Answered Prayers

Today, I have received two packages from Jesus. 

First was an answered prayer. The second was an unexpected blessing, or more appropriately a desire that we have not yet brought to God in prayer.

And so I sit here, with tears in my eyes, just thankful, and humbled by how much God loves HIS children.

HE always answers our prayers, and I mean always. It may not always be with a YES. Sometimes it could be with a NO, or WAIT, but HE ALWAYS answers in a way that is best for us. 

HE even answers prayers we haven't even voiced out yet. HE knows and HE provides. Isn't that just great?

And yet oftentimes, we easily lose faith. Thank God HE remains faithful in HIS promise that if we seek HIm first, then all other things will be added unto us.

I just want to encourage you, if there is anything you need or anything you need help in. Don't hesitate to come to God in prayer. Jesus will intercede for you, ALWAYS :)

My Life Instruction Book

For a large period in my life, I was drawn to self-help books and television talk-shows like Oprah (there was really a time when I was crazy about Oprah!) because, like most people, I was trying to find the right way or better way to live my life. I wanted to know how to be a better person in this world: a better daughter, sister, partner, friend. I wanted to know how to stay positive amidst challenges in life; how to hurdle the storm; how to deal with loss; how to reach my dreams. I wanted to know the How TO's in life. 

And then I started reading the Bible, and stumbled upon the greatest discovery or discoveries of my life. 

First, I discovered that it is actually fun reading the Bible. It's like going through a history book with a great plot and interesting subplots, and really fascinating characters. You will be surprised at how engaging it can be. There are times when you won't be able to put it down, and there are times when y

ou have no choice but to put it down, because what you've just read is too strong, you really have to pause and ponder God's word.

Second and more importantly, is that it contains all the How-To's I'll ever need in my life. I finally found a book that I can rely on to tell me how I should live all aspects of my life. The best thing is that it is not written by just some author. It is actually God's word, made available to me. 

I used to see the Bible as this grand book that did contain God's truth, but for some reason I perceived it to be something I will never understand by myself. Somehow, I was content to leave the reading of the Bible to the priests and then I would just listen to his sermon. I felt intimidated by it. I was quite sure that if I read it, I would burn or something. I thought it was something born-again Christians use to make others feel like losers. And yes, God forgive me, I believed it was boring and not really worth staying up late for. 

The truth is there is more to the Bible than the great bible stories we heard as a child. It contains so much more great and powerful truths about God and HIS word and how He wants us, HIS children to live our lives. What's really amazing is that the revelation you'll get from God when you read it is never going to be the same as that of the next person. And even if you read the same chapter or book twice, you will never be drawn to the same passage. I believe it's because God knows the perfect message to give us, one that is perfect to our circumstance, whether we are looking for answers or comfort from pain and heartaches. 

Maybe you want to know how to deal with an unfair boss, a stressful job, a failing career, an erring husband, a failed marriage, loss, death in the family, trials. Maybe you want to know how to be a woman, wife and mother (or a man, husband and father) after God's own heart. Whatever you need in life, you'll find it in the bible.

Oprah and Dr. Phil still have their place in the sun, but trust me, once you've read the Bible, you won't even need them.

Or better yet, don't trust my word on it. I say, open your bible, or get one, and you too will be watching less TV and spending less on self-help books :)

P.S. - If you are going to get one, I recommend the NIV (New international version) because it is the simplest translation. And get a study bible if you can. It will be very helpful as you study the context by which the books were written. God's word is a double-edged sword that's why it is often used or misused to mislead people. It is always important to understand the context, and of course, important to pray for guidance from God every time you read it. 

Define Love...

Remember that very important question in slumnotes or slumbooks , "What is love?", followed by the more important question "WHo is your love?" . If you were in high school in the 80's, you'd know what I am talking about. If not, then you were not "in"! Hehe, just kidding. For people in later generation, this may be a foreign concept...I think Friendster replaced slumbooks, which is sad because it really was a nice experience, corny but nice 

Anyways, I remember that I always tried to think of a really smart definition (because my crush would likely read my answers ) and I remember not really coming up with any thing smart or original. That's probably understandable right? I was in high school, what did I know about love?! To me back then, it was that giddy feeling you have when you see your "love" in campus, or when he says hi, or when he looks your way...Hehe, anyways, moving on...I also remember that the most popular definition of love was "Love is like a rosary that is full of mystery!"

Now that I am much older and more experienced in the art of love (naks!), I believe that love is a mystery to the extent that we can't fully explain why we love the people we love and why we have to love even the most unlovable person. But as to what love is, that is not really a mystery. The Bible says it all: Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)

You've probably heard that definition before (I'm thinking of Mandy Moore's movie - yes the one that made you cry because she died of cancer) and thought it sweet, but when you consider closely how God defines it and how we are commanded to love our neighbors as we love ourself, then it becomes really heavy stuff. 

There is a girl whom I know who at one moment you would hear say "Oh my gosh, I really love this girl!", only to hear her badmouth the same person because of a seemingly petty thing after a few days. And I used to think to myself that she really had it wrong, but I realize that I am no different from her. 

I love my family, I love my husband, I love my friends, and yet, so many times, I am quick to judge them, and be offended or even just irritated by things they have done. And how sometimes I can't seem to forget the times I felt they have wronged me. 

Do you get easily irritated when your husband leaves dirty clothes lying around? When he does not lift the toilet bowl? Do you embarrass him in front of other people? DO you get mad at him when he forgets your anniversary? (Now, I am not saying you're just to let him be a sloth or a forgetful husband. Not at all. All I'm saying is that there are nicer, sweeter, loving ways to act and react and still get the message across - or get a

nice anniversary gift ). 

Do you get mad at the guy who cut the line? How about the one who cut you on the road? How about the slow-moving server at that fast food chain who can't get your order right? DOn't you just think to yourself sometimes that he is a moron?

Love seems to be one of the most loosely used and misused words in the vocabulary and  oftentimes we fail to grasp what it really means. When we say "I love You", it's as if we are saying, " I love You because you did something or have something that makes me happy".

By God's definition, I realize love is not a word to mince with. It is a big word, and to love is a tall order. Every time I am near the point of impatience, of being rude and unkind, of taking offense, I stop for a moment to realize how God says I should act with people whom I claim I love. More importantly, I think of the people whom GOd says, I am supposed to love. 

I don't always succeed, but that's the best thing about God. I know HE loves me and therefore he patiently waits until I get love right!

I wish I knew all these in my slumnote-writing days! Boy, won't my "love" think I'm really smart!?

My Testimony

It started innocently enough. My friend Tetch, who is a Baptist Christian invited me to go to church with her. By going to church she meant attending a Born Again Christian Service. At that time, I was suffering from lack of spiritual nourishment as a Catholic. If you are in the UAE, a Filipino, and a Catholic, you would know what I'm talking about it. There is a serious lack of good Catholic priests here. For the longest time, I was attending church with my mind flying elsewhere, far from the confines of the church, understanding nothing the priest was saying, even criticizing the priest for not trying harder to get the message across. I look at the person next to me, i see him/her looking at the priest, but by the blank look on his/her face, i think he/she is in no better situation than I was.

Of course, the situation is really not much better back home, where I normally sit through a mass counting the minutes and eagerly awaiting the communion, which means the mass is nearing its end, but at least in the Philippines, there were a number of really good Catholic priests.

And so the main reasons I went with Tetch were 1) because i was in really desperate for some good preaching, and 2) I didn't want to turn Tetch down. Not to mention the fact that Tetch is a pretty persistent person you know, so i could really hardly say no to her even if i wanted to...I said to myself, one service... If i liked it, then perhaps i'll go once every month, and for the remaining three weeks i'll try to keep on going to the catholic church. I was thinking that time, that would be a pretty good division of devotional time, after all i was still catholic! So perhaps i could get value-for- time preaching from the born agains, and then still fulfill my catholic obligation for the remaining 75% of the time! =)

But I wasn't really planning on being a Born Again Christian. Primarily because aside from a select born agains i know, i didn't really like their lot. From my limited encounters with their "type", i have come to believe they are people who think they're holier than thou, above everybody else. Always trying to pretend to act good, but at the end of the day, acting more unchristianlike than people who didn't belive in God. I didn't want the way they say "praying over" like it was some statement that made them holier, like they had a pass to heaven or something.

Little did I know what was going to happen next, and how my life was going to be changed drastically. I never expected that that one service in January 2007 would lead to two, three...and before i realized it, i was attending service at EBCI (Emirates Baptist Church) for months, and eventually became a member. I am now Born Again.

The process was slow, and there were times when I had my doubts...big time! I was thinking of how it would affect my life, my family, my husband, his family, my friends. What would they say? They would surely laugh, or at least smile, thinking it was a joke. Me, a born again? Why, a year ago, i would have laughed myself about the idea of me being a Christian. I am not a bad person per se, but let's just say I didn't really fit the bill :P

I realize now that this reaction is generally because of misconceptions, misconceptions i shared before as a Catholic, of what is and what is not a Christian. And there is a whole gamut of things I have learned and continue to learn, being a new Christian myself, of these misconceptions. But the most important thing I have learned is that there are no holiness prerequisites to being a Christian. There are no tests to pass. I didn't even have to know a single passage in the bible. And no, I should not act holier than thou, like I have an exclusive claim to salvation because I'm as much as a sinner as anyone else.

The only thing I needed to realize is that I needed God - in the real sense that I needed HIM - just HIM...that you want to know HIM and have a relationship with HIM - and that the only way to have that is through HIS SON Jesus Christ, and not through any other means. That I am a sinner, not worthy of being saved, but by God's grace, through faith, I am saved.

As a Catholic, I used to think I was not any different from a Born Again Christian. I figured we believed and worshipped the same God - the difference just comes in the interpretation as to how to reach GOd. I thought that didn't really matter. I realize now how wrong that was because it does matter. There is no other way to God but through Jesus Christ - that cannot be overemphasized.

Now, I just feel at peace and excited! Peace because I feel I finally found home. Excited at the same time because my Christian journey has just begun :)