In God's Light (".): January 2012

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

#174 Grace and Forgiveness

A blessed and reflective reading to all :)

Galatians 1 (excerpts)
3 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

...If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!

10 Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.

...when God, who set me apart from my mother’s womb and called me by his grace, was pleased 16 to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, my immediate response was not to consult any human being.

...“The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” 24 And they praised God because of me.

Praise and thank God!

Have you ever wondered how are we to give an accounting of our lives to God at the final judgment?

Everyday, I am humbled and deeply grateful for the abounding grace and forgiveness God bestowed upon my life. Yes I am walking in His light, and yet there are times I give in to my being the "human" me and not the "spiritual" me. But I praise Him and thank Him everyday for all the times that though I gave in, He forgave me, forgives me and will forgive me. How can we not praise a God who abounds in mercy and forgiveness, one who is slow to anger, abounding in love, one who never accounts the sins that we made, are making, will make-- past, present and future.

Psalm 103:12as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

If you have Christ in you, you also have the assurance of constant forgiveness; embrace Him; He is the only one who can give that never-ending forgiveness :)

God bless to all!

Glory to GOD!

Bible in a Year:
Read the Bible in One Year- Here's a reading plan where you and I can focus on God's Words everyday....to make it a habit, make it a practice, Amen :)

Read with me; God speaks to us through His words :)
January 31, 2012- Psalm 106-107

Today is the day :)
If you have not received Jesus Christ yet in your heart, today is the day. May you embrace His love and His gift :)

"Lord Jesus, I believe You are truly the Son of God. I confess that I have sinned against You in thought, word, and deed. Please forgive all my wrongdoing, and let me live in relationship with You from now on. I receive You as my personal Savior, accepting the work You accomplished once and for all on the cross. Thank You for saving me. Help me to live a life that is pleasing to You. Amen." (ref prayer by: Dr. Charles Stanley, InTouch Ministry)

Why am I doing this? Simple...."I am driven by the eternal destiny of others."

Monday, January 30, 2012

#173 Self-Examination

A blessed and reflective reading to all :)

2 Corinthians 13 (excerpts)
...He (Christ) is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. 4 For to be sure, he was crucified in weakness, yet he lives by God’s power.

5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves.

Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? 6 And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed the test.

11 Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice!

Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.

14 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Praise and thank God!
"self-examination"-- soul-searching, contemplation, reflection, deep-thought, heart-searching, scrutiny, self-analysis,

Upon opening the doors of our hearts to our Loving Lord, He will let the Holy Spirit work in us in such a way that our sanctification process will be a constant labor from now until the time we are united with Him in heaven :)

I consider myself truly blessed because everyday He lets me reflect on Him and His work on me. My beautiful walk with God is both a physical and a spiritual walk, especially when I am alone with Him in my morning routine walk around the villa. He lets me savor the morning breeze, the beautiful sunshine, the trees, the birds, the squirrels, the beautiful flowers, and especially the people whom I am able to give a smile and say good morning too on their walk just like mine.

Somehow, without doubt, I can truly say Praise God!

That time, when I am not truly walking in God's light, my main concern is myself and my family's welfare. I thought that the U.S. is the land of plenty-- the land flowing with milk and honey, funny right? If you have been raised in a country where poverty is rampant, your way out is to go somewhere you consider overflowing with everything. But it ain't true. Yes, America is a first world country, the Philippines is a 3rd world, and yet unemployment here in Florida is rampant. Per U.S. census (July 2011), of the 19M people (Floridians), 1.9M has no work, that is 10 out of every 100 people (10%), and take note, I used a lesser % of unemployment rate but in reality is it is higher- 11.5%. So it just follows, no work, no house, no car, no health care benefits, quite a burden to the affected people and the government as well. Currently, the U.S. National Debt is an estimated $15 Trillion dollars.

Why am I putting all of these in writing? Because I just want to share that it is God's way of opening my eyes that my life is not dependent on the place where I should be, but where I place my life.

Yes, life is a constant change. The place, the people,...everything. It is only the One True God (Jesus Christ) who is the immutable one. He is the only one who perceives what is past, present and future. If you have placed your life, your hope, your everything in Him, then assuredly, you are in an unshakeable ground, truly an Amen isn't it.

Ponder this? Are you placing your whole life in Jesus?

God bless to all!

Glory to GOD!

Why am I doing this? Simple...."I am driven by the eternal destiny of others."

Sunday, January 29, 2012

#172 Imagine Heaven

A blessed and reflective reading to all :)

2 Corinthians 12 (excerpts)
...I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord.

2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know—God knows. 3 And I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows— 4 was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell. 5 I will boast about a man like that, but I will not boast about myself, except about my weaknesses.

...because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me,

......“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties.

For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Praise and thank God!

When we are facing difficult times, it is just wonderful to imagine heaven :)

Why? Because in my heart, when I look forward what is in store for us Believers, all the struggles in this troublesome and fallen world will just fade away or will not be as burdensome as we thought it to be, because as God's words always reassures as, we are in good hands here in this temporary abode, and in His beautiful time, we will be spending a grand time forever in heaven-- our permanent, beautiful, wonderful, amazing, unimaginable paradise.

Isn't that truly uplifting?

Have a great day in the Lord!

Glory to GOD!

Why am I doing this? Simple...."I am driven by the eternal destiny of others."

Saturday, January 28, 2012

#171 In my Weakness, God's Strength Manifests

A blessed and reflective reading to all :)

2 Corinthians 11 (excerpts)

Paul Boasts About His Sufferings

17 In this self-confident boasting I am not talking as the Lord would, but as a fool. 18 Since many are boasting in the way the world does, I too will boast. 19 You gladly put up with fools since you are so wise!

22 Are they Hebrews? So am I.

Are they Israelites? So am I.

Are they Abraham’s descendants? So am I.

23 Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more.

I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. 24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. 27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.

29 Who is weak, and I do not feel weak?

Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?

30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised forever, knows that I am not lying.

Praise and thank God!
How awesome it is to reflect on God's words :)

The Apostle Paul's work of sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ to the whole world is a manifestation of God's power that one's strength overflows if it really comes from God. How can anyone endure all hardships, sorrows, danger, hunger, isolation, etc. without God in His life.

Truly, praise God, the Almighty, our source of comfort, our refuge, our strength....

May we all continue to request strength from Him everyday as we continue our walk with Him; He is the only source of it.......and it truly overflows :)

Have a great day in the Lord!

Glory to GOD!

Why am I doing this? Simple...."I am driven by the eternal destiny of others."

Friday, January 27, 2012

#170 Dear Jesus, Take Captive All Our Thoughts

A blessed and reflective reading to all :)

2 Corinthians 10 (excerpts)
...3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world.

...5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 6 And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete.

17 But, “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”

Praise and thank God!
Our Loving Lord have let me realized that if I really don't want to be shaken, I need to focus on Him at all times :)

"To take captive all my thoughts and make it obedient to Christ"-- a very beautiful verse which I need to apply at all times;

I fervently hope that all of us (Believers) will submit all our thoughts to our Lord Jesus because He is the only one who can take captive all negative ones and turn it 360 degrees to positive ones.

How blessed we are to have an unfathomable God.

Have a great day in the Lord!

Glory to GOD!

Why am I doing this? Simple...."I am driven by the eternal destiny of others."

Thursday, January 26, 2012

#169 The Divine Principle of Sowing & Reaping

A blessed and reflective reading to all :)

2 Corinthians 9 (excerpts)

6 Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.
7 Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

8And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 9 As it is written:

“They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor;
their righteousness endures forever.”

10 Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

15 Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

Praise and thank God!

Generosity is a gift from God! When we are full of God, it just comes out naturally. And yes, throughout the ages, the divine principle of sowing and reaping should be one we need to practice everytime.

Who wound not want to reap generously?

But it has to start with the sowing process......sow generously :)

Have a great day in the Lord!

Glory to GOD!

May Jesus' love abounds in us all everyday (".)

Pray for Impact:
JANUARY 2012
Wise Living
L E A R N I N G to WA L K with G O D
Thank You, Father, that You teach us to live purposeful
and praiseworthy lives as we listen to Your voice and
submit to it.
WEEK 4: Pray for the leadership of In Touch to do their
work as unto the Lord. Ask God to give them wisdom and
grace to deal with challenges both in the workplace and
their personal lives.
WEEK 5: Pray for all In Touch employees to seek the
Lord’s vision for their lives this year and to be obedient to
whatever He reveals.

Why am I doing this? Simple...."I am driven by the eternal destiny of others."

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

#168 The Goal is Equality

A blessed and reflective reading to all :)

2 Corinthians 8 (excerpts)
...we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. 2 In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. 3 For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, 4 they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord’s people. 5And they exceeded our expectations: They gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us.

...see that you also excel in this grace of giving.

...the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.

13 Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. 14 At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need.

The goal is equality,

15 as it is written: “The one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little.”

Praise and thank God!

Oh how wonderfully different the world to live in if all of us will have this principle in life-- the goal of equality.

May our Loving Lord touch our hearts to give more than what is usual or occassional, but remember it by heart that everything comes from God, and He wants us to share our blessings to others :)

God bless to all :)

Glory to GOD!

Why am I doing this? Simple...."I am driven by the eternal destiny of others."