不同的人,
不同的世界,
对爱的感觉,
却都一样
December 12, 2009
In this generation, there are many “philosopher wanna be”. So what do I mean by “philosopher wanna be”? Those are individual who create their own philosophy in life (which most likely is not “different” from the “normal”) and they hold strongly to it, and yes, this applies to Christians as well.
The reason behind this “philosopher wanna be” ?
Is just to show people that they are different from others, they want to be special.
According to my observation, majority of the “philosophers wanna be” have a messed up life. Why?
Because they wanna be the author of their own faith, wanna be the God of their own life, wanna take control of their own life, wanna be the LORD of their own life, not realizing that they are actually just an imperfect weakling. Always acting on what they think is right (which is most likely wrong according to God’s law), instead of really doing what is right in God’s sight. Yes and this too applies to both Christian and non-believers
To them there is no absolute right or wrong, anything is acceptable as long as they can reason it out, for they don’t even know God’s commandment and they careless about what God said is right and wrong. Reason ?
As for the Christians, those are the people whom are shallow in God’s word, they are never interested in God’s word, they does not feed on God’s word and it is no wonder that they are not growing spiritually. Hence they end up doing things in their life according to their will instead of God’s will, for they do not even know the will of God! How could they possibly do His will then!
As for the non-believer (even some so called “Christian” fits into this category), majority of those “philosophers wanna be” are Godless person, there is no such thing as God in their life, they fear no one, they are God themselves, they determine their own life, they determine what is right and what is wrong, they are the one with the absolute authority over their own life. They are deceiving themselves all the time, feeding in to the lies of satan, being blinded by their own pride in life.
Can we blame God for this ?
God is the creator and author of our life, and for sure He knows what is right and wrong in our life, He not only revealed it to us through His Words (The Bible) but also giving us conscious in know what is right and wrong ! Therefore we have no right to blame God for the messed we created by our own hand. Yet those so called “philosophers wanna be” choose to ignore the conscious that God gave them, they compromise too much and ended up living a Godless life. As for the Carnal Christians, they choose to ignore God Word; instead they look to the worldly value as the guide in their life, in the end being consumed by the world.
But wait, I am here to bring you good news, not condemnation!
John 3:16-17
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him”
Well to be honest I was once guilty of the same thing too, that is why I am so familiar with this, and yet God is gracious enough to bring me back to His side. Note, it was God whom draws me to Him, not me whom turn to Him first. See how good and graceful our God is? He does not wait for me to go to Him, but He came to me.
God speaks to me through His Word. In Hebrews 12:2” Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God”. In this verse I know that Jesus is the author and perfecter of my faith, and I should let Him take control of my life, to guide me, lead me, and shape me.
As it is written in 1 Corinthians 3:1-2 “Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly—mere infants in Christ. 2I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready.” God spoke to me through these verse I was still a young Christian, for the milk is His Words and from then I realize that if I do not feed on His Words I will never ever be able to grow and will still be an infants in Christ till this day.
It’s still not too late!
Revelation 3:20
“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.”
Dear readers (both Christian and non-believers), God is constantly knocking on the door of your heart, will you not open your heart to Him and invite Him all knowing God to guide and lead you in life? Will you not soften your heart and allowed Him in and enthrone Him as Lord of your life? As Christmas is approaching, you might ask me what’s the greatest gift I have received and wonder what great gift will you receive this year, I tell you that Jesus Christ the greatest gift you can ever receive in your life for it is a priceless and a free gift from God as written in Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” And Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”. All you have to do is just open your heart and accept this free gift from God.
Before I end, would just like close this by sharing a chapter from the book of Isaiah chapter 55
“Come, all you who are thirsty,
come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without cost.
2 Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and your soul will delight in the richest of fare.
3 Give ear and come to me;
hear me, that your soul may live.
I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
my faithful love promised to David.
4 See, I have made him a witness to the peoples,
a leader and commander of the peoples.
5 Surely you will summon nations you know not,
and nations that do not know you will hasten to you,
because of the LORD your God,
the Holy One of Israel,
for he has endowed you with splendor.”
6 Seek the LORD while he may be found;
call on him while he is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake his way
and the evil man his thoughts.
Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him,
and to our God, for he will freely pardon.
8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the LORD.
9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
10 As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
12 You will go out in joy
and be led forth in peace;
the mountains and hills
will burst into song before you,
and all the trees of the field
will clap their hands.
13 Instead of the thornbush will grow the pine tree,
and instead of briers the myrtle will grow.
This will be for the LORD’s renown,
for an everlasting sign,
which will not be destroyed.”
May God speak to you through the reading of His Words, and I pray that You will come to know this God personally. May God bless every single soul.
December 10, 2009
Prior to this recent series of revelations, there wasn’t a man on the planet who in some sense didn’t want to be Tiger Woods. Tiger is good looking. He’s physically fit. He’s a world-class athlete. He has a beautiful wife and two beautiful kids. He’s rich beyond anyone’s wildest imagination. He had a father who loved him—not just in words, but in action, pouring himself into his son, building a love that survives to this day, in many ways making Tiger the man he became.
Try as we may, there aren’t too many men who can lay claim to all of these elements of success at once. Tiger has it all, and it wasn’t just handed to him. He came by his success through hard work and discipline. He earned it.
In recent weeks, however, Tiger’s personal life has become the stuff of tabloid journalism. While details remain unclear, it appears his beautiful wife may have used one of Tiger’s own golf clubs to knock him senseless when she discovered he only had eyes for—at last count—nine other women.
It could have been worse. Tiger could have been an abuser: an abuser of controlled substances or an abuser of his wife. There’s no evidence of any of that. He could have been an embezzler. Not satisfied with having it all, he could have stolen even more. He didn’t. Like another famous athlete, he could have struggled with jealousy, flew into a rage, and killed his wife. Didn’t happen.
Tiger Woods isn’t as bad as he could be. But neither is he the role model he appeared to be. He’s not a thief or a murderer. He isn’t an abuser. Tiger is simply a serial adulterer. He enjoys being in the company of a variety of women. Tiger has just this one quirk, one besetting sin, one shortcoming, yet that quirk was the trip wire over which his entire world has come crashing down.
There isn’t a man on the planet who in this sense isn’t Tiger Woods. There isn’t anything in Tiger that isn’t in you. None of us are as bad as we could be, but the propensity for lust, lying, anger, and unfaithfulness are all there—hidden in a heart that is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. There isn’t any one of us who is not capable, like Tiger, of saying, “It’s only this one time. No harm.”
A moral code can keep the tiger in you in check for a time. The fear of getting caught is a restraint that keeps most men within the boundaries of their marriage. I’m sure it was that way for Tiger Woods. We have admired him as a man of disciplined perfection. But that discipline, that self-denial, which was so characteristically on display in Tiger’s athletic prowess, failed him with immeasurable consequences in his personal life. When push came to shove, Tiger had a great fall. Discipline, apparently, isn’t enough.
Neither is the power of the law and the fear of getting caught enough to restrain the depravity of the human heart, and yet that’s all most of us are counting on to keep us on the straight and narrow. No man, no matter how disciplined, has what it takes to keep himself from falling. Every man has an untamed tiger within, waiting to pounce at the first sign of weakness.
The moral of Tiger’s tale? If you’re looking for perfection, you won’t find it within yourself. Discipline and restraint are in themselves never enough to produce perfection, because all that is in us is depravity. Failure is inevitable. But failure is never final.
There is hope for overcoming failure. But it isn’t in you. And it obviously isn’t in Tiger. It’s in a Lion: Jesus Christ—the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, introduced to us in the inspired writings of the Bible, whose birth we celebrate this month. This Lion has prevailed over our untamable propensity for sin and failure. He has triumphed over every enemy poised against us for our personal destruction. He did it by taking on himself the likeness of our weak, vulnerable and sinful flesh in his incarnation in Bethlehem, living a life of perfect obedience to the demands of the law, becoming obedient to the point of death, thus procuring the perfection that all of us long for and which God demands.
Jesus is perfect because we aren’t, and because we can’t be. And he doesn’t keep his perfection for Himself. His perfection is for us, and for our salvation; and for Tiger’s. After all, there’s nothing in Tiger that’s not in you.
Source: http://www.crosswalk.com/11623365/
October 14, 2009
For some of you whom knew me for quite some years, you might notice that I used to be a person that doesn’t really like getting along with people and always prefer to be left alone. However, my perspective is starting to change because God in his very special way, help me realize that isolation from others is not the way to live a Christian life, for we are a community and God cannot use me if I were to isolate myself from the people that God places in my life.
For the past few weeks (say 3-4 weeks) I had been meeting a lot of people. I met new people from HUC Camp, and even more new people in CF, some primary school mate that I haven seen for 9 years and some for 2 years, and the people that I meet daily.
Well to be honest, the urge of wanting to know more people started a few months back, and I had been praying for God to help me meet more people in my life. However nothing really happen and this fire of meeting new people slowly died down. I no longer look forward to know new people, and started to be antisocial all again.
But God is good and his timing is always perfect. Just as i was very down and disappointed not only people around me but also myself, He opened up my eyes and give me hope by putting new people in my life as well as bringing back old people from my life.
I really gotta thank Kingsley for always encouraging me to go for CF (although i rejected him for a million times) and also keep inviting (pushing) me to the Camp (which I am reluctant to go to).Although me being still me (the passive one), I still get to know quite a number of new brothers and sisters in Christ whom are really friendly.
The more people I get to know, the more I realize how shallow I am and the unsatisfied I am with my current status. Therefore it encourages me to build up myself and to grow stronger and have a deeper relationship with God instead of being satisfied with where I am now. I get encouragement from the people around me just by their small actions, and this makes me realize that I could be the one encouraging people around me without realizing too. Hence I am now learning to be more aware of the things i said, do, react and be more sensitive to the people around me. And I am going to make sure, no matter what I do, I will be able to glorify God !
September 14, 2009
Yet it is always best kept unspoken
August 26, 2009
In my previous post, I mention that we shall not be easily stumbled by others for if we know our purpose, have a strong foundation and is fixing our eye on Jesus and not others then we will never be stumbled so easily and would be able to recognise that it is the work of Satan. We should follow Jesus example in Matthew 16: 21-23
“From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.
Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”
Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”
Note that Jesus actually recognise it was Satan that is trying to stumble Him and not Peter because Jesus have in mind the things of God and not things of man. In short if we are in tune with God and fixing our eye on Jesus instead of man then we will be able to recognise that it’s the work of satan and turn to God and not allowed Satan to stumble us easily.”
Now the question that I want to post is, if we already have a solid foundation and we know our stand and won’t be stumbled so easily does that mean we can do whatever we like?
Well the answer is obviously no. Why? Because we should know that not everyone is standing on solid ground yet and we cannot assume that everyone is as mature as we are, we cannot put people in our shoes; instead we must put ourselves in the shoes of other.
Many times we are too insensitive to our surrounding; we do not realize that there’s new Christian around us that will be stumbled by our small actions and people are actually looking up to us. Just imagine what will happen if an elderly Christian were to curse while talking with his peers while there are younger Christian around them, obviously the younger (referring to spiritual age) one will tend to be stumbled and feel disappointed toward the older one for they are the one that they are looking up to. Well I will just take the example from the bible and may the Holy Spirit speak to you
“Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak. For if anyone with a weak conscience sees you who have this knowledge eating in an idol’s temple, won’t he be emboldened to eat what has been sacrificed to idols? So this weak brother, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. When you sin against your brothers in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall.” 1 Corinthians 8:9-13
“Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall.
So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself by what he approves. But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.
We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up” Romans 14:20 – 15:2
And let 2 Corinthian 6:3 draw us the conclusion:
“We put no stumbling block in anyone’s path, so that our ministry will not be discredited.”
August 21, 2009
Many a time I heard Christian saying they are being stumbled by something done by another Christian, it could be something that was said by that person, or the action of that person, or maybe after finding out the skeleton in someone’s closet, or even the lifestyle of other Christian. To get things clear, the stumble I am referring to is our spiritual walk with God.
Well to be honest as for me myself, when I was a young Christian I too got stumbled easily. However I thank God that He gave me the strength to carry myself back up and continue walking. It was only until I start to grow in God and become abit more mature in my walk with God that I finally get through this problem once and for all.
The closer I get to God the more He speaks to me and the more I get to know Him and He became more personal to me. Hence I just want to share abit of my walk with God during the time when I was stumbled to encourage those who are stumbled or being stumbled easily to get back up on your feet and hopefully not being stumbled so easily.
When I was down and stumbled, God opened my eyes to see and told me that the main reason I got stumble is because I am not standing on firm ground, and my foundation is weak, that’s why it’s so easy for me to be stumbled. Besides that I realize that I am actually falling into satan’s trap whenever I blame others for stumbling me, for when I am stumbled it affect my relationship with God and if I continue to choose to blame others for stumbling me then I am actually pleasing satan, because instead of drawing closer to God, I would tend to stray further. I thank God for giving me wisdom and helping me overcome this problem just by a simple verse, it was from
Psalm 119:165
“Great peace have they who love your law,
and nothing can make them stumble.”
In just one verse from the living word, it changes my spiritual life dramatically. God promise to give me GREAT PEACE and NOTHING CAN MAKE US STUMBLE if we love His law, so what is the law? The law is actually God’s words; hence if we are grounded in God’s word then NOTHING and nothing can ever make us stumble instead we will always have peace. True enough God never fail to keeps His promise and I can definitely testify it. Now I am standing on the solid rock and nothing can ever make me stumble, for I will not fall into satan’s trap ever again.
Therefore whenever you are stumbled, I would like to advise you to re-examine yourself and find out the reason why, is it really because of someone else? Or is it because you yourself are not standing on solid ground? Are you falling into satan’s trap? If so try to build a solid foundation and get out of the trap, do not allowed satan to stumble you! Start to grow and be more mature by feeding on God’s word, do not be stagnant for it makes you weak and you will fall easily.
Well before I end, I would just like to share a few simple verses to all of you and may the Holy Spirit speak to you.
John 11:9-10
Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? A man who walks by day will not stumble, for he sees by this world’s light. It is when he walks by night that he stumbles, for he has no light.“
Be the one that continue to run, and not the one that stumble
August 19, 2009
Are You In An Abusive Relationship ?
Posted by Soul under Challenge, Friend, Life, Love[4] Comments
I came across this article and found it very true and useful. This is not only helpful for people whom are in a relationship, but also for those singles out there whom wanting or will be in a relationship sooner or later.
By having the knowledge and being aware of the traits of an abusive relationship, it would be easier to prevent yourself from getting in an abusive relationship and saving you much trouble in the future. Hence I highly encourage most everyone to read the following article.
“My boyfriend is jealous. He gets furious when I won’t dump my friends and spend all of my free time with him,” the weeping woman shared with me. “I was so thrilled to have a devoted boyfriend that I ignored the warning signs of abuse. I convinced myself that he loved me, and that things would get better with time. I was wrong—completely wrong.”
After 20 years of ministry I frequently hear this cry from men and women who are in a bad relationship. Christians often believe that domestic violence, abuse and manipulation doesn’t occur within the church, but nothing could be further from the truth. Sometimes men are portrayed as sadistic; however women can be equally dangerous. In an attempt to help singles avoid a destructive relationship or a painful marriage I offer insight on how to detect a toxic, abusive person.
An abuser is typically:
1. Charming. This person quickly smothers the other with gifts and praise. He/she immediately pushes for an exclusive relationship using phrases such as “I can’t live without you” or “I’ll kill myself if you leave.” A clear indication something is wrong.
2. Jealous. He/she views others as a threat to the relationship and relentlessly accuses you of flirting. “I know you are having an affair.” The irony is that the abuser is usually the cheater.
3. Manipulative. Abuse and manipulation go hand-in-hand. This person easily detects vulnerability in others and uses it as a weapon to control, belittle and demean the victim. “You are weak and ugly; no wonder you were abused as a kid.”
4. Controlling. Constant checking on the whereabouts of the victim is a common trait for the abuser. “I check the mileage on your car. So don’t lie to me.” A male controller often refuses to let his girlfriend have a job, she might “meet someone.”
5. A Victim. An abuser doesn’t take any responsibility for his/ her poor choices. They are never at fault. When she loses her job, or he gets into a fight, someone else is to blame. “You make me hit you” or “I drink because you stress me out.”
6. Narcissistic. The whole world revolves around the abuser and his/her needs. This person is invigorated by the fact that the victims “walks on eggshells” and live in fear of the next outburst.
7. Inconsistent. Mood swings are a common trait for an abuser. One minute he/she is happy and sweet, the next they are pounding a fist or throwing a tantrum.
8. Critical. Verbally assaulting others is a way of life for the abuser. “You are a stupid, fat, disgusting tramp. You can’t ever leave me; no other man would have you” or “Ha! You call yourself a man. You are nothing but a mama’s boy.”
9. Disconnected. Isolation from family and friends is a key goal for the abuser because it forces the victim into total submission. “Your family causes too much trouble for us. I don’t want you seeing them anymore.”
10. Hypersensitive. The slightest offense sends the abuser ranting. Everyone is out to “get him/her.” “My boss had it in for me; I bend over backwards on my job but I still got fired.”
11. Vicious and cruel. A significant number of abusers harm children and animals as well as a partner. Intimidation and inflicting pain fuels his/her power. “If I can’t have you, no one will” or “I just pretended to love you so that you would sleep with me.”
12. Insincerely repentant. He/she will swear to never “behave like that again.” But unless an abuser receives professional help and solid accountability it’s unlikely the abuse will disappear.
After marriage these behaviors typically escalate, therefore it’s crucial to recognize the warning signs now. Tell someone you can trust, and get help. And don’t believe the lie that it’s not abuse until he/she hits you.
When an abuser loses control they often react with rage and the abuse intensifies. Therefore, make a plan before breaking off the relationship. Contact a counselor or local domestic abuse hotline and/or safe house in your community.
This insight is for church leaders. In my 20 years of ministry I’ve watched numerous abusers deceive and manipulate the church. He/she often knows exactly what to say and do to get the church “on their side.” Although Christians are called to be loving and kind, we should not ignore toxic, sinful behavior. That is neither love or compassion.”
Now the question I want to post to everyone is after reading the article is that are you either the victim or the abuse??
- If you are the victim, then I pray that you would seek help and not suffer alone in silent and find a way to GET OUT of this kind of relationship.
- If you realize that you are the abuser, then I pray that you would humble yourself and seek counseling and STOP DOING what you are doing already.
- If you are neither, then just I pray that your relationship will continue to be healthy and just beware and WATCH OUT for the traits above so that early prevention could be made.
- If you are not in a relationship yet, then I pray that you would start being AWARE of such traits before getting into a relationship for you won’t want to regret getting yourself into trouble. So start to OPEN YOUR EYES to see and identify whether that person is an abuser or not, don’t just follow your emotions/feelings/heart that would lead you to fall into a pit. If that person you like/love has these traits then just forget about him/her for it could be a sign from God telling you that he/she is not the one for you and God has a better plan for you.
Jeremiah 17:9 : “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”
A final advice is that DO NOT let your heart deceive/lead you, instead lead your heart with the Holy Spirit guidance. Also just want to encourage you guys through the following verse
Jeremiah 29:11 : “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Therefore always seek God and his guidance and you will be able to see God’s plan for you, do not let your heart deceive you.
July 30, 2009
Watch the mv till the very end again….
July 30, 2009
Finding Fulfillment in Life
Posted by Soul under Encouragement, Faith, Hope, Jesus, LifeLeave a Comment
People, places and things are the gifts of life, not the Source of life …
—Gary Smalley
From different painful experiences that I have been through, I’ve learned that I was looking for love, peace and joy in all the wrong places. In other words, I had spent a lifetime looking for a sense of significance and security. But I was looking for that in the wrong location. Since then, I’ve learned that we all have similar goals in life. If our lives were like a cup, each one of us would love to fill it with wisdom, love, joy, and peace. We’d like to have our lives overflow with positive emotions and genuine fulfillment in life. At a very early age, we begin to look for what we think can fill up our cups with these positive qualities. Unfortunately, most of us look to one of three sources, or all three, for the fullness of life we really want. Yet, like a mirage, these sources shimmer with fulfillment, but only bring dust to our souls.
Source #1—Looking to PEOPLE to Fill Our Cups. The first place many of us tend to look is to people. We think: “If I am to really have my needs met and be happy, I must have another person in my life.” However, those who look for people will ultimately find that they cannot fill our cup. Others can be frustrating and irritating and drain away as much emotional energy as they give—or more. Friends can be a tremendous source of help and encouragement at times, but even they can disappoint us over the long haul. We can look to friends as the source of positive emotions, but at times they, too, can punch holes in our emotional lives. Tragically, some people will have an affair to try to “fill their cup.” The sweet taste of stolen waters may seem to fill up one’s life, but it’s actually like drinking ice-cold saltwater. The burning aftertaste of sin can burn huge holes in our cups and leave us emptier and more miserable than we ever imagined.
Source #2—Looking to PLACES for Fulfillment. “We need a home! That’s it, we need a place with a beautiful view and trees that are the envy of the neighborhood. If only we had the right place to live in, our cup would be full.” How many of us have echoed these words? Or perhaps, a vacation or a new office with a window—these certainly would fill our cup to the brim. Then we buy that special home or go to that remote island, live in it for a short while, and suddenly our life begins to go wrong. In part, that’s true because the bigger the home, the more items to repair around the house. We can install a swimming pool in our yard, a fireplace in our living room, or buy a mountain cabin, but the yard, living room, or cabin won’t keep us full. Why? In part because, no matter how pretty or fulfilling places look, they don’t fit inside our personal cups. Instead, they all have sharp edges that cut holes into our lives. What’s more, the people we share them with are the people who drain our cups! But if people and places don’t fill up the deepest part of our lives, where do we turn to finally find love, peace, and joy?
Source #3—Looking to THINGS for Fulfillment. How about more money so we can buy more things? Many of us feel that, if we just had more money, we’d be happier in life. But study after study of people who “strike it rich” show this isn’t the case. The more money we make, the more wisdom we must have to handle it. Now, I know many of us wouldn’t mind learning that kind of wisdom. But to receive money, we normally have to pay a personal price. Thomas Carly once said, “For every person who can handle prosperity, there are a hundred who can’t handle adversity.” Money alone, and all the things it can bring, can’t fill our lives with the kind of living water we desperately want. I’ve met people throughout the country who have little money and are miserable. And I’ve also met those with lots of money who are miserable. I’ve known people who have mountain cabins and third cars who feel fulfilled. And some people I know barely have bus fare, and they also feel fulfilled. Most people who depend on “Things” to fill up their cups end up looking for the one “perfect” job that will be the ticket to all their dreams. All jobs have work in common. And work doesn’t always keep our cup full. It can drain us because of the people we work with, the place where we do our work, and the equipment we must use. Some of us try all our lives to acquire a key to a certain washroom in the company, or parking spaces with our names on them. When we receive them, however, what do we have? Are we finally being filled with wisdom, love, peace, and joy? Hardly. Just the opposite is often true.
Coming Up Empty In Life …
At some times in our lives, we run headlong into an inescapable fact. Life is not fulfilling. It’s actually often unfair and exhausting. We can never pour enough people, places, or things into our personal cups to keep our lives filled and overflowing with the contentment we want so much. No wonder so many people leading lives of emotional desperation consider suicide as a way out. By focusing on people, places and things, we miss the positive emotions we want, and are saddled with the very negative emotions we’ve tried all our lives to avoid! This is true of hurt feelings, worry, anxiety, fear, unrest, uncertainty and confusion because we are depending on a person, place, or thing for “life.”
We all face the temptation to look to people, places and things to fill our cups. We’re all selfish in wanting others to cooperate in meeting our needs right now. But those who are wise realize there is a pathway to freedom, away from that unfulfilled feeling.
Seeking First the Source of Life …
Matthew 6:33 clearly shows us our Source of life. “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” In my life, when God is in first place, He promises to meet all my needs. I try to love God with all my heart. In other words, He’s the highest priority in my life. When I focus on Jesus Christ as the sole Source of my life, an amazing thing happens. Because He loves me and actually possesses the wisdom, love, peace and joy I’ve always wanted, He alone can overflow my cup. That’s exactly what He promises to do for His children: “This love … surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:19). Can you be any more filled than full? Absolutely not.
If I ever start to feel worry, fear, hurt, or any other negative emotion, I thank God for them. Then I pray and ask forgiveness for focusing on something that is less than Himself. Finally, I ask Him alone to fill my life. Psalm 62 says that we are to wait and hope in God alone. He’s our rock, our salvation, our rear guard, our hiding place. He’s everything we’ll ever need! Nothing on this earth compares to knowing Him (Philippians 3:7-9).
http://www.crosswalk.com/spirituallife/men/11576200/page0/
Have you experience the true fufilment in life ? If so then do not forget that experience and keep trusting and leaning on to God. If not then what are you waiting for ?!
July 16, 2009
You’re my angel
Watch this MV till the end
July 15, 2009
Wow this song really speaks to me, gotta get out of the comfort zone with open arms.
Michael W. Smith
Open Arms
Many people in the steeple
But no one leaves the walls
Quick to stand and speak all of their beliefs
Quick to leave you if you fall
But no one leaves the walls
Quick to stand and speak all of their beliefs
Quick to leave you if you fall
Tell me where’s the love
It knows no boundaries
Tell me where’s the love, yeah, yeah
Open arms, we need to be open arms
Never judging, always loving
Needs to be what we become
Lifting up the lost, showing them the cross
Shining brightly like the sun
Tell me where’s the love
It knows no boundaries
Tell me where’s the love, yeah, yeah
Open arms, we need to be open arms, yeah
Tell me where’s the love
It knows no boundaries
Tell me where’s the love, yeah, yeah
Open arms, we need to be open arms, oh yeah
And everybody sing
Open arms, we need to be open arms
And the whole world sing
Open arms, we need to be open arms
