few hurtful words, while others because of silence altogeher. Today's society tries to make us accept such occurences and something "normal". They view as though not all families are meant to last, and if ours can, we are just plain lucky. Therefore, the breaking down of the family institution has managed to earn its "rightful" place in our modern day society...

The first family that ever existed was God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. With them and thru them existed a love that words cannot describe. In that love was perfect unity and harmony, and it overcomed every single other element that came against it.
I now see why God created families. And it is thru the institution of the family that we can know more about God's love, how it is so sacrificing, enduring and filled with compassion. I thank God for my family, because I know that even when the world rejects me, I have a family that will be there for me. And I claim the promises in Acts 16:31... knowing one day the love in my family will be made complete in Jesus Himself.

Do I have a perfect family? Not really... but when I look at the cross, I see hope for one. And knowing that God loves my family so much gives me more the reason to fight for mine.

Thank you Lord...

My Family...

Family...

Lies, truth and faith...

Why do people lie? Some do it for selfish gain. Others, for malicious intent. And then, there are some who so call lie to "prevent" more bad things from happening. I recall the movie, "A Few Good Men", and there was this scene when Tom Cruise was questioning Jack Nicholson in court. The situation had become intense and Tom Cruise shouted "I want the truth!!" with Jack Nicholson shouting back "You can't handle the truth!!". How bout us? Can we handle the truth?

During my college years, I had a philosophy lecturer by the name of "Eddy". I can't remember his full name, but he played a big role in the way I think. I guess I started to look at the world differently since his course. Thanks to him, I'm also very into philosophy. There was one particular example that he gave that I remembered well. It was during an discussion on ethics, whether good and evil was subjective. Coming from a Christian viewpoint, I stood firm that good and evil was objective, that everything that God called good is good, and everything that God called evil is evil. Then he threw this question out. He said, what if one day, a gang of robbers came into your home, tied your whole family up, and ransacked your whole house. Then one of them asked, "I know you have a sister here somewhere, I want to know where she is". Obviously, him asking the question meant he was planning to harm her in some way. And lets also say that you knew where your sister was hiding... would you lie to the robber, stating that you didn't know, or, would you tell the truth, because it was your principle? The lesson on the "lesser of two evils" was introduced to me on that day. I couldn't answer that question, and begin to have thoughts that to some extent, the bible is not really that practical. Years passed by, and I'm in the U.S. continuing my course. Then one day, I had a similar discussion with Tayo, my good Nigerian comrade. He insisted that God's truth is absolute, so recalling that example by Eddy, I threw it at him. I asked him, "which would you choose Tayo?" And without even thinking twice, Tayo replied "I'll pray!". Gosh... I've never even thought about that. I never knew there was a third option. It was from that day on that I knew the truths in the bible are real. And it's applicable even for our modern day world.

I've seen from time to time how many people lie to get themselves out of "sticky" situations. As long as they don't get caught, the situation is managable. However, I think that from a Christian viewpoint, lying shows a lack of faith in God. It's because we don't trust that God is in control of the situation, so we decide to take the situation in our own hands. There are many references in the bible where it exhorts us to live a life of truth. Here are some examples:

"You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor" - Deut 5:20 (NIV)

"Do not steal. Do not lie. Do not deceive one another" - Lev 19:11 (NIV)

"Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices"- Col 3:9 (NIV)

And this is the reason why God insists that we live on the truth:
"God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?" - Num 23:19 (NIV)

I'm convinced that we should a life of truth. Don't get me wrong... I also believe in confidentiality. However, I'm deciding to draw the line of telling the truth, or surpressing it based on God's instruction to me. What I mean by this is that I'm not obligated to respond to every enquiry that's thrown unto me, rather i'm planning to respond by saying "I'd rather not discuss that", than making up some other story to get myself off the hook. Also, there's a need for me to live a life where I do not get myself involved in "unhealthy chatting", ie. gossip, and not only avoid it, but discourage it. People will then find me less "appealing" to approach to know about such things. Thus, it's more than just "not lying", but it's a lifestyle that actively pursues truth and righteousness. And when there are situations that are beyond my comprehension, and I'm not sure how to react, that's when I'll leave it to God to tell me what to do. However, in order to be able to know God's leading, I would have to live a life of prayer. Thus, I see that living a life of truth emcompasses a huge portion of our lives. We have to deal with every single area. Lastly, we need to be accountable, that is, there are people that we turn to to keep ourselves checked. It's critical that we have people that we've entrusted to question us when we're out of line.

"I'll pray." What a simple yet profound idea. It's like when the world is going into chaos, and people are all in the panic state, and someone turns to us and ask "What shall we do? We're all doomed!!" And we simply look at them, with eyes that are filled with a peace that's beyond our understanding, and reply "Let's pray". Therefore, faith comes into rescue, not so much as to keep us from breaking our principles, but rather, to remind us that God is in control. We do not need to take things into our own hands. Awesome!

Faithfulness

Managed to contact Mandy today. I was so glad to know that she's still in love with the Lord. That's not to say that I expected her to fall away, but its just that when I look at my own peers, I am saddened by the fact that so many of them, even after experiencing and tasting that the Lord is good, fall away and decide to live lives their own way.

I love this verse:
"Here is a trustworthy saying:
If we died with him, we will also live with him;
if we endure, we will also reign with him.
If we disown him, he will also disown us;
if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself. "
2 Tim 2:11-13 (NIV)

Looking at the last part of this verse, Paul told Timothy that even when we are faithless, Jesus will still be faithful to us, because He is love. He is the unconditional love that continues to love even when that love is not returned.

I pray for so many of my friends who have fallen away that they might be drawn again to the goodness of God. May the love of God compel them, and to let them know that even in their faithless situation, Jesus is still faithfully drawing them back unto Himself.

But I guess everyone has their own season in the wilderness. My prayer is that they get thirsty quickly, because the world and all it has to offer cannot quench that thirst that's deep in our souls. Only Jesus can give us the living water that's able to quench that thirst.

Revival is coming. And I feel that God is starting that awakening in the church first, causing His people to feel burdened for the lost, especially those who have walked away from Christ. And I believe that as long as we continue to pray and stand in the gap for them, reaching out to them in love and faithfulness, the love of God will melt their hearts again, and they will put down their pride and come back to God again. "Oh God! Draw Your people unto Yourself!"

Psalm 121

"I lift up my eyes to the hills--where does my help come from?
My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth."
Psalms 121:1-2 (NIV)

Just came back from an evangelistic meeting. Our church titled the event, "Praises in Suffering Times". How appropriate, I thought. I mean, there must at least some people who are suffering. And oh how they need to hear the gospel. But not for me. Nope. I'm fine. I'm dandily fine. I think... Am I?

Driving back, I was listening to Pastor Neil Rhodes preaching, and he touched on one point that I used to always overlook. He was saying how important it was for Christians to be more fervent in prayer when EVERYTHING was going good in our lives. I mean, the less problems or obstacles we have, the more we need to pray. I tend to do the opposite...

I then begin to look at my life. Currently, I have everything that I need. Spiritually, I feel that I'm doing my best for God. But I know that God still desires more for me. And by more, I mean, that God's plan and purposes for my life, has not even begin to reveal itself to me at this point. I'm beginning to sense that God wants more than just faithfulness in church-going, or church involvement. He wants more than just a sharing of the gospel out of convenience. I beginning to feel that God wants, at least from me, a life that is so desperately in need of Him. And to tell the truth, at this moment, I'm not in desperate need of Him. Why? Because I have all that I need. I have a home, a car, a job. I have friends and families. And I know that it is not God's will to take this away from me to suffer me, but rather, to bring me into a more abundant life than I could offer to myself. Therefore, there's a fear in me, because I know that what I have right now, will soon be taken away from me. I'm not sure how, nor when, but I'm convinced that it will happen sooner or later. But then again, there's a sense of excitement in all this. It's as though even when I lose all that I have, but yet, I'm beginning to understand that it is all these things that are preventing me from experiencing an even greater joy than the world could ever offer.

At this moment, I speak of things that are still very much unknown to me. I have no clue of how things will unravel. But this I know, that God is on my side. I can see with my mind's eye how people could turn their backs on me and cause me harm, however, I know that God's still my help. It makes more sense now when the Psalmist who wrote the 121st Psalm, proclaimed in those simple words, "My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth."

"Father, I thank You for blessing me with the good things in life. But Lord, I know that sometimes, these things can take our eyes away from You. I would rather Lord, lose all these things than lose You. So Lord, have your way in me. Show me O God Your power, that I might have the eyes of my heart opened, and realize that all things on earth are only temporal, but only You and Your word, is eternal. I pray Lord Jesus that You would take me beyond these words, and into the realm where Your understanding is engraved onto my heart, that I would not just say and believe it, but to also live it out. In Jesus' name, amen."

Daniel and Grace 

Marriages...

Daniel and Grace tied the knot today. I've got to say that the wedding went pretty well. The setup, the agenda. It was "perfect" to me.

I learned something today too. I can't recall her name, but she (the Pastor) who gave a message during their wedding ceremony, made me realized something when she mentioned that though a couple is given to one another, yet, the SOURCE of love still comes from God. For some reason, this just made perfect sense to me. Most relationships don't work out because each of the partner is expecting the other partner to fulfill their need for love. And the worse thing is that, it is not that they are holding it back, but rather, it is because they are incapable of perpetually sustaining that source of love from themselves to give to the other. This then when prolonged, would lead to hurts, wounds, discouragement, and even, resentment. Most of the time, if the issue is not dealt with, they will look elsewhere for this source of love. And that's why marriages fail. Infidelity does not happen overnight, nor is it usually an "accident", but rather it is a consequence of such subsequent events.

When I gave thought to the marriage thing a little deeper, I begin to realize that many people, here and elsewhere in the world, gives a very high regard of marriage as something that needs to be accomplish within his or her lifetime. It's as though if somebody doesn't get married, that person is "incomplete". However, I feel that God views marriages very differently from the way we humans view it. I know this, because from the bible we know that earthly human marriages ceases once we die. It does not perpetuate in heaven. For me, I see that marriage is something that God uses to teach us more about His love for us. But many have made it their goal for life. This is not God's will. Instead, I believe that He uses marriage to allow to grow and understand more about how He love us.

Paul also confirmed this when he wrote in Ephesians about how Christ is the bridegroom, and the church is His bride.
"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. This is a profound mystery-but I am talking about Christ and the church"
Eph 5:31-32 (NIV)
Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to belittle the institution of marriage, but rather trying to stress the importance of it. Marriage is important, because to some, until we learn how to persevere and endure thru one, we will never fully understand nor grasp the "mystery" of the love of God. John Piper, in his sermon, "Sex and the Supremacy of Christ", mentioned that God created sex for husband and wives because it is thru that sexual relationship, that can we learn the intimacy that God desires with His people. "One flesh". It is not about sex with God, but rather, the depth of that intimate relationship that God so desperately desires with His creation.

I look for the day that I will know God, just I'm fully known. I know God has prepared a partner for me. But my ultimate partner is still Jesus. And with this, I'm glad I can be complete in Him, even if the world doesn't see it this way. Who cares. I've got Jesus.

Living that God centered life...

Looking back to the past few blogs that I've written, I guess to some extent that the words presented may give the reader a "false" perception of the writer, as though the writer has got it all figured out about his Christian walk and all. But I know that I'm still far from it. What I blog is what I feel in my heart. These are the things that I feel that "should" be. However, I know too that it is not impossible to live it out, because if it was, then God would never have expected it from us.

I spent the past two days attending a course on "Professional Selling Skills". The presenter / course leader made the entire course very interesting thru his unique and unconventional way of presenting the materials of the course. However, I was a bit "bored" with the course because I felt that deep in me, the line that I'm in currently is only gonna be temporary. I did try to convince myself that even though I may not do sales forever, I could still make use of the things that are taught. However, as the course progressed, and even as I force myself to be positive and open towards the presenter, I still failed. I failed because the Spirit of God was testifying in me that what was taught was the wisdom of men. The problem wasn't because it wasn't good or unpractical, or any of that sort, but rather, it was just that the wisdom was not from God. And I'm beginning to see why this is gonna be a very important point in my own life.

Take a walk into any bookstore and we can find on the shelves hundreds, if not thousands of books on self-improvement, self-help, motivational books and so on. Frankly speaking, all these books are good (to some sense) as they have helped out many people, some who may suffer from low-esteem, or just need some help in thinking outside the box and so on. However, there's a significant difference between good wisdom, and the wisdom of God. There are many men out there who has many theories about how we can live a more fulfilled life, or how we can learn the habits of highly effective people, and so on, but because many of these people did not draw wisdom from God Himself, though the techniques might yield some results, they will never last.

Again, I'm talking about eternity. What's the point of fixing my self-esteem when I'm gonna die at 80? I mean, if my life ended at 30, I would have saved myself the trouble of even having to fix my self-esteem. Thus, there leaves a big question that many of us know we need to answer, but yet we still avoid it all cost. And that question, I believe, would be "What does God want to do thru my life?". This question would also need to be followed with another question, and that is "Am I going to obey it?".

God is calling us to a more glorious life than we can ever imagine. And when He calls us, He will also provide all that we need. This I believe with all my heart. So, we have to be true to ourselves, and not keep living a life that's of two masters.

God help us.