The Call

(Now playing...)

“Don't wanna go back Lord to the way I used to live, the way I used to live..
I won't go back Lord to the way I used to be before you rescue me..”

images.google.com

“Where am I?

“What am I doing here!?

“ I've seen this place for almost nineteen years, like how others have seen it and how they see it now. Broken hearts, broken families, poverty, exclusive education, discrimination, corruption, shame, slavery, wickedness, masks, pretensions, deceptions, hidden agendas -- these are what I've seen in this place. I just don’t understand why many people want to live here. This place is very dark but everyone enjoys it, and they’re so much afraid of the light. But.. wait, why am I here, too?”

By then, I found myself lost. I was lost because I didn't know where I belong. I was lost because I realized that someone owns me and I’m separated from him.

“I don’t want to live here anymore!!!”

Right after that, someone was calling me. I paused for a while, feeling the awakening in my soul that I have to answer the call. And I answered it. I recognized that voice. I was right. The one who called was my Father. He called to say that He was looking for me and He was the one who found me in that place. He didn't want me to live there. And I knew in myself that He still loves me and He wanted me to come back to Him. He said that I don’t belong to that place. Tears fell from my eyes because I was so ashamed of everything I did there. I did what the people there did. I had fun to the extent of trying to gain everything and allowing my soul to perish. But my value in His eyes is still the same. I’m still the same person He created fearfully and wonderfully. I said, “Father, forgive me. I am no longer worthy to be called your daughter. Forgive me.” But He is like no other, He lifted me up and little did I know that He’s just waiting for me all the time.

Now I’m back at home. The happiness and peace that I have now in my life cannot be compared to that fun that I felt before. I am totally changed and continually changing from the inside out. I met my brothers and sisters who always bring out the best in me by bringing out the worst in me. From someone who always brags about everything that she has, she who was religious, selfish, annoying, disobedient, and irresponsible, and she who thought life was all about her, into a person who was like slapped on the face as a wake-up call to change -- is me.

The greatest decision that I have ever made in my life was to accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior.

I was named Jane, and now I know who I am. I am His princess.

I'm not good but because of the blood of Jesus, I was clothed with righteousness. I'm not great. I am a just a child of a great God.

The culture of Christ is the culture of my life. And now I am busy about my Father’s business. I am now part of His team that reaches out people who still live in that place. I am a disciple and I am a cell leader. Life is never about me but it’s all about Him.

I am what He says I am. I can be what He says I can be. I can do what He says I can do.

^27” My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. ²⁸ I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.” John 10:27-28

I HAVE A QUESTION: ARE YOU STILL THERE?

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Amazing!

While I was on my way to the entrance of PICC Forum, I noticed two people -- a boy and a girl -- looking at the sky. The boy was pointing out something to the girl while looking above, which also turned my eyes into what they are looking at. Oh. I see. It was just this. Well, it's light surrounded by dark shades of clouds. Dawn, right? It's the sun saying goodbye to the day.

I was listening then to, of course, a worship song "You Are Faithful". And I just kept thinking about Jesus -- how good He is, how amazing He is, how beautiful and faithful He is! I just enjoyed that moment with God while walking to the entrance. The moment I saw that boy and that girl talking about something, I thought their conversation goes like this: 

Girl: "Siguro ganyan kapag dadating na si Lord noh! Heavens will open!"

Boy: "Tapos kukunin na tayo! Hehehe!"

Funny, but somehow, true. :) I cannot take my eyes off the sky. Thoughts kept brewing in my mind. Heavens. Jesus. God. Glory. Goodness. Everything. Shapes. Faces on the sky. Then, suddenly, I stopped for a while when I saw this face. 

WOW. GLORIOUS!

IN MY MIND WAS: JESUS, CROWNED WITH THORNS, AT THE CROSS.

AT THE CROSS. AT THE CROSS. AT THE CROSS. JESUS.

I didn't let this moment to just pass away. I wanted to treasure what I saw. I took a picture of it. BEAUTIFUL. AMAZING. It reminded me again of what Jesus did 2000 years ago on the cross to fulfill the purpose of the Father -- to pay for the penalty of our sins by His blood in able to restore our relationship with God.

Can you also see what I see?

"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only begotten Son that if whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life." - John 3:16

Hari ng Pick-Up... Siya nga!

Pick up lines? Talaga naman! Usong uso pa din ngayon kahit matagal nang nauso!

Parang eto,

"Miss, kapuso ka ba?" (Bakit?)

"Sabi kasi ng nanay ko, gusto ka raw niyang maging kapamilya!"

Eto pa isa,

"Huwag kang masyadong malikot ha?" (Bakit?)

"Baka kasi matabig mo 'yung puso ko... mahulog sa'yo."

Dalawa lang 'yan sa marami pang cheesy/corny/banat pick up lines na napauso sa panahon natin ngayon.

At ngayon nga, Ogie Alcasid a.k.a. Boy Pick Up is so sikat and trending nowadays, right? Those nonsense lines that really catch the attention of the public. Walang konek pero bentang benta ano! Tama? :) Pero actually, wala naman siyang kinalaman sa post na 'to. Hihi.

Gusto ko lang malaman mo na.. pambihira! Hindi pa pala siya ang hari ng pick up!

Oo hindi siya!

May idea ka ba kung sino??

Well, none other than our Lord Jesus Christ. :D

Siguro nagtataka ka, talaga? Weh? Pa'no?

I arrived late at work today because I've been in a conference -- "Luzon G12 Regional Conference: Paint The Town Red". The first day was BOOM!!! And I just wanna share this thing about pick up line that one of the pastors there had shared.

Since uso nga ang pick-up-an, he told us that, don't we know that there is someone na mas magaling pa magpick up line kesa kay Boy Pick Up? At siya nga ay si Jesus. :)

Eto yung pinakamatindeng pick up. Pwede mong sabihing cheesy pick up line or banat, but for me, it's a LIFE CHANGING pick up line!

I just don't know, but men, if you know and love Jesus, I don't know how will you feel. :)


Jesus: "Miss, uhaw ka ba?"

Woman: "Bakit...?"

Jesus: (with the most gentle........ soothing......... relaxing........ heavenly........... voice that you could ever hear) "Kasi... TUBIG Ako.." :)

Wow! Boom!!! Goosebumps!! Knowing that these modernly translated words ay hindi inimbento ni Pastor Carlo Panlilio, kundi galing mismo sa Bible!

John 4, when Jesus talks to a woman in Samaria..

Why don't you guys check this out and see?? ..how Jesus talked to the Samaritan woman and how she responded to Jesus. C'mon take time!

Jesus Talks to a Woman in Samaria [John 4:5-19]

In Samaria Jesus came to the town called Sychar, which is near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there. Jesus was tired from his long trip, so he sat down beside the well. It was about noon. A Samaritan woman came to the well to get some water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.” This happened while his followers were in town buying some food.

The woman answered, “I am surprised that you ask me for a drink! You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman!” (Jews have nothing to do with Samaritans.)

Jesus answered, “You don’t know what God can give you. And you don’t know who I am, the one who asked you for a drink. If you knew, you would have asked me, and I would have given you living water.”

The woman said, “Sir, where will you get that living water? The well is very deep, and you have nothing to get water with. Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob? He is the one who gave us this well. He drank from it himself, and his sons and all his animals drank from it too.”

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again. But anyone who drinks the water I give will never be thirsty again. The water I give people will be like a spring flowing inside them. It will bring them eternal life.”

The woman said to Jesus, “Sir, give me this water. Then I will never be thirsty again and won’t have to come back here to get more water.”

Jesus told her, “Go get your husband and come back.”

The woman answered, “But I have no husband.”

Jesus said to her, “You are right to say you have no husband. That’s because, although you have had five husbands, the man you live with now is not your husband. That much was the truth.”

The woman said, “Sir, I can see that you are a prophet."

And I want to share to you this short video.. that Pastor Carlo shared in the conference.. with the song "How did you know?" I know that this speaks for all of us...

And you'll see yourself in that woman, that at one point in your life, you were also THIRSTY, searching for something that can ease your thirst.. for a desperate need-- love, affection, and anything... and unexpectedly, someone came.... at the right place, at the right time... JESUS, the living water!

Which are you?

I can do all this through him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13

A young woman went to her mother and told her how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved a new one arose.


Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water. In the first, she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs and the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil without saying a word. In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl.


Turning to her daughter, she asked, “Tell me what you see?” “Carrots, eggs, and coffee,” she replied.


She brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. She then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, she asked her to sip the coffee. The daughter tasted its rich aroma.


The daughter then asked. “What does it mean, mother?”


Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity—boiling water—but each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard and unrelenting. After being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior. But, after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water they had changed the water.


“Which are you?” she asked her daughter. “When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity, do you wilt and become soft and lose your strength? Or are you an egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Do you have a fluid spirit, but after a loved-one’s death, a relationship breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have you become hardened and stiff? Does your shell look the same, but on the inside you are bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and a hardened heart? Or are you like a coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If I am like the bean, when things are at their worst, I get better and change the situation around me through Christ-likeness.


My brothers and sisters, you will have many kinds of trouble. But this gives you a reason to be very happy. You know that when your faith is tested, you learn to be patient in suffering. If you let that patience work in you, the end result will be good. You will be mature and complete. You will be all that God wants you to be. -James 1:2-4


When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate to another level? How do you handle adversity?

RESPONSE: Christians are like carrots, eggs or coffee beans. They don’t know how strong their response is until they get into hot water. Which are you?


PRAYER: Lord, help me realize that every experience You give me, every person You put in my path, is the perfect preparation only You can see.


Standing Strong Through The Storm (SSTS)
A daily devotional message by SSTS author Paul Estabrooks


© 2011 Open Doors International. Used by permission

Wildsons Wildsons! Ano ba 'yan?!

WildSONs: The New Breed of Youth Party!

[ A Descriptive (Event) Feature ]

Nowadays, most of the young people are engaged in worldly pleasures such as bar hopping or going to night parties, drinking liquors and will go home wasted.

Those things are becoming normal in the modern times. But what they don’t know is they are exchanging the worth of their time in insignificant things. That’s why most of the youth don’t grow.

But there is one party that surely won’t get you drunk, won’t get you lost, and won’t get you wasted!

The super hyper youth party experience that I’m talking about is WildSONs or Wild Seeds Of the Nation! It is a youth gathering held in Cinema 5, Isetann Cinerama Complex, Recto every week from Wednesdays to Fridays with two service times every day from 3:00pm to 4:30pm and 4:30pm to 6:00pm. It is attended mostly by students from U-Belt 1 and U-Belt 2 such as PUP, FEU, RTU, TUP, PNU, PLM, Adamson, CEU and many more.

It is a service where the young people can experience the overflowing goodness and love of God in a very lively way!

First, there’s an icebreaker (sort of games and challenges) that also helps enhance the skills and thinking of the youth and helps boost their confidence, and for them to gain new friends as well!

Then there’s a band or called the praise and worship team that ministers and leads the youth to worship God through music. “There will be dancing, there will be singing, upon injustice we will tell of our God,” as the Christian song ‘The Hope of All Hearts’ says.

For the regular attendees, it’s already normal seeing them in a fashion of dancing and rocking out, praising and worshipping Jesus; but their common experience somewhat leaves a shock to new comers or they call them first timers, putting them into two categories – shocked new comers who are new to it and remain clueless of what’s happening; and shocked new comers joining in the hype in which the lyrics of the songs may also affect them. Either way, there is power in praise and worship because it sets the ground for people to ready their hearts upon receiving the Word.

After the praise and worship session follows a short teaching and prayer for giving thus giving way to the preaching delivered by a pastor.

This is the peak of the gathering; the most awaited; the most talked about – the Word. In every service, there’s a topic that is relevant to the youth and is always based on God’s Word. That’s why the youth attendees can always relate to what is being preached. It may be about and be applied to their studies, family, peers, ministry, love life or personal life.

Everything is rooted in the Word of God – in the Bible. And that’s how it really strikes the hearts of the young people that also gives them time to reflect and evaluate their selves while listening to the preaching.

As the preaching ends, there follows an altar call for those who came for the first time, telling what Christ has done for all of us, and inviting them to go to the front to show their selves to God as a symbol of response to His call. Then the pastor will be leading the prayer for them to accept Jesus Christ and make Him the Lord and personal Savior of their lives, not just to have a commitment to the church or to the organization or event, but a commitment to God. And that is the greatest decision that one should make in his/her life.

Then they will be welcomed by the regulars for them to feel the belongingness, that in WildSONs, they are one family, one church (people), and one body of Christ.

Before the gathering event ends, there will be a victory song as praise and thanksgiving and a way to bless our God as He blesses the young people by His Word. As they glorify God, you will witness the wildest and craziest people – singing, dancing, and jumping in an undignified praise!

If in a normal party, you’ll get drunk and tired, there in WildSONs, you’ll experience the hype of the party as never before! It empowers, strengthens, and uplifts your spirit! It is one of God’s tools to renew you and change your life!

WildSONs then is a party for God and a life-changing event which has a vision to win souls and make disciples, and has a goal to make every believer a leader of leaders, all for one purpose – to love God and to love people!

Secured Leader Ka Ba?

We had our PUP SONS Cell Leaders' meeting last Friday, Jan.6, 2012. And I just want to share the things and points that one of pastors in church, Pastor Jhun Montaño, shared about one's leadership - an extraordinary leadership. Not just being a leader in school or in an organization, but being a CELL LEADER! 


For me, CELL LEADERS ARE CARETAKERS OF SOULS ENTRUSTED BY GOD TO THEM. They are like parents to them, helping them grow in relationship with God, equipping them in truth and discipling them to be more and more like Jesus, and double-portions of them.


And ikaw, I know that God also wants you to be a leader. And I know you can be one if you know that you are not just an average student or an ordinary person, but a great leader that can do extraordinary things for this nation, and that's what will make you an EXTRAORDINARY LEADER!
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Isaiah 40:30-31
Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

@googleimages

Kung leader ka na, secured ka na ba sa calling ni God sa'yo na maging isang LEADER?
Tanggap mo na ba na isa ka na talagang CELL LEADER?


You know those leaders out there na bumibigay na lang? Sila ay ang mga hindi secured sa calling ni God sa kanila.




If you are secured in the calling of God to you, you'll overcome every adversity that will come!
Before you will be promoted by God, you will be first tested. Pag marami ka bang personal problems, secured ka pa ba sa leadership mo?


"LAHAT BA NG NAGSIMULA, NAGTAPOS?"
Maraming nagsimula pero hindi lahat nagtapos.


Here are some HABITS TO BE A SECURED LEADER:


1. DON'T COMPARE YOURSELF. NEVER!
    Stand out. Many leaders are invisible because they are not remarkable.
    (Remarkable - you're not looking for attention, you're just unleashing your potential)
    PURPLE ka ba? Meaning, kakaiba! Lutang! Nagsastand out! Yung tipong pag darating ka, makukuha mo atensyon nila!
    Bakit purple? Kasi hindi ordinary color. Hindi ka ordinary.
    Purple ka ba?? (tignan mo, pansinin di ba?)


    Aim for the top! Begin to see your uniqueness! Begin to stand out of the crowd. Be a purple student! Don't be invisible!
    Pansinin ka 'pag kakaiba ka!


2. SUCCESS IS NOT IN NUMBERS.
    Tama ba 'pag sinabing leader, may follower?
    Pero bakit ang eagle laging ginagamit na symbol for being a leader? It's because eagles are remarkable. It always flies by itself.
    It doesn't have any crowd or followers. An eagle can lead itself.


    Never allow your leadership to be based on numbers.
    Your leadership  does not depend on your numbers but on how you lead yourself.
    Yourself is your greatest follower. The person that you need to beat is yourself! Sarili mo muna bago ang iba! You cannot give what you do not have. Kung sarili mo hindi mo malelead, how can you lead others?


    Say this: "I will multiply this year because I will lead myself!" :)
    And don't make your leader your babysitter!
    LEARN TO LEAD YOURSELF. BE DEPENDENT ON GOD.
    BEGIN TO STRETCH YOUR WINGS AND BEGIN TO STRENGTHEN YOUR PERIMETER AS A LEADER!
    (securing your character and personal life)


3. DON'T PANIC!
    ..from the pains and pressures! 
    OFFENSE-PROOF ka na ba? :)
    The person who can handle the pressure does not panic! TRUE VALUES are revealed every time there is pressure.
    Lagi mong sinasabi, "I am a disciple!" Pero kapag nandyan na yung pressure - problema sa pera, sa pamilya, sa studies, may umaaligid pang gwapo/maganda.. DISCIPLE KA PA BA? :)
    And.. BE COOL! Walang eagle na nagpanic! :D


4. SURROUND YOURSELF WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE.
    Sumama ka sa mga tamang tao! Dumikit ka sa matinde! sa magagaling! dahil 'dun ka rin gagaling! Magpahawa ka ng galing sa kanila! Gagaling ka pa kung secured leader ka.


    Pero hindi ibig sabihin nun na hindi ka na sasama sa iba. Hindi mo lang isusurround yung sarili mo with the right people, kundi ikaw rin, magiging RIGHT PERSON.
    ARE YOU WILLING TO BE THE RIGHT PERSON? :)


5. KEEP BUILDING AN ALTAR FOR THE LORD.
    Keep building the kingdom of God and not your own kingdom!
    DON'T BE POSSESSIVE. Pinagkatiwala lang sa'yo ang mga alaga mo! Hindi dugo mo ang  pumatak para sa kanila. :) DUGO NI KRISTO!
    OFFER EVERYTHING TO THE LORD! :)


   GOD NEEDS SECURED LEADERS!
  Isa ka ba sa kanila? :)

The Process of Being Christ-Like

The Process of Being Christ-Like

"Being a Christian is more than just an instantaneous conversion -- it is a daily process whereby you grow to be more and more like Christ." - Billy Graham\

A Christian who is not a disciple is not a Christian. A true Christian is a disciple of Christ. That’s why it is called CHRIST-ian. That is, a person being a "Christian" without being a "disciple," is another one of Satan's lies.

This lie from Satan tries to cover the reality that a person who claims to be a "Christian" but lives an unholy life is not a Christian at all.

Many people today "claim" to be "Christians" even if they are not.  This is mainly caused by all the false preaching and diluted gospels that make people think that they are saved when they are not (a favourite plot of Satan).  Then these false believers try to live the "Christian" life but cannot do so, because they do not have the Holy Spirit within them, therefore they are still slaves to Satan and their sins.

A 3^rd year Bachelor in Business Teacher Education student from PUP, Isaiah Daniel Malde, who is also a Christian and a member of Jesus Is Lord church music ministry and youth ministry outreach, shares the process of being a Christian based from his devotional revelations as he spend his quality time with God every day.

He defined the processes of being a Christian as the ‘process of becoming Christ-like;’ that we were originally created in God’s image and likeness (Genesis 1:26). God created us to have a relationship with Him. But man is sinful and God is holy and so there is a separation between God and man. And because of the fall of man (Romans 3:23), we lost our identity. Then because of the great love of God for all of us, He entered into this world by sending His One and only Son Jesus Christ, to die and be a ransom for our sins. And as we accept and receive Him in our lives, we also regained our identity because Jesus is our identity for we are created in His image.

God gave us the gift of salvation. And to have that free gift, first, we must confess our sins and admit that we sinned against God. Second, accept Jesus by opening our hearts and believe that He died on the cross to justify and redeem us from our sins; to forgive us and give us life. Third, we have to humble down ourselves before God and make Jesus our Lord and Saviour, and allow Him to take control of our lives.

                Accepting Christ is being born again (2 Corinthians 5:17). And it doesn’t end there; it is 180degrees no-turning back and we totally die from our old selves. Accepting Him means we no longer live but it is Him (Christ) who lives in us (Galatians 2:20).

We should have a healthy relationship with God by having constant communication with Him through prayer and devotion, and meditate on His Word day and night (Joshua 1:8) for it is the best way to talk to God, to grow more in relationship with Him and be disciplined by Him. We should also have fellowship with other Christians (belonging to a church) and share God’s word and minister to people.

Every Christian goes through the process of maturity that includes pruning and testing. Then we get to understand that God commissioned us to make disciples (Matthew 28:19), be baptized to declare that we belong to Jesus, and to obey everything He has commanded us (Matthew 28:20), to undergo trainings to equip us and become a leader of leaders. Then we harvest through witnessing and consolidating the harvest. After that, we take good care of them so that they will become leaders like us.

To be more specific about the process of becoming a Christian or being Christ-like, let’s look unto the things Jesus did, (Matthew 4) Jesus prayed, fasted, tempted, and tested. He also considered the Word of God as his daily bread. That’s what Isaiah Daniel considered as the basics of early Christianity. (John 4:34) Jesus’ food is to obey the will of the Father, so then he prayed for the sick, did miracles, preached the good news, went to synagogues, had eating fellowship with people, He even introduced and practiced communion and giving, He became our good shepherd, he feed thousands of people, disciple them and gave them the great commission, but more importantly, Jesus gave his life for us all.

Everything Jesus did that was written in the Scriptures is the very processes, in detailed, that every Christian should undergo. For as Jesus is, and so we are in this world.

A Christian is simply a follower and disciple of Christ who embraces His teachings and assists in spreading it; a person who repents, believes, and submits to Christ, and obeys every Word of Him, a person who loves God and His people, and will multiply and duplicate more Christ-like people, and will raise up a generation that loves God.