Waiting on the Lord: Resting At His Feet

Because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall grow cold (Matthew 24:12). But be strong and be of good courage (Joshua 1:6). This I speak unto you, so that in Me you might have peace: In the world you shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world (John 16:33). Don't you be afraid, for I am with you; don't be dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you; yes, I will help you; yes, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness (Isaiah 41:10).

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)

------------
Why do you say, "My way is hid from the Lord, and the justice due to me is passed away from my God?" (Isaiah 40:27) The Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear (Isaiah 59:1). Have you forgotten? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, doesn't faint, neither is weary; His wisdom is unsearchable (Isaiah 40:28).

Therefore wait upon the Lord, and He shall renew your strength; you shall mount up with wings like the eagle; you shall run, and not be weary; you shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31)

Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your ways to Him. Trust also in Him, and He will do this: He will make your righteousness go forth as the light, and your justice as the noon day sun. Rest in Him, and wait patiently for Him. (Psalms 37:4-7)

Therefore don't be anxious..., for your heavenly Father knows the things you need. But seek first God's Kingdom, and His righteousness; and all the things you need will be given to you as well. (Matthew 6:31-33)

Wait for the Lord. Be strong, and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for the Lord. (Psalms 27:14)

To You, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in you. No one who waits on you shall be ashamed. Show me your ways, O Lord and teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth, and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation. I will wait for you. (Psalms 25:1-5)

O God, search me, and know my heart. Try me, and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way. (Psalms 139:23-24)

------------

[Proverbs 3:1-12]

"My child, don't forget my words; but let your heart keep them: for length of days, and years of life, and peace, will they add to you.

"Don't let kindness and truth forsake you. Wrap them up around your neck. Write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good understanding in My sight and in men.

"Trust in Me with all your heart, and don't depend on your own understanding. Seek My will in all you do, and I will direct your paths. Don't be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, delight in Me, and turn your back on evil. Then I will give you renewed strength and vitality.

"Honor Me with your substance, and with the best parts of all your increase. Then you shall lack nothing; for I will fill your life with plenty such that you shall overflow.

"My child, don't despise My discipline, neither be weary of My reproof: For whom I love, I reprove; even as a father reproves the child in whom he delights."

[1 Peter 5:6-7] Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time; casting all your worries on him, because he cares for you.

[Philippians 1:6] Be confident of this very thing: That the Lord who began a good work in you will complete it in the time He appointed.

God Will Never Give Up On You

By: Bo Sanchez
 
One day, there was a small barrio of farmers who were praying for rain to come. Every Sunday at church, they’d gather and pray for rain. But one Sunday, the priest announced, “How can God give you rain if you don’t have faith?”

The farmers asked, “How do you know we have no faith?” The priest said, “Every Sunday, you pray for rain. But how many of you are bringing an umbrella?” No one in that church brought an umbrella. The priest continued, “No one among you is prepared to receive the blessings you’re praying for.”

Next Sunday, people began to bring an umbrella. And soon, the rain came.

Friend, are you prepared for your blessings? Noah built the Ark before the rain came, not during or after. You need to build your Ark today.

Do you really expect the answer to your prayer?

I’ve been praying for 1000 Feasts (our weekly gathering) spread all over the world. In God’s own time, I expect it to happen. But even today, we’re preparing for that blessing. We’re bringing our umbrella. We’re building our ark. How? We’re raising up 1000 Feast Builders through our School of Leadership.

Today, what’s your umbrella? Identify your umbrella and bring it with you. Right now, there are some of you who are ready to give up on the dream God has placed in your heart. Don’t give up. Because God isn’t giving up on you. Oh yes, you may have to give up on your particular version on God’s dream for your life.

I remember Bishop Soc Villegas was telling me that he wanted to be a monk—alone in his hut, tending to a little garden. That was how he wanted to serve God. But God wanted Him to serve as a very busy priest and Bishop.

I love telling the story of how I was fixated on a 500 square meter property for our Community Center. It was a foreclosed property that the bank was selling. I wanted it so much, I’d visit it many times—and when no one was looking—raise my hand towards it and “claim” it to be ours. (If I saw someone walking on the street, I’d pretend I was just checking the fence.) I was tenacious. I told the tiny Light of Jesus community then to fast. I even scheduled a 3-night vigil to pray for the place. We also went into massive fundraising. We went Christmas Caroling in August. But one day, we received the news: Someone else bought the property from the bank. We were devastated. I remember our prayer meeting the week we found out. It was as if I was attending a funeral. Some people were even crying.

But ten years later, God answered our prayer. We finally acquired a property. This taught us that God’s timing isn’t our timing. But it wasn’t 500 square meters. It wasn’t 1000, or 2000, or 5000, or even 10,000 square meters. God gave us 50,000 square meters. (On that land, we built Anawim, our ministry for the abandoned elderly.)

This taught me that God’s measurements aren’t my measurement. I was asking for 500 square meters, and God must have been laughing at me, saying, “You won’t be able to do what I want you to do. Just wait.”

When it comes to your dreams, don’t be attached to your timing. Don’t be attached to your own estimations. And don’t be attached to your version. Trust in God. Open yourself to God’s version. Expect God to answer your prayer.

At the Cross, hear God say these words to you, “I will never give up on you.”

He’ll Finish What He Started In You

I love this Bible verse: And so I am sure that God, who began this good work in you, will carry it on until it is finished on the Day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:6)

This passage says two very important things…

1. You’re A Work of God.

You’re God’s idea. You’re God’s design. You’re God’s work of art. You’re God’s masterpiece.

For the longest time, I didn’t believe in that. For decades, I was ashamed of myself. I was addicted. I was in bondage. I kept falling into sin. Because I was so weak, so sinful, so dirty. I felt that every time God looked at me, He would look away in disgust. Because of that, I became even more sinful.

One day, someone sent me a cassette tape. (For the very young reading this piece, a cassette tape is the predecessor of the CD.) The note read, “Bo, I just came from China. Listen to these Chinese worship songs. You’ll be surprised.” I put it in the cassette recorder and pressed the play button. The Chinese song was vaguely familiar. And then it hit me—I wrote the song! It was just translated in Chinese. I felt so proud. Because that was my song!

And then I felt God speak to my heart. I felt God say, “You’re my song. I feel the same way when I look at you. I’m so happy and proud of you!” God shattered my shame by telling me, “You’re my child. You’re my idea. You’re my design. I made you. I don’t make mistakes. And I’m so proud to have a child like you.”

2. You’re A Work In Progress

You’ve got imperfections. You’ve got weaknesses. You’ve got blemishes. You’ve got scars. But that’s okay. Because you’re not yet a finished product. Because God is still working on you.

I love my little house today. But when I was building it many years ago, I didn’t like it at all. Because it was messy. It was dirty. There was scaffolding, and hallow blocks, and cement bags, and sawdust. But I didn’t give up building the house, because I knew it was a work in progress.

Don’t give up on yourself or on the dreams that God has for you, because you too are a work in progress.

Do you remember the story of Aladdin? Aladdin discovered the magical Genie. How? By rubbing the lamp. But why did he rub the lamp in the first place? Because it was dirty. You are that lamp. And you’re dirty. But because you’re dirty, God will rub you, shine you, work on you until magic happens.  And until magic happens, God will keep rubbing you, working on you, healing you, tinkering with you, operating on you—until you become like Him.

Say out loud, “God isn’t finished with me yet.”

There is a beautiful rose within you. It’s just covered with thorns. But despite those thorns, God knows better. It’s part of who you are. And with patience, He will water you—until that rose blossoms. And then He will get the rose and cut the thorns—and put it in a vase—for all the world to see your beauty.

Right now, you may feel as though nothing is happening in your life. That none of your dreams are coming true. But don’t give up, because God doesn’t give up on you.

Which One?

Author Unknown

A worried woman went to her gynecologist and said:

"Doctor, I have a serious problem and desperately need your help! My baby is not even 1 year old and I'm pregnant again. I don't want kids so close together."

So the doctor said: "Ok and what do you want me to do?"
She said: "I want you to end my pregnancy, and I'm counting on your help with this.'"
 

The doctor thought for a little, and after some silence he said to the lady: "I think I have a better solution for your problem. It's less dangerous for you too."

She smiled, thinking that the doctor was going to accept her request.

Then he continued: "You see, in order for you not to have to take care of two babies at the same time, let's kill the one in your arms. This way, you could rest some before the other one is born. If we're going to kill one of them, it doesn't matter which one it is. There would be no risk for your body if you chose the one in your arms."

The lady was horrified and said: "No doctor! How terrible! It's a crime to kill a child!"

"I agree", the doctor replied. "But you seemed to be OK with it, so I thought maybe that was the best solution."

The doctor smiled, realizing that he had made his point.

He convinced the mom that there is no difference in killing a child that's already been born and one that's still in the womb.

The crime is the same!

----------
"Love says I sacrifice myself for the good of the other person. Abortion says I sacrifice the other person for the good of myself..."

Jesus sacrificed Himself for the good of sinners! That's perfect love!

Running the race and finishing it

"Let us run with patience the race that is set before us." --Hebrews 12:1

“I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith “ --2 Timothy 4:7

As We Finish The Race
By Julius M. Tajale

The ending week of March is a week full of the culminating activities of the school year called graduation.  Graduation marks the end of a one school year of endeavor in order to gain knowledge.  It is during this time when those that performed well during the year are recognized and awarded.   It is a time of victory.

Our Christian life runs similar to our schooling.  There will come a time when our life here on earth will come to an end, and we will graduate from this earthly life.  It is during this time that we face our Creator, our Lord Jesus to present what transpired with our life.  It is during this time that we are rewarded of our obedience to our Lord Jesus.

Paul clearly pointed out three aspects of the verse in 2 Timothy 4:7:

a. Fighting the good fight;
b. Finishing the course;
c. Keeping the faith.

Fighting The Good Fight

Fighting the good fight is fighting a worthy opponent with vigor according to the rules.  We have to journey through our Christian  life within the bounds of God’s moral laws.  This means no “illegal” acts even if we are in a situation wherein we are pushed in the corner.

We have to bear in mind that, no matter what happens, we should stay within the bounds of God’s moral law.  Our pursuit of success could somehow tempt us to do “illegal” acts, we should be careful with this.  Because life here on earth is full of choices and uncertainties, we need the guidance of our Lord Jesus Christ as we run the race.

Finishing The Course

Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, laid out a path for each one of us the moment we believe in Him as our Lord and Savior.  This is the course that each one of us has to follow as we journey through our Christian life.  Each one of us has a course of our own, laid out by God and is composed of straight paths, curved paths, uphill and downhill paths, and dangerous hillside paths.  The different conditions of our course define our training, the role that God is giving us in His big plan, and the victories that we will experience as we journey through our Christian life.  We need to follow it diligently without short cuts.  Taking short cuts will put you off-track, you can be lost or expose yourself to danger.  This means we have to face the good times and bad times with the help of and guidance of our Lord Jesus.

Keeping The Faith

The race or journey that we go through is like a relay race.  The baton should be in to the finish line along with the runner in order to win the race. It is similar to life.  We started off with our Christian life journey with our faith in Jesus Christ. We should carry this faith within us all through out the journey, and bring it with us when we finally face our great God and Creator.

----------

The video shown above is a trailer of the movie "Thelma" directed by a young talented Christian director. The movie opens in theater on September 7, 2011. A must see movie for the youth of today.

"Thelma" is a story of a simple young girl from the province named Thelma (played by Maja Salvador) whose family is beset with challenges when she discovers her uncanny gift of speed. Her talent then opens doors for her – to elevate her family’s situation and change the course of her own life. But to do that she will have to run- against all obstacles, against personal hindrances, against shadows from her past, and against her own self-doubts.

"Some people run away from their problems. Thelma ran to fix them."