Bem Blogs 'bout Bday

August 23rd is the day of my birthday.  Facebook messages started to come in the day before from friends and family in the Philippines.  As those messages would come, I wondered, "What is a good way to respond?"  Usually I don't think of birthdays so much (due to the bad macho and forgetful mentality that I have developed concerning it) but with my new found life in Christ I have a greater appreciation of it.  So I thought that it would be nice to "Blog 'Bout Bdays". 

When one thinks of their birthday, the first thing that comes to mind is another year of life.  This past year was one of the most challenging ones now that I think about it.  I applied, enrolled, enduring and enjoying  the Master's College.  My sister and I began to worship with SBCAC.  I started to work for the first time with graveyard hours.  I got to go to Philippines for a missions trip.  God has surely blessed me with experiences but none these are worth the experience if God was not the center.  All of these things have come to have eternal value because I know that these blessed experience came from Him, through Him and to Him.

So I am very thankful to the Lord for giving me another year of life.  If I am still on this earth, then He still has plans for me to proclaim Jesus Christ so that sinners would be forgiven and enjoy reconciliation with the Father.  I pray that all would have birthdays in which they can celebrate with our God which can only come through Jesus Christ.  So I hope that this blog is a blessing to those who read it. 

P.S  I know that there are others celebrating their birthdays on this week and so I would like to greet them a Happy Birthday:

Ben
Sabrina
Kevin
Joben
Kuya Yoyie
Allen
Skae

Enjoy another year.  Peace. 

Jude 17 - 23 DEFENSES UP

Today at SBCAC's (South Bay Christian Alliance Church) WNBS (Wednesday Night Bible Study), we went through the book of Jude verse 17 through 23.  The main theme of the study was that the church is called to defend themselves for there are evil men lurking within there mists.  In verses 4 - 16, Jude gives a description of such men so that believers may identify them.  In verse 17, they have come to know who these evil men are and they are being called to put up there defenses.  How does the church do that?  Jude shows them.

1. They are only able to pull up there defenses because they have experienced the love of God.  It is by God love that they are able have such a protection.
2. Acknowledging that they are empowered to defend themselves because of God they are then called to remember the teachings of Jesus which come through the words of His apostles.  
3. The next defense is to "keep yourselves in the love of God" (v. 21)  Believers so then ask "How do we keep ourselves in the love of God?"  Jude provides the answers to that.
• by building up our faith
• praying in the Holy Spirit
• wait for the mercy of Jesus Christ
4. We are not only called to defend ourselves but to also help others whose defense are down whose having doubt.

Church of Christ let us build up our defense by observing the commands that Jude gives us to protect us from the ungodly men who are lurking within our mists.


Here is the study if you have time to watch:
(Unavailable at the moment, but will be update ASAP or a link will be provided if the video cannot be posted on this blog)

Edge Up

On December 26th, 2011 I gave myself a haircut.  I have been doing it for quite a while since: 1.) It's free.  I would like to go to the barbershop but I just don't have a proper budget for it yet.  2.) I wanted to see if I can do it.  Anyways for this haircut I gave myself an edge up because my widow's peak was somewhat messy.  I ended up getting a messy edge up though.  Here is how it looks like:

(Taking a picture of yourself feels weird)

My little sister laughed and said that I had a big forehead.  My Ate said that my edge up isn't clean.  Anyways I just wanted to put this to give you a "head's up" that I will be trying to blog this year and more consistently.  Enjoy the New Year.

Best of the Best

In the beginning of the year, I wanted to do everything I could for the Church, my friends, my family, my school, and my own hobbies to the glory of God. I became very aggressive to be a server in anyway I could. As a sinner, I failed many times. Sometimes I collapsed because I could not keep up with the work. Sometimes I ignored the work because it was to difficult. But the one thing that stopped me was just the fact that it was too much.

Jonathan Edwards 27th resolution is about omitting the things that he could not do:

27. Resolved, never to omit anything, except the omission be for the glory of God; and frequently to examine my omissions.

He knew he was a man that can only take on so much. With this resolution he wanted to choose the best of the best that he saw fit that will glorify God the most.

"There were sermons to write, parishioners to shepherd, visits to make, individuals to counsel, letters to write, prayers to offer, books to read, and much more"

From Steve Lawson's book: The Unwavering Resolve of Jonathan Edwards.

With so much he wanted to do, he just choose those he could do to the fullest, and those that will glorify God the most. One example that Steve Lawson depicted was Jonathan Edwards choice to be a missionary for the Native Americans. He was kicked out of the Church over who can partake in the Lord's Supper. After that incident he could have gone to Scotland, or another place in the colonies. But he omitted those choices and became a missionary.

The foolish boy that I am, I thought I could be the most holiest person by taking on so many tasks. I was even warned of this by my discipleship group. One of them said(paraphrased), "You don't want to be the jack of all trades, but a master of one." Just seeing this as a resolution of Jonathan Edwards, shows me how humble a man he is. The man that brought the Great Awakening, is the man who knows he can not take on everything. May this realization bring me to humbleness and be more disciplined on even the work that I choose to do to the glory of God.

Pursing The Glory of God

My spring semester is ending Wednesday, May 19, 2010 and that is tomorrow. As far as school goes, my work disciplines could have been more focused at the tasks that were at hand. I'm not even sure if I'm passing some of my classes. I kept making sinful excuses to not put my best foot forward in my homework and classwork. But God revealed to me my weakness in my studies and has disciplined me in this aspect of my life.

Jonathan Edwards main goal was to glorify God. All of his resolutions were to keep him fixed on the glory of God. This goal of Jonathan Edwards should also be the main goal of a true believing Christian. Yet for us, we see this as a very difficult goal because of our sin. "Edwards realized that living for the glory of God could never be easy." From Steve Lawson's book, The Unwavering Resolved of Jonathan Edwards. But knowing God is more powerful then any sin, Jonathan Edwards pushed and worked hard to fight the sin in his life with his zeal to live to the glory of God. This was reflective from his resolutions.

This pursuit of God glory in my life has been a weak pursuit. I have been so selfish in my studies, so lazy in my ministries, that I can't even call it a pursuit. I should have know that this pursuit is suppose to be hard. This is fighting sin, this is working hard at all that I do. May this conviction push me more towards Christ likeness and towards the Glory of God.
As summer comes along my New Years Resolution has come to a point where it could be vanishing.

May this realization of God Glory become an eternal boost in my spiritual disciplines, and bring to life my New Year's resolution. I also challenge you who read my blog, to live out this amazing calling of pursuing the Glory of God.

A Blast from the Past: Johnathan Edwards

The first time I heard of Johnathan Edwards was at College and Career Bible Study at Kuya Erick's home. Mark P. was talking about Resolved which is a Conference and about Johnathan Edwards resolutions. I wasn't really into it much, during the time I didn't plan on going to that conference. In the sovereignty of God, He made me go and learned a little bit more of Johnathan Edwards. After a few months later, my spiritual maturity grew and I began to seek some Puritan's to study as part of my devotion. Johnathan Edwards name reappears at Shepherd's Conference and I decided to focus my Puritan study on Him.

My first reading of Johnathan Edwards is a book called "The Unwavering Resolve of Johnathan Edward" by Steve Lawson who is a great preacher and teacher of God's Word. The first thing I learn about Johnathan Edwards is his pursuit of holiness. Something that every Christian should also pursue. This study has caused me to look closely into my heart and my actions. I am not trying to idolize Pastor Edwards but I am trying to learn from his accomplishments and failures.

The book mentioned earlier organizes his 70 resolutions in these six headings:

1. Pursuing the Glory of God
2. Forsaking Sin
3. Making Proper Use of God-Allotted Time
4. Living with All His Being for the Lord
5. Pursuing Humility and Love
6. Making Frequent Self-Examination

I plan to challenge myself and anyone else who would like to partake, to use these 6 headings as building blocks for discipline towards holiness. May God be Glorified in this and praise God for all He has done for me even in this early study of Johnathan Edwards.

Discipline of Time

For some reason today I felt very sleepy and took about three naps. My first one was before school, I would drive to school early to get good parking. Then I would knock out so when I get to class, I'm rested but late. My second one was after that class. Instead of continuing to work on my project, I told my classmates, "Imma go take a nap." I went back to my car and took a very warm nap since it was during the afternoon. My last nap was at home while I was listening to Albert Mohler's podcast. It was titled "Christianity and Sports: Where's the Balance?"

When I wasn't napping I thought I was doing a lot of work. I was able to read the Bible, my devotional books, completed many drawing on AutoCAD, got to hang out with my classmates, exercise, visited my Nanay, and got a hair cut.

Even though I took three naps, I felt like I got many things accomplished. However that feeling of accomplishment changed after I did my book reading from "Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life". I was reading chapter eight and it was about stewardship. The first subtopic was about time and from what I read I feel like I shouldn't take naps anymore.

He gave ten biblical reason to discipline your time (Based from Johnathan Edward's Sermon on "The Preciousness of Time and the Importance of Redeeming it"):

1. Use time Wisely "Because the Days Are Evil"
2. Wise Use of Time Is the Preparation for Eternity
3. Time is Short
4. Time is Passing
5. The Remaining Time Is Uncertain
6. Time Lost Cannot Be Regained
7. You Are Accountable to God for Your Time
8. Time Is So Easily Lost
9. We Value Time at Death
10.Time's Value in Eternity

Those three naps where produced out of my sinful slothfulness. I could argue that I was really tired from before, but that just proves how undisciplined my time is. As I read through those 10 points, I felt so convicted that I had to write this blog. Time is a blessing and as Christians, we need to use it just a Jesus Christ did. Giving all to God and glorifying Him with the time given to us. There is no time in eternity, there's only glorifying a Holy God in heaven or suffering the wraith of God in hell. May those who don't believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, believe He can save you from the Wraith of God so that you may receive eternal life with Him while there is still time.