Becoming the Children of God (John 1:12)

There were children and then there were strangers.  The children almost always have part in the inheritance, but not the strangers, except for a very few.  The children have the privilege of being part of a family where they are nurtured and loved. The strangers, aside from a few moments of generosity and compassion, were not part of the grace reserved for the children.  One would not keep his or her children out in the cold of the night and let some strangers in to his or her home.  That’s not the way of the world. 

But there were strangers, unrelated by blood, who were taken in as one’s own.  They are the adopted sons and daughters, worthy to be called heirs and part of the family.  They were given the rights to call their “parents”, father and mother.   If this can happen here on earth, believe that it is possible, too, in the heavenly realms. 

“But to all who believed Him and accepted Him, He gave the right to become children of God. (John 1:12)”

†Father, we thank you for the gift of life.  We thank you Father for Your grace that You made us worthy to become Your children through Jesus Christ Your Son, our Lord and Savior. 

Father, touch our hearts today, so that as we read and meditate on Your words, we may fully understand Your message.  Lead us, Father, in a life that will make us worthy to be called Your sons and daughters, children of the Most High. All this we pray, Father, in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

From our last article, we talked about how Jesus, being the Light of the world was not received in the world.  He created it, yet He was not accepted by it.  Such were the people living in the dark.  And many of us today are not different from the people of Jesus’ time on earth. 

We love darkness because in the dark, we can be bold and daring and careless.  Compare the crime rate during the day and during the night.  Most crimes were committed at night.  Why?  Because people, like us, who do bad things believe that we are isolated from the light during the night.  We can do whatever we want because no one can see us.  So we gain false courage and dare to be bold.  But you know that is not true, because God, who is ever present and ever powerful, can see us even during the darkest hour of the night or even if we hide in the deepest abyss of the earth.  That’s why many would deny Jesus – and deny God.  We hate the light the would expose our wrong doings. 

No one would want to wave their dirty hands in broad daylight.  Not even me.  So we move away from the light, making us strangers to God. 

But there is hope.  And that hope is in Jesus. 

Many people, in order to achieve the grace of being called child of God have done so many things.  But if we will look at the verse above, we need to do only two things: BELIEVE and ACCEPT.

BELIEVE

We know that there are many who do not believe in Jesus –  as to who or what He is.  So let’s not talk about them.  Let us talk about the many who “believe” in Him. Believing something is associating it as real or true.  If we believe in Jesus, then we believe that He lived on earth and that He existed.  But this “belief” requires more than just acknowledging the fact that Jesus lives and that He is the Son of God.

If we are to believe in Him, then we must believe His works and His words.  You cannot say, “I believe in what you said, but I don’t believe it’s the truth.”  What is the point in believing a lie.  Believing in a person but not in his words is very contradicting in its own.  Such is something we cannot do when it comes to our belief in Christ.  We cannot simply believe that Jesus is the Son of God and our Savior, and yet do not believe the words He said.  We cannot also say that we believe Him to be the Christ, but not believe that He died for our sins. 

Many people who are suffering and struggling in life profess their beliefs in Jesus but they live their lives as if He can do nothing about their problems.  Many people believe in Him and His remission of sins, but continue to live their lives as if they can never be forgiven.  They believe in Him, but not His words, not His works.  If we truly believe in Jesus, we will believe what He said and will DO as He commanded. 

ACCEPT

Accepting Jesus means letting Him in into our lives.  You cannot accept and not receive.  “I accept this gift, but take it with you when you leave.”  “I accept you in our house, but you have to stay outside.”  That’s not acceptance. And I don’t know what it is.  We cannot say, “Jesus, I accept you in my life as my Lord and Savior, but don’t meddle in my affairs.  I can do this on my own.”   Accepting Jesus means surrendering everything to Him.  When you ride a taxi, you don’t instruct the driver when to turn left or right, when to step on the brakes and when to change gears.  You just tell him the direction or location you want to go and let him do his job. 

So, when we accept Jesus, we just have to let Him do His job of changing us, from the inside out.  We cannot accept Jesus and then continue on our own “journey” of self-enlightenment, self-discovery, self-fulfillment or whatever you want to call it.  All our efforts, though some may succeed in some areas and for some times, will all end empty and will fall short.  Because only by accepting Jesus we can have the fullness of life.  With Jesus in our lives, we shall lack nothing for He is the Good Shepherd with unfailing love that will pursue us all the days of our lives (cf. Ps. 23).  

BECOME

This not something you can do – this is the outcome of your belief and acceptance of Jesus Christ.  This is the grace of God that is offered to all of us through Christ.  This is made free for you and me because Jesus already paid the ultimate price – His death on the cross.  With His death and resurrection, we can become heirs and be called children of God.  All we must do is Believe and Accept.

Then, what shall we do as we become children of God?  Live like one.

“This includes you who were once far away from God. You were His enemies, separated from Him by your evil thoughts and actions.  Yet now He has reconciled you to Himself through the death of Christ in His physical body. As a result, He has brought you into His own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before Him without a single fault.  But you must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it. Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News. (Colossians 1: 21-23)”

†We thank you, Father, for the love and mercy you have given us.  We thank you for the gift to be rightfully called your children through Jesus Christ.  Without you, we are nothing.  And as a child of the Almighty, we pray that you meet our every needs like a babe helpless and in need of your love and care, every waking moment of our lives.  And when our time on earth comes to an end, welcome us in the gate of heaven, to a place You have reserved for us since You laid down the foundation of the universe.  All this we pray, in Jesus’ mighty name, together with the Holy Spirit, who lives and reigns with You, now and forever. Amen.†

What If You're Not Afraid...

...what will you do?

Will you scale the highest mountain?  Will swim the deepest ocean?  Will you cross the widest desert?  What if you are not afraid, will you do the things that your heart desires?

What will I do if I am not afraid?

I will tell the world all the things that I want to say.  I will do things that I love to do.  I will sing songs like no one's hearing.  I will dance like no one's watching.  I will write even if no one's reading.  I will write even if my grammar's as bad as it could get.  I will make friends with my enemies.  I will be frank to all people, tell them things that I hate and love about them.  I will hide nothing and from no one.

But I am afraid.  I am afraid that people may not understand me. I am afraid that the people who matter to me will judge me for the things that I do instead of the kind of person that I am.  I am afraid that people will hate me and ridicule me for being true.  I am afraid that I will hurt the people that I love. I am afraid that when I try, I might fail. I am afraid that my life may change and I will no longer be comfortable with it.  I am afraid to be disappointed, to be hurt and to fail.

Why are we afraid?  What is the source of our fears?  What are we afraid of?

We feel afraid because all we have are the wrong foundations, wrong reasons, wrong cause, wrong "WHY" of things..

Should we be afraid if we do things for love?

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. - 1 John 4:18

In the same manner, we learned...

Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good?  But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened." - 1 Peter 3:13-14

Should you still be living in fear knowing that if you do good things because of love, the Lord

...Your God, [who] takes hold of your right hand and says to you, "Do not fear; I will help you."?  - Isaiah 41:13

So next time you feel afraid, ask yourself... why am I afraid?  If I will do this for God and for love, will it make my dream of BEing MORE and ACHIEVING MORE be realized?  I firmly believe so...

Courage in Giving Up

"Winners never quit and quitters never win."

Yes, yes, I know you've heard that line million times already.

If you think life is a battle, well, then, "maybe" you are on the right path if you think that quitting is synonymous with losing.

But let me tell you something...

Life is not a battle. It is not a game. Here is my take on that matter.  In a game (or a battle), there is always a winner and a loser.  Very seldom are "draws."  But such is not in life.  We all know that we could all be winners in this life. We have the every right and the capacity to be winners.  People who believe otherwise either do not believe in God or believe that God is biased - favoring some over the others.

Life is not always about taking chances but rather making choices.  It is not always the survival of the strongest but that of the fittest.  Those who survive are not necessarily the strongest, most of the times it is the one who knows how to adapt well.

Life is a about making decisions.  Lots of it.  You don't have to be the strongest, you only need to know where to put your strengths.

If your circumstances seems unfavorable, does it mean you have to end up the loser?  Of course not.  So what you do is turn things around.  And more often than not, what seemed unfavorable will eventually turned to become a happy ending.  Would you say because you have been more favored or stronger or smarter that you've succeeded?  Do you mean that others are less favored, weaker and dumb?  Then you are showing impartiality and for me, it doesn't make sense celebrating in such kind of success or victory in life.

As you can see my friend, life is an adventure of ups and downs.  Success and failures.  But at the end of it all, it is not what we went through but what we learned that truly matters.  There are things that are simply inevitable, and there are things we should rather accept than fight.

Not because you have been doing, enjoying or getting things your way for the longest time it means that that could not end.  No matter how great things maybe, there will always be a certain point in time where it will have to end, or less painful, change. And more often than not, it is really difficult to let go of things you've learned to love - things that became part of yourself.

But do not despair. What may seemed to be an end could only be the start of a new beginning.  So when life is pushing you very, very hard and you've done your very best, but still things are going the opposite way, think again.  Maybe the perfect thing for you is to simply "throw in the towel."  Yes, there's nothing wrong with quitting.  Let me repeat that, there's nothing wrong with quitting.  What's wrong is to keep on doing things that doesn't make sense anymore.  Addictions to material things, procrastination, lack of discipline and the likes, these are things worth giving up.  Continuous self-pity and self-hatred should not linger for too long.  Surrender these things.  It is better to give up than to give in.

I don't want to sound like a preacher here because I'm not.  I know you know that deep within you there are things worth surrendering, worth giving up.  Don't try to fight it on your own.  You don't have to prove how strong you are.  God knows how much capable you are to conquer every trials you are facing.  He created you.  And as much as He know how able you are, He simply wants you to realize that like opening a treasure chest, you have to find the perfect key.  And that key could only be found in Him - when you surrender to Him.

Friends, if you dare accept to give up these things, you should know to whom you should surrender.  Surrender only to the One who can make you even more victories - God.

So, what are those things that you think you really have to let go?  Lift them up to God. Surrender to Him and be even more victorious.  It is time to lighten your loads, BE MORE and Life the Good Life.

  

Shaken Not Stirred: As Solid As A Rock

"Shaken not stirred."   That's just one of the famous lines of world's most known spy, James Bond a.k.a Agent "Double-O Seven" (007).  Of course he referred that line to his favorite Vodka Martini.
Do you think that it could also apply to real life?

In simple terms, let us define them.

Shaken - "Disturbed psychologically as if by a physical jolt or shock"

Stirred - "Being excited or provoked to the expression of an emotion.  Mixed"

Hmmm.. doesn't make any significant difference at all, does it? I think being shaken means being disturbed while being stirred means acting based on emotions, being pushed around unreasonably and illogically.

Let us take a closer look.  James Bond, as most of us know, could face and overcome all kinds of troubles and dangers and accomplish superhuman feats, either using his wits or his latest gadgets.  We have seen him experienced harrowing experiences that would definitely shake every average human being.  But despite of all those saddening and literally painful experiences, he remained true to his oath of service to his government and to his missions.  No matter what happens, Bond always completes his assignments by isolating himself from the situation. He is very seldom moved by the emotions attached to it, enabling him to judge rightly and think accurately as warranted by every situation.  He is shaken, yes, but not stirred.

But that was 007, a fictional character, human, flawed like you and me.

There is, however, someone who had shown a true meaning of being "Shaken but not Stirred."  This man is a Carpenter who lived thousands of years ago before us.  His name is Jesus.   Jesus was disturbed by what was happening to the world during that time.  Evil doings were rampant.  Dishonor and disobedience to God were everywhere.  People were living in sin.   He thought that it was the right time to  come down to earth and bring these people back in the arms of the Almighty.  He was shaken.  His love for mankind moved Him to offer His own life as a ransom for every human's wrong doings.  Was He stirred?  No.  He was tempted not just a single time to abandon His mission.  But He never bent.  He was accused of treason, rebellion, blasphemy and even associated to the devil himself.  He was  arrested, persecuted, crucified and killed by the very people He saved.  He know all these would happen.  But was He stirred enough to abandon His mission? No.  Was He shaken by these things.  Yes.  We know that He wept for these people.  But He never gave up on them.  He never gave up on His mission.

Unlike James Bond, Jesus did not rely on His intelligence or gadgets.  He used His love for mankind to help Him accomplished what He was supposed to do.  His faith in humanity that somehow, someday, they would all return to their true God inspired Jesus to stick to His mission.

Jesus was shaken but was never stirred to abandon or take another path to His mission because His foundations are as solid as a rock.

In our daily lives, we also face situations where we are shaken and stirred.  More often than not, we tend to play the James Bond role, trying to overcome everything, relying on our own wits and abilities.  There's nothing wrong with that.  In fact, it signifies that we trust that which have been bestowed upon us.  However, the problem arises when we tend to rely too much on our self, forgetting that there's a greater source of power and relief.

Human sufferings and experiences will shake and stir us.  It's a given fact.  It can sway us away from the path we ought to take.  We're just humans after all, vulnerable to pain and mistakes.  But before we totally surrender to our opponents - the challenges of our lives, let us try to look for the example that Jesus have shown us 2000 years ago which still applies today.

Continue to nurture our love for one another.  Keep the faith in humanity alive.  Believe that pains and trials are not meant to hamper us in arriving at our destination but rather stepping stones that will help us reach higher and farther.  Each of us has at least one mission in life.  Find it.  Stick to it.  Have faith in God and in Jesus so that no matter what life may throw, though we may be shaken, we will not be stirred, because we know what we need to do and we know where we could anchor our faith as solid as a rock.

Enjoy the rest of the day!  Continue to BE MORE and Live the Good Life!

(The contents of this article are the author's personal views and opinions and his sole responsibility.)

YOU COMPLicaTE ME

Now, that doesn't look too original, does it?  Yep, more like the famous line by Tom Cruise from the movie Jerry Maguire.

Alright! First, let me ask you a very simple question.  Will you please explain this:  E=mc2.

Whoa! Don't ask me to do the explaining for you. If you want, check it out on wikipedia or check out the book Relativity: The Special and General Theory by Albert Einstein.  I think it came from that book.  Whatever you chose, don't you look at me and ask me to explain it for you.

"Okay, what's the point?"

Here's the point my friend.  That equation seems to be too simple.  Yes, it appears to be so.  Agree? But, it has baffled the minds of countless scientists of modern time.  Many have tried to disprove it and failed.  That simple equation solved many of mankind's greatest problems and it is still solving even more until now.

What I am trying to say is this.  Solutions to our problems need not be too complicated.  Sometimes, the answer we've been looking for is too simple that we couldn't believe that it is true.  To make my point clear, let's have an illustration.

"What's my life purpose?" You say.

Well, that's a pretty tough question.

I don't think I can answer that in here.  But to simplify my answer, here it is:  "Try GOD."  Yep! Six letters.  That's all there is.  That's all I can say.  That's all we need.  Don't ask me for your purpose in life.  Ask God.  He puts in you here, He must know the reason why.  Why do you like to complicate things looking all by yourself for the answers to your existence?  Have you tried asking Him? Seriously, did you?  If God doesn't seem to answer, maybe you haven't asked seriously.  If you'll keep trying to find the answer to that question of yours, well, I've got news for you.  Before you find it, you will have no more time to spend on that purpose.  So try God.  It will make your life easier and your answers faster.  For some, the answers come in an instant.  For others, a longer period of time.  Here's the thing,  aren't you complaining about life's too many problems already?  So why burden yourself on something you could ask God to answer for you.

I don't have the answers to life's questions.  But I know Someone who can.  And I just told you about Him a while ago.

I've often said that I am a fan of self-help philosophy.  It is reflected in the books I read and perhaps in the articles I write.  One day, not so long ago, I realized that I've been spending too much on too many books that takes too many hours to read and yet too little effect on me.  Then I saw this thick black book I have that has been gathering dusts for a long time.  I opened it and there in front of me were 73 books in one volume (for others, yours may have only 66, depending on the version you're holding).

Here it is, the best "God-Help Book" that I could ever need just being ignored.  Why?

"Because that'll be just too plain and simple.  It can't be the answer?! The answer to my life's questions, the solutions to my life's problems must be complex.  It can't be just as simple as reading the Bible!"  

There! Again, I failed! I can't accept that God is all I need. That simple. That plain.

How about you?  How long will you keep looking for complicated answers to your life's questions and problems?

***

I also have a book entitled, "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten" by Robert Fulghum.  It's a gift from Rheena and it has been a long time since I've completed reading it (I guess I must re-read it).  

I want to share with you Fulghum's credo.  He said, 

"All I really need to know about how to live and what to do and how to be I learned in Kindergarten.  Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate school mountain, but there in the sandpile at Sunday School.  These are the things I learned:

Share everything.Play fair.
Don't hit people.
 Put things back where you found them.
Clean up your own mess.
Don't take things that aren't yours.
Say you're sorry when you hurt somebody.
Wash your hands before you eat.
Flush.
Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.
Live a balanced life - learn some and think some and draw some and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.
Take a nap every afternoon.
When you go out into the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands, and stick together.
Wonder.  Remember the little seed in the Styrofoam cup:  The roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.
Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and even little seed in the Styrofoam cup - they all die. So do we.
And then remember the Dick-and-Jane books and the first word you learned - the biggest word of all - LOOK."

 I didn't go to kindergarten but, I must say that it is indeed during those early part of our lives when we are still young and innocent and life is simple and plain that we learned a lot of things that get us through with life and it's problems.  But when we grow old, we think that our problems become complicated and the solutions should be complex as well.  Could be. But still, I wanna Live the Good Life and so my resolved is to live trying SIMPLICITY FIRST.

***

“Purity and simplicity are the two wings with which man soars above the earth and all temporary nature.” - Thomas Kempis

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” - Leonardo Da Vinci