My Torch of Testimony of God's abounding grace

Monday, April 18, 2005

if only i could scream (but can't...got terrible cough)

if only i could run away (nope...still have my ankle swollen...corny!)

if only i could not think about studies

if only i could go to church without any worries

if only i could watch TV or surf the net without having in mind to memorize something

if only i could do those things...

then life would never be challenging. it's like you're living lifelessly (huh?). wa kwenta. and i guess this is not possible to happen to any person because God will not give you an easy road. you will always encounter one hardship every now and then so God will see to it that you're clinging to Him--and not to anything/anyone else. i guess some of you may think that God may be enjoying the scene where we're all helpless and vulnerable; but hey, this is the best way that the Lord prepares us for a higher calling. another thing is that he wants us to possess the qualities that would make ourselves enter His Kingdom.

take note: good works are secondary to what God wants us to do in order for us to have eternal life in Heaven. well, doing charity and doing good to other people isn't enough for us to be saved. Siyempre, para hindi tayo makapag-mayabang bago tayo papasukin dun. this could be the probable scene before entering heaven:

"why do you deserve to be in heaven?"

"'coz i gave money and all my possessions to the poor, donated at different charities to the best of my capacity, did good to other people, went to church and many others! i guess you can check on my video tape since i heard you record the things we do way back when we're alive. i was gooood man! i was good!"

"uh-huh...uh-huh...i get ya. mmmmm.....what else? don't you think there's a better and im certain that most of the people here will agree of that ONE, SPECIFIC, ESSENTIAL reason why we should let you in?"

"nnnnnnnnope! not a hunch."

it's up to you guys how will that tragically end (ooops, i spilled a bit on that sentence!). you know, your religion won't matter to God. so what if you go to church and do their traditions and go by their rules if your personal relationship with the Lord is not growing? definitely we should do the ones i have mentioned above but giving all of us to Him, realizing that we're nothing without Him, serving Him the best way we can, knowing God more by reading and meditating His Word so we can know His plan in our lives...are the things that we should focus on.

i don't know if we've been through with this thought with my past entries several times but i deeply desire to tell you guys that eternity is what we should look forward to. oo nga, you have lived your life to the fullest here on earth pero ang tanong eh, saan ka pupunta after your life here on earth?

we all know that Jesus died on the cross at the Calvary for us...to save us because of His great love for everyone; and that we should declare unto Him, that we're sinners, we're opening our hearts to let God be the Lord of our lives, let Him change us to become more in His likeness and most of all, saying that we're accepting His gift of eternal life in heaven.

isn't that just wonderful?

God's servant blogged @ | 12:45 AM

Sunday, April 03, 2005

Here's my testimony that i posted in our Yahoo Group from the recent summer camp that i attended. it was extremely a great experience! Here it is:

for me, the 2005 Youth Aflame camp was........

+ exhausting

+ exhilirating

+ challenging (to the nth power!)

+ a humbling experience (esp to the leaders of Galatians, Ephesiansand Philippians)

+ amazing

+ awesome

+ cool

+ physically afflicting (got minor ankle sprain but im ok now)

+ very emotional

+ spiritually rejuvinating

+ fulfilling

+ a training ground for everyone

+ another chapter to add in the hearts of every youth who came

+ a bonding moment with other Christians ("rebonding" accdg to the Philippians team)

+ a memorable moment to rekindle the fire for Jesus

there's no single adjective or noun could ever describe the recent event. i personally considered it as a learning experience becausethis was the camp that i ever led a team. nakalagay na nga sa taas na i was humbled and it taught me to become more responsible in one way or another kasi kung hindi ka kikilos, sino pa? eh mga bata pamga kasama ko sa group at (sisingit lang ng joke) ako pa pinakamatanda sa kanila (huhuhuhu). sensya guys kung naging strict ako ha. inamin niyo naman before mag-camp na pasaway kayong mga napunta sa group ko. mahal ko kayo EPHESIANS!!!
ok, back to my serious talk. nakakatuwa at naging very emotional ako nung last night namin. that was the time when we had a "prophetic act" according to tita amie. at first, kuya mike and ate ca washed the feet of the other members of core---ate cet, donna and kuya arjun. then hinugasan nila kuya mike, ate ca, ate cet, donna yung feet ng leaders and asst leaders ng each team (EPHESIANS - me and daniel, GALATIANS - arra and maui, PHILIPPIANS - pj and kate). tapos we leaders washed the feet of our members. grabe, i cried (pero mukhang ako lang ata naiyak nun kaya di ako gaano humagulhol) tapos yung song pa, "Make Me A Servant". i felt that title lang yung "leaders/asst leaders", humility talaga ang gustong ituro sa amin ni Lord pati taking a bigger responsibility and handling it while He is molding us more into His image. i also learned here na huwag maging pasaway sa pagtulog. sa mga previous camp, pwedeng matulog ako whenever i want. ngayon, kailangan ako manggigising sa mga ka-grupo ko. ang hirap, promise! ang lamig pa ng weather! i missed the tent-hoppings that i usually do during the past campings...kaya pag gabi lang ako especially nung last night lang ako naka-hang out sa tents ng Galatians andPhilippians. ilang minutes lang yun! hindi ko kasi maiwanan mga groupmates ko...di bali sana kung mga ka-edad ko lang, medyo maiiwan-iwanan ko.
sorry ha, mahaba na...pero konti na lang talaga!
and oh...who could ever forget I COULD SING OF YOUR LOVE FOREVER??! im sure na-boost ang confidence ng bawat youth dahil they were given an opportunity to grab the mic and sing the chorus. sana all of us would never be ashamed of singing our hearts out to the Lord Almighty. tipong mangangawit na yung leeg and arms niyo pati ma-strain ang voices niyo. hehe. above all, i wanna give praise and give back all the glory to our Heavenly Father...Who never fails to give us grace and blessing. He has blessed us with 35 youth members to experience His love, comfort, and joy. sana magpatuloy sila sa Panginoon and i pray na they will be eager and excited to attend youth fellowships/activities; hindi lang yung the activities alone lang are the things that they look forward to.
GLORY TO GOD!!!
see ya next camp!
God bless!

God's servant blogged @ | 6:10 PM