Re-Defining Christmas

Christmas is a month a way. The Christmas songs on the radio are playing more often. The night air is getting colder. Christmas lights and decor are being setup in the malls and shops around the area.

And the traffic has gotten worse.

But then again, Christmas is more than the mad dash to finish one's shopping, or the stress brought about by traffic, or the never ending stream of parties you want, don't want and are obliged to attend.
Christmas is beyond the eating and then the sudden zeal to shed all the pounds gained. Christmas is much more than the people who hand out envelopes in busses and jeepneys and give a spiel on how much it would mean to others to share your blessings. Particularly to them.

Christmas is waaaay more than all of that. It is deeper than those who complain about being single and alone during Christmas. Or how much you are wishing that you get this certain gadget or item.

Christmas is about HOPE. Hope given by a God who loves His creation intensely that He sent His Son to die in their place so that the relationship between God & Man could be restored. It wasn't about what God wanted to receive, but rather, what He was willing to give so that Man might have the opportunity to be restored and reinstated back into God's plan for His life. Christmas symbolizes that there is a better tomorrow. That though you may be in he darkest of night right now, the light will always come on the morrow.

Christmas is about SELFLESSNESS. Despite how media and consumerism has "re-shaped" Christmas into one big spend-all-your-money-to-show-you-care or spend-all-your-money-on-stuff-you-want-because-you-deserve-it mega sale, the original design of what Christmas was celebrated for wasn't the items you could give out (or purchase), but the life you would share. It doesn't have to be a "feed the homeless" level endeavor, but it does mean to share and celebrate life with your family and friends. Guess what, giving gifts are wonderful ways to express your love for a person, but maybe it would be better expressed by giving them TIME. Unhurried. No agenda. Real. Quality. Time. For some of us, this may require extra effort (and grace!) on our part, since we have been simmered in the fast paced carpe diem mentality that has permeated society in the most subtle way.

Christmas is about RELATIONSHIP. Not the typical "Hi-Hello-How-Are-You-I'm-Fine" relationship that allows us to be polite and un-intrusive at the same time. Christmas is about walking together and sharing life. I'm not saying go out and make friends en masse, but to really know how your family and friends are doing. And I do not mean just on the surface level. What are their fears? What are they struggling with in this season of their life? What have the overcome recently and celebrate with them. Relationships have degraded to the level that there is social connection but there isn't any substantial depth growing between the people.

Do you view your friends a safe place to open your heart?
Can you say the same for your family?
Do you know what your parents are struggling with right now?
Does your family know about the big decision you are faced with right now?
Do you know more about what is happening in your friend's life than in your sibling's life?

Spend time with family and spend time with those whom you truly call friend.

God grants us Hope for tomorrow through a Selfless sacrifice. Why? Because He treasures His Relationship with you. That is Christmas.

That is why Jesus came down to this earth to be a man, to live a blameless life and meekly went to die on the cross (which is one of the most painful and humiliating ways to die). It wasn't so that we can go Christmas shopping or string out parties. It isn't for the strategic gift buying and giving. It wasn't even so that Pepsi and Coke can fight over the color of Santa Clause (and indirectly, Christmas).

No.

Jesus was born of a virgin, lived as a man and died on Calvary so that you and me can be restored in our relationship with God. Restoration with God is there, all we have to do is ask.

Have you?

Water Matters

After typhoon Ondoy hit the Philippines, I joined a group of people that went to flooded areas and gave out relief goods to the people in the shelters. In all the relief shelters we went to, you’d see a little city of make-shift tents, lean-to shelters made out of cardboard and people lining up for what food and water they could receive.

Not having clean water to drink was one of the major problems of the shelters that we went to. People were getting sick because of poor waste management and contaminated water. Those suffering the worst were the young children and babies. Dehydration and diarrhea were among the chief culprits of suffering among the young. 

The power of water. 

One wouldn’t really see how important water is. Nor how it can greatly affect our well-being.

Even spiritually, Jesus offers us the water of life. The water that purifies, that restores and that reconciles. But the question is do we still drink this water? Please don’t get me wrong, I’m not raising an issue of salvation, but rather an issue of immersion. How immersed are we in this Water Jesus offers us?


 How much do we desire it?

I find it interesting that God declared that the Israelites have done two evils towards Him in the book of Jeremiah, chapter two: 1) they have forsaken God, who IS the fountain of living waters; and 2) they have created broken cisterns for themselves, from which they now drink from.

Can you imagine yourself forsaking what God is offering to us (insert all the good stuff He intends for us here) and choosing what we thing is good for us? I can, and I’ve done that dance of wrong choices a lot. 

It’s not that I stopped loving God. Oh no. I love God with all my heart now and I loved God with all my heart then, but I loved my version of God more than God’s version of Himself. In our world today, we are constantly reminded of the divine and encouraged to seek it. We are encouraged to seek God. The problem comes in the kind of God we seek. Sure we  all seek Yahweh, but whose version do we choose? 

Our’s? 

Or God’s?

I am not saying that the God you worship is fictional. I am not saying that to focus on God’s grace is evil. But to focus and worship only certain aspects of who God is really isn’t who God is. It’s only part of who He is. Perhaps the thought of a jealous or angry God isn’t appealing. Maybe you disagree with it and say that it has no place in today’s Christianity. 

It’s like getting a sedan and having the two back doors sealed shut and the back seat taken out because you really want a sports car and what you have is a sedan. But no matter how much you modify your sedan, it will still be a sedan. Because it IS one. 

No matter how much we try to re-define God according to what we feel or what we believe should be His attributes, that still wouldn’t change who God is. Bishop Cesar Punzalan once told me that to love only parts of who God is still is idolatry. It took me a long while to wrap my head around that statement. But it is true. If we worship God based on what we want Him to be, or how we re-define Him, and not on what the Bible says who He is, we have created our own image of God, just like how the Israelites created their own cisterns. God was the fountain of life giving waters. The Israelites made copies of it. Poor, incomplete and broken copies. God has revealed Himself through His Word. Do we edit some aspects out (particularly the ones we don’t understand or don’t like) or do we choose to embrace the fullness of who God is, our feelings and opinions notwithstanding? 

Idolatry isn’t only about the people or things we desire that get in the way of God having our heart. It is also when we choose to believe that our God, the creator of the universe, the King of kings and the Lord of lords, the Rose of Sharon, the great I Am should be defined by us. 

As if we know God better than He knows Himself.

Idolatry begins when we cease to desire to know who God is and think we’ve got Him figured out.  Idolatry begins when we start to edit aspects of God we think shouldn’t be and create new ones we think He should have. Idolatry begins when our hearts stop beating to the rhythm of God’s heart and start creating it’s own groove. Idolatry begins when we stop drinking from the fountains of life giving water, and decide to drink from our own poor, broken and dirty fountain replicas.

I, for one, do not wash my hands and pretend to be clean. I know that there have been episodes in my walk with God that I fell prey to this subtle Idolatry. A tactic Satan has masterfully employed in Christianity today. “Who says you aren’t worshipping God? Just tweak Him a bit. He is a PERSONAL God, isn’t He? So shouldn’t God fit to YOUR UNDERSTANDING?”

May your heart never cease desiring to seek God’s heart. May your spirit never grow tired and weary in your pursuit of Christ. May you take time to honestly asses which God you are worshipping, and may you choose to drink from the fountain of life giving waters and not our own broken, dirty cisterns.

Stepping After Ruth

We are faced with such hard times today, a lot of people are trying to grab at whatever they can... what ever the cost may be. The world crisis paints a global economy tottering, swaying to and fro with the only sure forecast is that things won't be getting better anytime soon. Companies are closing, insurance firms are folding, families are so uncertain of what tomorrow will bring.

But you see, the crisis we face today isn't only with the world economy.

We are faced with potential crises everyday.

Work.

Relationships.

Family.

Confidence.

Self worth.

Fear.

Prestige.

Control.

Loneliness.

Anger.

Forgiveness.

Bitterness.

So many issues in our lives plague us. We forget that there are a lot of other issues within us that need to be tackled. There are so may questions raging within us that are left unanswered.

It kinda makes one wonder if there really is a God, and if there is, why is there so much uncertainty and hurt in this world if He supposedly has control?

Why doesn't he love me?

Why did she have to die?

Am I not good enough?

He hurt me really really bad... and you want me to forgive?!

WHY IS THIS HAPPENING TO ME??!!

I am sure you have your own set of questions to add to that list. Your own groaning of the heart and cry of your soul.

I just finished reading an interesting story of hope shattered, anger and bitterness, love and loyalty and the promise of healing and restoration. Frankly, I must say it was a beautiful story. Not your typical teenage type of story.

As much as I want to tell you the story, I strongly encourage you to read it yourself so that you may journey with the Heroine, Ruth, through all the pains she has gone through. She's lost love, been pushed away, she's felt alone, her dreams have been broken. She's got enough reason to become angry and bitter.

Yet despite it all she takes heart and still continues on. She continues to trust God (something that is being frowned upon nowadays by the academically and intellectually elite) and by her righteousness (and not all of that righteousness stuff is holier than though kinda things, but practical everyday stuff we can actually do today) and God sees her through. There isn't any dramatic scene where God speaks to her and the thunder rumbles and the clouds break open to reveal a shaft of life.

I love this book of the bible because it so... well... normal, non-biblically dramatic and portrays life... well... how life is. Ruth goes through stuff we go through... and perhaps even more. Her dedication and commitment to following God and honoring her mother is very inspiring.

Despite all the pain and let down she went through, she chose to obey and live her life to honor God. She chose to focus on God and the promises of God rather than on the madness and pain coming at her. Even when her own mother in law pushed her away, she stayed true to the promise God had for her, and chose to live it out.

Sometimes we know all these promises. We believe in them (or so we say), but we never really act them out do we?

Faith = knowledge + action.

We maybe missing part of the formula.

What if... just what if Ruth didn't really know exactly what the promises were? She wasn't some holy woman of God. She was just your typical-everyday-gril next door. She wasn't described as notably beautiful. She wasn't exceptionally intelligent.

She was you typical person, living life as it came at her.

And it came at her hard.

But despite it all, Ruth believed in those promises and held on to the knowledge that God would never want anything ill for her. I think that Ruth held on to the love God promised her. And you know what... God delivered.

And He can and will deliver those promises in your life too.

If you choose to let Him.

There is no situation in your life right now that God cannot see you through. There is no bitterness in us that God cannot carry for us. Just like Ruth, we can choose to focus on God's love and promise in our life-or like the rest of the world, focus on the chaos of life around us.

It's your call.

I pray that may you follow in the steps of Ruth. She wasn't someone academically, intellectually or socially accomplished. She was your average girl. But she walked after God. She held on to the Giver of Promise and faced life head on.

-M-

Changing the Agents of Change

Read Isaiah 62

"They will be called the Holy People, the Redeemed of the LORD;
and you will be called Sought After, the City No Longer Deserted. "
Isa 62:12 NIV

Change. The constant and and unchanging element of the world we live in. A paradox in itself. As Christians, we have always wanted and prayed for a better city, a better economy, a better country. We stage all these prayer rallies and fasting services and hope that God shall visit our country and initiate social, moral and spiritual revival! We pray that God uses us as Agents of Change in this Nation. And yes, we must eagerly seek God in prayer, we must desire to be used by God to change this nation. For countless years, Christians have been doing the same thing, praying.. fasting... program implementation... praying... fasting... conference thingy... almost as if God is contained in some formula.

That is just the thing. God isn't contained in a formula. Yes there are conditions that God requires of us, but that doesn't mean God will come in the same way He came and manifested Himself elsewhere. God will not be staged.

Aside from Prayer, Humility and Obedience, there is one aspect that I would like to tackle now; Us, being Agents of Change.

We keep asking God to use us to change our environment, but do we let God change us first?
In the passage we see that God will change and bless the land, AFTER the people become holy and set apart. I don't think blessing and redeeming a city, region or even country is a problem for God. The past decade has shown us that it can happen. God has used the most unlikely of people (even not of the clergy!) and the most unlikely of methods to cause revival and restoration in the Land.

Before God used Moses to deliver the Israelites out of Egypt, he worked in his life first, allowing Moses to grow in his relationship with God. Before Joshua led the Israelites to conquer the land of Canaan, God allowed Joshua to grow from Moses' aide into a godly leader. Joshua sought the Lord to the extent that he would sleep near the tent of meeting, because he wanted to be near God in every possible way. Even Jesus prepared for 30 years before starting His earth shaking ministry. Paul met God in Damascus in order to see and know the fullness of God.

How about us?

Are we so set in seeking God and allowing our minds and hearts to be conformed to that of Christ? Or do we get hurt and offended when God shows us aspects of our life that need to be dealt with? Do we spend quality time with God? Not the 15-30minutes of daily devotion, but an honest to goodness time spent immersing ourselves in worship and in God's Word? Or do we try to fit God into our daily schedules?

Is God the King and Ruler of our life or is He just the Divine Handyman who is called upon when things are out of control?

Do we really expect God to change our environment if we do not allow Him to change us first?

How about properly spending quality time with God today? Allow Him to change what needs to be changed in us first, then, just like in Isaiah, the change to our City, Region and even Nation will burst forth like a damn letting loose the floodwaters of revival!

Cheap Love

Read John 15:9-10, 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

“This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.”

John 15:12 NASU

Flowers, heart shaped chocolates and whatnots dominate the local scenery as the entire of Metro Manila kicks into the valentines’ mode. Cupids and cherubs adorn the fast food store counters and hang from the ceilings. Colorful, love themed artworks are painted on glass windows and stuffed toys are selling like anything.

This is the Month of Love. Today is Valentines’ day. The day that the majority of the world stops whatever they are doing and focuses on the facet of life called love. A lot say that love is a universal language. Is it?

What is love to you?

Now what does love mean to the person beside you? Is it exactly the same thing?

I remember arguing in my Philosophy class in university that Love is not based on emotion and is not abstract. It was literally me against the entire class back then.

True, love is not a purely dry and logical experience. Actually, love’s experience is based on a conscious decision. The feeling is purely icing on top. It heightens the experience and may help or work against you decision to love.

The world has come up with a “modern” cultural definition of love that is so self-centered: I cannot love others if I do not love myself first. The love that media, and “modern, educated” culture present is a self-satisfying love that puts my needs and welfare before others. Let’s be honest with ourselves if not with other people; why do you love your spouse or boy/girl friend? What does he or she offer to you or see in him/her that makes you feel complete or good about yourself? Or is it because you can offer her something? Do you love that person because of certain things or despite certain things?

More often than not, we “love” a person because we are either satisfied or gratified in one way or another, without giving much thought to the other person. It is important to get what I want. The other person’s needs are secondary. In my years of being a peer counselor in university, all the relationships of people who suffered from problems in their love life usually boil down to a perceived failure of the expectation of the other person. Here is a little fact of reality: A person will always fail your expectations at one point in your life or another.

Among the men I’ve had the opportunity to talk to, the common reason why they “love” their girlfriend is because they are beautiful, shapely and pleasing to look at and show around. I have yet to be able to converse with ladies and women in the same depth and transparency I’ve had with the men, but the common qualities they saw in their boy friends were: “he makes me feel like I am important.” “He takes care of me.” These next two answers didn’t hit as high as the first two, but I’ll include them because the reasoning is somewhat interesting: “He takes me home” and “I don’t know.”

Most relational break ups among teens I’ve counseled are usually because one or the other has failed to meet up to the expected standards of the other person’s need. Or one or both of them just got bored with their pre- marital sex life.

But God has a different take on love. He calls us to love others just as Jesus loves us. Now maybe you are wondering “how on earth am I going to know how Jesus loved me?!” Well that’s why there is the bible.

In John 15:9-11, Jesus gives us His paradigm on love:

“Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.”

The first statement displays a very concrete and logical truth, found in everyday life: You can only give what you have. Jesus loved us, JUST AS GOD THE FATHER HAS LOVED HIM. In the 15^th chapter of John, Jesus describes how He has experienced the love of the Father.

A certain guy wrote a simplification of God’s take on love. Ever since reading it, I’ve used it to check myself and my motives of saying that I “love” a person. He says that love is patient. It is kind and is not jealous. It doesn’t brag or boast or is arrogant. Love does not act rudely (or in disrespect), it doesn’t put its wants and desires above or before others. It does not cause one to be easily angered nor does it keep a record of wrongs or bitterness. It does not tolerate evil but rejoice in the truth. Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Paul had a good grip on what God’s paradigm on love was. He wrote that down in his first letter to the Corinthians.

That is the kind of love God has intended for us to experience and practice. And to do that kind of love takes a conscious decision to practice it as such. Let me set it clear that I am not saying that love should be purely a charity case. It isn’t and shouldn’t be. All I am presenting is that Love, in the truest sense of the word, has been twisted and augmented as time passed. What the world offers isn’t love. It’s just a pathetic and poor imitation of it. But since that is the environment we grew up in, that is the only type of love we know of. But that love is made available to you. All you have to do is ask for it from God. He will be more than willing to love you, because believe me, He has loved you in eternity past. We just don’t even consider seeking and asking for the Love He gives. More often than not we are content on feasting and desiring for the poor imitation. That’s the reason why the love we love others with is an imitation as well. Surrender to God’s love and see the difference.

Justifiable Anger

“… But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.”

James 1:19-20 NASU

What are the synonyms we can think of to the word anger?

Why do we get angry?

Let’s stop a moment and think about it.

Is it because we feel that we’ve been wronged? Or do we just enjoy the sensation of our hackles rising and blood boiling?

The bible calls us to be open to hearing others out and not reacting right away, most especially when we are in a state of anger. The Greek word used for the word anger is orgeen, from the root word orge (pronounced or-gay’), which means justifiable abhorrence and violent passion or ire.

Most often than not, we get angry when we feel that we have been justifiably wronged. They have been warned.

They still repeated it.

I now have the right to get angry at them.

And more often than not, we do have the right to get mad (or at least we think we do) and act in our anger. That is what the passage in James is counseling us on. We should be slow to anger and speak and quick to hear.

The word used for hear in the Greek is akousai that means to understand. When we are angry, we have a tendency to react right away and say things or do things without even understanding the other party’s side. Most long lasting conflicts start because of this. One side wants to explain his side but the other already has come up of conclusions and prefers not to hear out the offending party (subconsciously because there are already preconceived notions in mind). So many broken relationships and friendship could have been avoided if only the angry party would have taken time to listen, understand and forgive the offending party.

Come to think of it, what are the things that go on through our mind when we are angry that keeps us from taking time out to understand the other party? And when I say understand, that doesn’t mean just hearing them out then forcing your own preconceived idea or conclusion on the matter. It means to really be open to what the other person has to say, and even apologize for your own shortcomings that have contributed to it. If we can identify those things, we have a starting point on which we can improve our handling of our anger.

In retrospect, this is what this verse is simply saying:

“… But everyone must be quick to akousai [understand], slow to speak and slow to orgeen[justifiably ired]; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.”

This aspect of character is not an option for us. It is a must. As Christians, we are implicitly commanded to be open and understanding in conflict and to be slow to lash out and react when we do reach the point of anger. The verse doesn’t say that we are not to get angry ever. Instead, it shows us how we are to react to justifiable conflict. In a nutshell, it just provides the best relational anger management process:

1. Take time to understand the offending party.
2. Do not react, instead proact.
3. Exercise and develop patience and grace.

For some of you, this may be old news. Something you’ve been practicing since the world was black and white. Keep on in your faith! For others, this may be a constant struggle; a battle that constantly is engaged. God has granted you the grace and strength to overcome it! Even to some this may be a new facet on dealing with anger and irritation. Try it and see the difference it makes in you and your relationships. And for all of us, let us strive to keep on practicing and obeying this command.

The Forgiveness of Love

Read
Matthew 18:23-27

`The LORD is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion.’
Num 14:18a NIV

Forgiveness.

One of the easiest things said, but among the hardest things done. In the first place, why should we forgive? We’ve been wronged. We’ve been hurt. We’ve been unjustly treated and now it’s payback time. It’s time that they pay for what they’ve done to us. We want justice and we want it now. Eye for an eye right?

That got me thinking. What would our world be if there was no forgiveness? Stop a moment and think about it. Imagine a world where people just keep on bottling up every little thing they think or perceive done against them, and eventually get even with the person. How long would our specie exist before it spirals down in to oblivion because everybody has something against somebody and they want payback. Surely, a viscous cycle will emerge, capturing everybody in the web of its anger and hatred.

Even when I was a child, I learned a simple rule in life that has been in my heart ever since. It has affected my view on life, my relationship and even with my self: You cannot give what you do not have. I cannot share a burger with a person if I don’t have a burger myself. You cannot give $10 to charity if you don’t have at least $10.

Spiritually and relationally that applies too. We cannot give true love because we ourselves have yet to have true love. We cannot completely forgive because we have not been forgiven ourselves. Yes we strive to love honestly and purely. We try to forgive all the wrong that person has done to us (or at least we think they’ve done to us…) and we’ve even gone to the extent of reciting the mantra “I’ve forgiven & I’ve forgotten… I’ve forgiven & I’ve forgotten… I’ve forgiven & I’ve forgotten…” then when we see the person or see something that reminds us of that hurt all the memories and emotions of that moment come rushing back at us.

Luke 7:47 puts it nicely: He who has been forgiven little loves little. Forgiveness is born out of love. They go hand in hand with each other. As our capacity to love others increases, so does our ability to forgive others.

Well Magoo, you’ve said it. I haven’t been loved enough when I was a kid I guess. Until now, I don’t think I’ve ever been loved enough to allow me to forgive what THAT person did to me!

I’d beg to disagree. A guy named John said that because God loved YOU so much that he gave his only Son to die for your shortcomings. He said that God sent his Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins. Yours & mine included. Personally, I don’t think that anybody could love me and accept me more than that. That could be found in John 3:16. So you see, you are loved beyond measure and you are completely forgiven. No strings attached. No mantras needed. No more effort.

When we are faced with a situation that calls us to forgive, and we feel that the person does not deserve our forgiveness in any way gnaw on this question: Am I worthy to receive God’s forgiveness?

“But that person lied to me!”

Haven’t you ever lied to God?

“He made fun of me and what I’ve done!”

So you’ve never made fun of God or what He has done for you?

“She played with my emotions and hurt me!”

Your sins haven’t hurt God then?

“But some one needs to pay for the hurt I’ve received!”

Yes. Someone has paid for it. Jesus Christ.

The currency used? Blood. His blood.

The price? His life.

The clincher is, Jesus never complained about the price He paid for you. He loves you and forgave you. And if it were needed again, he wouldn’t hesitate to forgive you again. And again. And again.

You’ve been forgiven much. Now shouldn’t we forgive in the same manner as we have been forgiven?