Rekindled

 It's been awhile since my last entry in this blog ( I even forgot that I have a blog site). Writing my thoughts and experiences or even my AHA moments has been my constant go to when I'm depressed, happy or just an avenue to express myself. 

Tonight I am inspired to rekindle this passion. And hopefully, this would motivate me to give more, to share more and to be more! 

Here's to life and living to the full!

Gospel of Love

The famous Brennan Manning once said, "If John were to be asked, 'What is your primary identity in life?' he would not reply, 'I am a disciple, an apostle, an evangelist, an author of one of the four Gospels,' but rather, 'I am the one Jesus loves."


"I am the one Jesus loves." This has been my constant confession every time I faced the mirror. These words were pasted in almost everywhere (in my notebook, mirror, and bathroom) and most of all in my heart and mind. This has been a fuel that kept me going for so long in my journey of knowing God.

Into the thick of my journey of "knowing God" there were a lot of things that came into play. Rather that of a growing  relationship with the one Who loves me and dwelling more on a revelation of how much I am loved, I had shifted to proving my love to God by being obedient, faithful and serve Him with my all.  Suffice to say...my kind of love reached the bottom.


“I am the one Jesus loves.” There is nothing I can do to make God love me more than He already does. And there is nothing that I will do that will make Him love me any less. This is the gospel of love and a pure grace.


“I am the one Jesus loves.” As I traveled back into this truth, I came to realized that the Kingdom of Love calls us to walk against the world that calls for performance based on our self merit. In His kingdom we live by the gospel of grace –not our own effort but His. Not our own love but His. Not by our own power and might but by His Spirit.


If we talk about love and grace, in the context of God’s kingdom, it is unfair...because He loves everyone with the same intensity and accepts us equally. But love, however, is not about fairness and so is grace.


“I am the one Jesus loves.” I pray that I will live and move and have my being anchored in this simple truth. And in every single thing I do, I will do it not because I love God but because…I am His beloved.

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Take time to read these two wonderful books about grace: What So Amazing About Grace by Philip Yancey and Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning.

Two is Better Than One

 

Di tungod kay single ka, mag-inusara na lang ka. Single man tu-od ka pero dili buot pasabot nga magsolo na lang ka kay pwede man gyud kung daghan ta. Magkita-kita ta ninyo sa Tagbilaran karong February 27.

Details: February 27, 2011/ 5 PM/ The Courtyard, Cogon St., Tagbilaran city, Bohol .

A friendly "single" advisory: BAWAL ang magsolo, kung daghan mo mas maayo!

please share to your single friends in Bohol!

Finding True Friends

Finding true friends is like looking for a pin in a haystack. 

Is it really this hard to find a true friend? Maybe. Because you don't have to look for one but instead you can be the one.

If we have to go over each steps on "how-to-become-a-true-friend" we will end up nowhere. There is no  secret formula, only a path to take.

And that path is... the way of love. 

Love never gives up. You don't give up on a friend when times are rough or when their mood swings from one end to another. You'll stick it out even if your reason seems to betray you. 

Love cares more for others than for self. This would be a good reminder, when we seek   to put ourselves first. 

Love doesn't want what it doesn't have. Love doesn't strut, doesn't have a swelled head. It is not about impressing, it's still about expressing your care to the best that you can.

Love doesn't force itself on others. Love puts up on anything and trust God in everything. A friend doesn't force change on the other instead he creates a healthy environment of acceptance and love for change to happen. 

Love celebrates. A true friend celebrates every victory, laughs with every flaws, counts the rising more than the falls, encourages growth and supports new friendships.

True friends. They found me even before I can become one to them. Call me lucky. Call me blessed. Call me happy.

To all my friends, i pay tribute thru this poem. This is my humble way of saying "Thank you!"...

Beauty and goodness

We don't have to go far to find the treasure we are seeking. There is beauty and goodness right where we are. And only when we can see the beauty and goodness that are close by can we recognize beauty and goodness on our travels far and wide. There are trees and flowers to enjoy, paintings and sculptures to admire; most of all there are people who smile, play, and show kindness and gentleness. They are all around us, to be recognized as free gifts to receive in gratitude. (Henri Nouwen)

It's in the little things. I was once too blinded to see the miracle of beauty around me because I was expecting a display of grandeur.

 

Stop,look and listen. I failed to celebrate the wonders  of everyday life because I was too preoccupied and too busy to notice.

Get out of the box and do something adventurous. I don't know how much of life I missed out because I was too confined with my list of don'ts and befriended my fears. I forgot the beauty of spontaneity and the feel of freedom. 

God made everything beautiful...for a reason.Everything beautiful -including you and me! 

May we not be too blinded to see, too preoccupied to notice and too legalistic to enjoy His wonderful creations!

May we appreciate our love ones in a very special way. May we take time to breathe in the beauty of the sun rising and setting. And yeah, do something a little crazy (out-of-your-league-thingy) today!

This is the day that the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it! 

-Psalm 118:24

 
photos by Michael Monto

 

Balance

"Balance always requires a fierce and ruthless examination of priorities. Our true priorities are not mere lists of activities completed or goals set, but candid reflections of our heart desires. What we deem important receives the most time, energy, attention and resources...An unbalanced life is too crowded for God...I have great news! He loves who you are more than He loves what you do."-May Southerland

"God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him" — John Piper

As we run this race, I pray that we will reach the finish line happy, victorious and ablaze! God is smiling over us - look up and smile back! 

God's Plan Is Unstoppable

Manito-Manita. This is how it started. Last year, my friends and I decided to hold one. To add a little spice and an element of surprise, we decided to use an alias using names from the Bible. 

Rachel. That's me. I mean that's what I picked for an alias. 

Since then, I decided to dig into who Rachel is. 

Like an actress, reading a script let me get into my character as Rachel, I would tell you this-"God's plans are unstoppable."  

Her love story is exceptional. She met him while she was busy tending the flock of her dad. In sheer delight of seeing a member of his clan, Jacob kissed her. More than the telenovelas nor of any love saga, theirs was a story that would leave everyone jaws open in awe.

Jacob loved Rachel. He had worked seven years just to marry her. Yet love seems to defy time. Seven years seems to be just a few days because he loved her so much. In that seven years, Rachel must probably have waited with high hopes. Then finally the day when Jacob claimed for his wife, Leah, her sister was given. 

Thoughts could have gone wild in the mind of Rachel. Seven wasted years. Frustrated hope. Dead dreams. Sorrow and pain filled her night. Tears accompanied her, as she watched her father brought Leah to Jacob's tent to consummate the marriage. As tears continue to flow, it drains with it- all the hopes she have in her heart. Seven years of assurance and security that Jacob is the answer to her prayer, a cloud of doubt covered her. Did Jacob ever loved her? And sob after sob she turned her heart to God and asked "Do you ever love me? Why would you let me hope for nothing? Would I ever see your promise come to fulfillment?"

And while she was questioning God and just as the sun rises from the horizon, Jacob found out that he had married Leah and not Rachel. He rushed and went to Laban (Leah and Rachel's father) to demand an explanation. The plan was for Jacob to work for seven years for Rachel and why on earth could a man frustrate such plan. Laban came up with a proposal to ease a lover's fury. Jacob can have Rachel as a wife if he will wait for a week to pass to marry her and to work for Laban for another seven years. Jacob agreed. 

Jacob married Rachel and he loved her more than Leah. 

If Rachel could have a peek on what God has designed for the salvation of the world, she would have read that Jesus-the Messiah will be born in her's and Jacob's lineage.  

"For the LORD Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart Him? ..." Isaiah 14:27a

God holds the blueprint of each of our lives. He has a plan and everything will work according to His purpose. The story of Jacob and Rachel is not limited to their love story, alone. One way or the other, we are Rachels awaiting for Jacobs.

You could be a parent waiting for money to provide for your family needs. A single waiting for a spouse. A spouse waiting for a conversion of a love one. A student waiting for an examination result. A kid waiting for a desired toy. A patient waiting for full health recovery. One waiting for a job. We are Rachels and we await for our Jacobs. 

"GOD'S PLANS ARE UNSTOPPABLE!"

And as I, Luchie, flips the pages further I happened to read these powerful promise in Jeremiah 29:11-14 signed by God Himself:

" I know well the plans I have in mind for you...plans for your welfare, not for woe! Plans to give you a future full of hope. When you call ME, when you go to pray to ME, I will listen to you. When you look for ME, you will find ME. Yes when you seek ME with all your heart, you will find ME with you and I will change your lot."

God's plans are unstoppable, no matter how many " Labans" will come in between you and the answers to your prayers, know that your future is filled with hope and no matter how ugly or frustrating or hopeless your situations maybe, God's plan is to change your lot. 

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P.S : The story of Rachel and Jacob could be read in detail (minus this author's imagination and own reflection) in Genesis chapter 29 and following. You would appreciate it more if you read it from there and who knows you might come up with a reflection on your own.