A Bad News World

Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land. - Proverbs 25:25

Have you noticed how little "good news" there is anymore in a bad news world? It is not without reason that we refer to the Gospel as "The Good News!"

Firstly, it tells you that God is concerned with you. This is in contrast to how life today leaves you with the impression that there are few who care about what happens to you.

Secondly, it promised an end to the problems confronting the world. The Bible says that God is in control. Reading the book of Revelation reveals the eventual return of the Prince of Peace to rule and reign. It says there is a limit to how far God will allow humanity to go; He'll eventually step in and say, " That's enough."

Finally, it tells you that y our life can be different. That is the bad news of all. With God, there is forgiveness and help. You need not be a victim of your failure and sin or live in bondage to the hostilities that imprison. You can be a new person with a hope and a future.

Read the Bible. There you'll find the best news you will ever get.

-from "Just for Today" by Harold J. Sala

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When Suffering, Trust God

Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him
Job 13:15

When we cannot trace God's hand," wrote Charles Haddon Spurgeon, "we can always trust God's heart." We all have times that confront us when we can see neither rhyme nor reason in what is happening. Why God allows the circumstances is not always clear.

When we have unanswered questions, we can curse God and blame Him--or turn to Him and let the trial drive us closer to him. G. Campbell Morgan once said that any suffering would be bearable if we could only understand the reason for it. Yet faith is trusting Him--without doubt or bitterness--even when we cannot understand.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones." (Proverbs 3:5-8)

taken from " Just for Today" by Harold J. Sala

Scriptures Telling Us To Be Courageous

"Be of good courage." (Numbers 13:20)

The failure of 10 of the spies to obey this commandment cost them their lives and cost the Israelites 40 long years in the wilderness.

Deut 31:6 "Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you."

We are not permitted to fear our spiritual or natural enemies because Almighty God is the One who goes with us. He will not leave us or forsake us.

Deut 31:7 The Moses called Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, "Be strong and of good courage, for you must go with this people to the land which the LORD has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall cause them to inherit it.

Anyone called to bring God's people into their inheritance must be strong and of good courage. And God is expecting us to win!

Deut 31:23 Then He inaugarated Joshua the son of Nun, and said, "Be strong and of good courage; for your shall bring the children of Israel into the land of which I swore to them, and I will be with you."

Again the idea that we must be couageous because God is with us.

Jos 1:6 Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.

Jos 1:7 Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.

Jos 1:9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."

God repeated this a lot to Joshua. He needed to hear it often and so do we!

Jos 1:18 Whoever rebels against your command and does not heed your words, in all that you command him, shall be put to death. Only be strong and of good courage.

Now the people of Israel are also telling Joshua they expect him to be courageous. The people of God have a right to expect this from their leaders.

Jos 10:25 Then Joshua said to them, "Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed; be strong and of good courage, for thus the LORD will do to all your enemies against whom you fight."

The people of God are commanded to be strong and of good courage also. God will destroy our enemies against whom we fight, so why not be courageous?

Using Time

You can spend your time, invest your time or even waste your time. It's your choice.

We all have exactly 24 hours a day. No more; no less. No one else is forcing you to do anything. You only commit to things because you choose to; so, your schedule reveals your priorities. Examine your schedule, and you might be surprised when you discover what your priorities turn out to be.

Instead of scheduling your priorities around your life, you ought to schedule your life around your priorities.

What should those priorities be? In Matthew 6:33, Jesus says, "Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." Of the Ten Commandments, the very first commandment God gave was: "You shall have no other gods before me." The Bible is clear: God should be our number one -- most important -- priority.

In John 15:1-4, Jesus talks about pruning off things that produce no fruit. That is, he tells us to cut off anything that does not have meaningful, eternal value, which means that we are to get rid of anything that doesn't further our relationship with God. Clearly, God doesn't want to be number ten on a list of top ten priorities. In fact, God really doesn't even want to be number one on a list of ten; God wants to be number one on a list of one!

You could spend or waste your time doing meaningless things; or you could invest your time in order to achieve maximum eternal impact.

When you seek God as the only thing you need, he will take care of everything else (see Matthew 6:33). In Luke 10:38-42, we learn the story of Mary and Martha. As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." That's what it means to seek the only meaningful, eternal thing -- God.

Therefore, prune your life. List practical ways that you can cut out the junk in your life in order to focus on knowing God better, seeking him and knowing his word and his truth. That's the only thing needed -- that's how you invest your time wisely.

-from Christ notes

Should You Be Nice To People You Can't Stand?

published from Cebu Daily News, April 24, 2008

There are literally dozens of ways that people get under each other's skin. Greed, laziness, or just plaid rudeness are all character traits that cause people lots of problems in their personal and professional relationships. It may seem like a struggle to put on your best face when confronted by those who bring us grief. But there are some really significant reasons why it's preferable to treat even the most aggravating people with kindness and respect. In fact, you just may be surprised how the age-old adage about "catching more flies with honey than vinegar" holds a lot of validity. The next time someone you know or (don't know personally) displays his/her worst side, you might want to rethink how you react.

What goes around comes around......
You needn't be an overly religious person to understand that in life, very often the behaviours you exhibit in the world, you ultimately experience yourself at one time or another. Since this goes for both the good and the bad, it would behoove anyone to take the "higher ground" as often as possible. The bottom line is that as much as we'd like to seek revenge upon those who cause us harm, we frequently end up harming ourselves more by doing so. One reason is because it usually requires more effort to do something negative than positive. In addition to that, negative responses typically beget negative results -- even if the other person happens to have been in the wrong first. Consequently, it's fairly difficult to "retaliate" against someone whose intentions are pleasant.

Chain reaction
Being kind to those who profoundly bother us has some other benefits. Studies have shown that human behavior itself has "contagious" effects. Think of the rubbernecking that usually goes on after a terrible highway accident. Most of the time, the wreckage has already been cast to the side; but even after the roads become passable, onlookers will continue to clog the area. It's understandable for a hideous spectacle to attract lots of attention. But in most cases, the wreckage isn't terribly extraordinary. In many cases, people choose to slow down and gawk because they see other drivers doing so. Believe it or not, the same principles apply to their behaviors. For example, let's say that a person on your job consistently brings you grief. By treating him/her with kindness, he/she may have the epiphany that his/her actions were ultimately uncalled for. Furthermore, others who see you deflecting the negative behavior may catch on, thus reducing the amount of negativity around. You may also be pleasantly surprised by the way your actions set an example for others. Remember, positive energy is often just as contagious as negative energy.

Personal peace
Perhaps the most important thing you can do for yourself in the face of adversaries is maintain your own sense of peace. On many occasions, people are simply pleased by watching your feathers get ruffled. It brings malicious people a feeling of empowerment to believe that they are capable of altering someone's good nature. By refusing to allow someone to disturb your "inner sanctum" you have just won a major battle. Responding in kind to someone's flip remarks give you the silent upper hand. And it just may prevent that person from attempting to thwart your good mood (or that of others) in the future.

The human factor
It's incredibly difficult sometimes to adjust your mode of thinking where it regards ill-mannered people. But perhaps the most crucial thing to remember about those individuals that cause us distress is that they are still human beings. Believe it or not, there are reasons why people seemingly go out their way to make other's miserable. You need to put someone under a psychological microscope to conclude that certain aspects of their life circumstance figure into their poor attitudes. Nonetheless, everyone has something positive about them than can be acknowledged by others. By seeking out and highlighting their strengths or achievements (instead of stooping to their level) you just may find your "enemies" more tolerable. Sometimes people need to be reminded of the good parts of themselves in order for them to be relieved of their own negative feelings. Mind you, this doesn't mean that you need to go out of your way to analyze and "cure" others. But the mere act of deflecting poor behavior with kindness has, quite an undeniable and irresistible power.

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Changing your life

"You'll never change your life until you change choices."

If you want something in your life to change, then you'll have to change your choices and actions. That is because doing the same thing will never get you different results. In other words, what you do - the choices you make, the way you treat people, the attitudes you have - all impact your life. If, by your actions, you're sowing bad seeds, then you'll reap a harvest of those things." (weekly wisdom from christ notes)

I have always been praying and pleading to God to change my life - the current situation I have in now. I thought God does not listen to my prayers that's why answers never came. Almost everyday as I wake up, I hope that He could magically change everything. Until I stumble upon this article which enlightened me that I could never change my life if I still have the same attitude, the same actions, the same choices.

If I want to change my life completely and free me out of this situation, then I should make the right decision, the right choices so I can never be out of the path I want to take. What we are now is because the choices we make. We can never put the blame to anybody else but to ourselves. We reap what we sow.