Tag: rest

Stop Trying

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How’s your life recently? Has it been filled with joy and gratefulness? Or, has it been filled with disappointments and frustrations? Are you one of those who keeps trying so hard but still things don’t work out the way you want it to be?

I hear you, my friend. You are not alone in that journey. There are so many things in my life that I wish I can just take control. Unfortunately, life doesn’t work out that way. I have learned to live by faith and trust that I have a God who is all-knowing will not let me live a life of defeat. I have learned to surrender and let go.

The source of my disappointment and frustration was because of a wrong mindset. I focused on pleasing people and myself rather than pleasing God. I tried so hard to live up to my own and to other people’s standard that eventually crushed and broke me. It was an exhausting journey. I realized I was trying to make my life look better to others but deep inside, I was empty. I was trying to fill that emptiness from accomplishing things.

But God is so good and gracious. He picked me up and He gave me rest. God reminded me that there is nothing more I need to do because He got it. He got His Son Jesus to fill my emptiness. And indeed, it was the most effortless satisfaction I have received in my life. As I received Christ in my life, I still have disappointments and struggles but I also have joy and peace. I didn’t have to keep trying. Instead, I started living a life that God has intended me to live.

If you haven’t met Jesus, I would love to introduce you to Him. He is for real, that I’m sure about.

” I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” – Jesus (John 10:10)

Stop trying

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All HIS Leadership Conference

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Every third week of January, the congregation (Christ’s Commission Fellowship) holds a leadership conference for all leaders of the church – these are not just the pastors, elders, ministry heads but also small group leaders as well as those who want to start their own small groups.

Last January 24-25, it was a privilege to be able to participate in the leadership conference entitled, “All HIS”. This is also the theme of the church for the year reminding us that everything we have belongs to God and we must be good stewards of what He has entrusted to us.

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There were so many good things to take in and apply during the conference and I want to share some of the points which really spoke to me.

  • The evidence that you love God is when you do your best for Him.
  • God doesn’t need me to exist but God decided to need me to “co-exist”.
  • We were created to be in partnership with God for His work.
  • Our unbelief limits God to accomplish things through us because we are in partnership with Him.
  • Leave your goals, ambitions, dreams in that workplace for God to be able to use you. (Because of our own personal dreams, we do things for ourselves only that we hinder God to use us where He has placed us.)
  • There’s a reality that we “stereotype” people whom we can share the gospel with. (We think that there are people who are gospel-ready and there are those who are not. When the truth is, everyone should come to know Jesus.)
  • Organize your finances: 1) Get out of debt 2)Don’t manipulate (how much you need) 3)Give
  • Tithing is not giving; it is returning what belongs to God in the first place. (In the Bible, “give” tithe was never used. It’s always been using the word “bring”.)
  • Giving is what is over and beyond your tithe.
  • Mistakes: 1) Haven’t rested enough 2) Haven’t prayed enough 3) Haven’t studied the Bible enough 4) Haven’t trained enough 5) Haven’t lead my family enough
  • About resting – If you don’t keep commandments 1-3, 5-10 – there are consequences. What made you think that by not keeping commandment 4 – Keep holy the Sabbath, there won’t be consequences?
  • For leaders: walk – character, work – ministry
  • If you focus on people, you will stumble. Focus on God.
  • I am a “slave” of Christ. (owned, no rights, absolute obedience)
  • Serve – We can serve without loving God but we can’t love God without serving others.
  • The Principle of First – Return to God what belongs to Him.
  • We are stewards of:  Time, Talent, Treasure, Title, Influence, Relationships, Opportunities
  • We are also stewards of God’s Truth. We are responsible to share the gospel.

My action points for this conference are:

–          To be a good steward of God’s truth – share God’s love and the gospel to as many as possible

–          To be a good steward of my time, talent, influence and finances – maximize my time for the Lord and to organize my finances

–          To share God more to my family – in love, in truth, in words and actions

–          To be a better small group leader – deeper study of God’s Word, evangelism and multiplication

“Do all the good you can. By all the means you can. In all the ways you can. In all the places you can. At all the times you can. To all the people you can. As long as ever you can.”― John Wesley

His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ – Matthew 25:23

cross Every color represents specific aspect in life that you want to surrender to God. At the end of the conference, all the boards with stickers were put together and formed into a cross

collageAttended the conference with my disciple, Anne

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“I am all HIS!” – Pepay

Making the Most in Boracay

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After December holidays, the next season that people look forward to is summer.

Beach, beach and beach!

There are a lot of nice places in the Philippines where you can find really beautiful beach – clear water and white sand. You just have to take your pick as to what fits your budget.

If you pick Boracay, I suggest you really start saving to make the most of your stay. I know that when we go to the beach, we just really want to relax and enjoy the ocean. However, you can do those things in a beach near your city. So when you go to Boracay, might as well enjoy all the fun stuff. Save and go with a group!

Here are the things which I really enjoyed during my stay.

Parasailing – The best experience!! It was a bit pricey but if you really love being up in the air, you should really try this. Just make sure that the weather is nice and not too windy.

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Island Hopping – This will let you see different parts of Boracay, do some snorkeling and swimming. This will also take you to parts of the island with really very clear water and white sand. And of course, a buffet meal is included for this.

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Flying fish – If you are bored with banana boats, then try this one. This is more fun! You just have to hold on tightly. 🙂

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Other things that I tried which you may or may not…

Jetski – This was fun but a bit pricey, so you can skip this one.

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ATV Ride – This is a different experience and it is on land.  You might enjoy this if you do the longer trail.

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Others enjoyed which I didn’t try…

Helmet Diving – If you don’t have problem with underwater (unlike me), then you should try this.  You get a cd of pictures and video of your underwater experience.

Sunset Sailing – You get on a sail boat and enjoy the sunset.

There are so many other activities that you can enjoy in Boracay.  You can start making a list of what you want to do that’s within your budget.

It’s fun in Boracay! 🙂

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Take it Slow

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Since I started working, I felt I’ve become an expert of multitasking. I’m always in a hurry to complete two to three tasks at the same time. I felt like I’m always running out of time.

And as I did this, it somehow influenced even my day to day non-work tasks. I noticed that when I walk with people, I always go ahead of them. When I do my chores at home, I start thinking what to do next when I’m still finishing something. And I noticed, when I do things, I’m always in a fast-paced like I’m being timed.

And now that I’m currently out of work, I still feel like I don’t have enough time to do so many things when I have all the time right now. I want to complete things immediately. I want to accomplish a lot within a week. I want rapid progress in my goals.

No wonder God has been teaching me big time on waiting. I want everything to happen in an instant while God is taking His time in slowing things for me. What can I do?

I made a sort of commitment to myself that while I’m waiting on God for His direction for me, I will learn to slow down on everything. I will do chores in a normal pace, thus, avoiding dropping or breaking things. I will plan out tasks weekly and not kill myself to do all in one day. I will take time to rest, walk slowly, observe things. I read this somewhere, “Take a pause and smell the waffle.”  

I’m excited on how God will change me to be more patient and more trusting.

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