Day 14 - Choose to Accept, Choose to Sacrifice

Posted in Labels: | at 9:50 AM

Choose to Accept
What struck me most about acceptance was what Holladay shared:
"When someone has a viewpoint on an issue that is different from the one I have, I need to accept [...] When someone's personality causes him or her to deal with a situation in a different way from how I would handle it, I need to accept [...] "

My first thought came upon a friend who is going through a really difficult time emotionally. Having gone through an emotionally fragile and hurt stage before, I sympathized with him and made the conscious effort to be there for him whenever he needed someone to talk to or to get advice from. There were times I revisited unpleasant memories by sharing my painful experiences with him, for the purpose of encouraging and building him up, to direct him back to God for healing and learning.

Despite all that however, my friend still continues to dwell in pain and heartbreak, and chooses to do things I had suggested he shouldn't do repeatedly, even after persistent encouragement. Gradually, it took its toil on me, I became so discouraged and so angry to a point where even reading his depressing nicknames on MSN or status updates on Facebook would affect me really badly for the entire day. And I allowed this to be manifested in my own relationships with others and began hurting them as well.

In reading the quote I shared earlier I was reminded (or rather reprimanded severely) that I cannot impose my beliefs and convictions on someone. Just like Christ who doesn't shove the gospel of love down our throats. But in this case, to accept that God is working in the person's life in His time and His way, one that is uniquely suited to him. All I'm called to do is to keep loving my friend with Jesus' power and love, and to keep pointing him back to Christ. And that is what I will persevere in doing with Christ.

Choose to Sacrifice
When I think of "Sacrifice" it always comes with a certain noble grandeur aura, that it is a great and mighty power that only the big heroes seem to have. I acknowledge that this perception is often influenced by what we see in the cinema, think Leonidas in 300 holding the line against the Persian army, or Aragorn in LOTR who leads the charge into the massive armies of Mordor, or even Jack in Titanic, who lets Rose lie on the plank to stay afloat from the freezing Atlantic water.

More often than not however, the power of sacrifice is not only reserved for big heroes or the romeos that we are exposed to. The power of sacrifice can be manifested in the seemingly small daily things that we all can do. Whether its being that little bit more patient with your family after a long and tiring day at school or work (I'm often quite guilty of snapping at my family when I've had a bad day). Being kind to offer to do the unpleasant house chores like washing the toilet and or doing dishes without being asked to. Persevering in holding genuine conversation with a friend from school or colleague from work that you're not entirely comfortable with and not just thinking of making an excuse to run and turn the other way (again something i'm not proud in admitting)

Like the Ah Lau planeteer challenged us, the power is yours. The power to accept others for who they are, the wonderful creation that God has made and placed in your circle of influence. The power to sacrifice to give or do something that you have the ability to do for the people around you. Draw from Christ who is our never ending source of love and power!

In closing, I want to share a powerful video clip I watched on Facebook during the week, I believe it was based on a story I read in an email a long time ago. I'll let the video speak its volume for itself. Be blessed and reminded of how infinitely deep our heavenly Father's love is for us all.

[Love] always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 Corinthians 13:7

In His love and mine,
Isaiah

  • Digg
  • Del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • RSS
Read Users' Comments (0)

Day 14 - Choose to Accept, Choose to Sacrifice

Posted in Labels: | at 9:50 AM

Choose to Accept
What struck me most about acceptance was what Holladay shared:
"When someone has a viewpoint on an issue that is different from the one I have, I need to accept [...] When someone's personality causes him or her to deal with a situation in a different way from how I would handle it, I need to accept [...] "

My first thought came upon a friend who is going through a really difficult time emotionally. Having gone through an emotionally fragile and hurt stage before, I sympathized with him and made the conscious effort to be there for him whenever he needed someone to talk to or to get advice from. There were times I revisited unpleasant memories by sharing my painful experiences with him, for the purpose of encouraging and building him up, to direct him back to God for healing and learning.

Despite all that however, my friend still continues to dwell in pain and heartbreak, and chooses to do things I had suggested he shouldn't do repeatedly, even after persistent encouragement. Gradually, it took its toil on me, I became so discouraged and so angry to a point where even reading his depressing nicknames on MSN or status updates on Facebook would affect me really badly for the entire day. And I allowed this to be manifested in my own relationships with others and began hurting them as well.

In reading the quote I shared earlier I was reminded (or rather reprimanded severely) that I cannot impose my beliefs and convictions on someone. Just like Christ who doesn't shove the gospel of love down our throats. But in this case, to accept that God is working in the person's life in His time and His way, one that is uniquely suited to him. All I'm called to do is to keep loving my friend with Jesus' power and love, and to keep pointing him back to Christ. And that is what I will persevere in doing with Christ.

Choose to Sacrifice
When I think of "Sacrifice" it always comes with a certain noble grandeur aura, that it is a great and mighty power that only the big heroes seem to have. I acknowledge that this perception is often influenced by what we see in the cinema, think Leonidas in 300 holding the line against the Persian army, or Aragorn in LOTR who leads the charge into the massive armies of Mordor, or even Jack in Titanic, who lets Rose lie on the plank to stay afloat from the freezing Atlantic water.

More often than not however, the power of sacrifice is not only reserved for big heroes or the romeos that we are exposed to. The power of sacrifice can be manifested in the seemingly small daily things that we all can do. Whether its being that little bit more patient with your family after a long and tiring day at school or work (I'm often quite guilty of snapping at my family when I've had a bad day). Being kind to offer to do the unpleasant house chores like washing the toilet and or doing dishes without being asked to. Persevering in holding genuine conversation with a friend from school or colleague from work that you're not entirely comfortable with and not just thinking of making an excuse to run and turn the other way (again something i'm not proud in admitting)

Like the Ah Lau planeteer challenged us, the power is yours. The power to accept others for who they are, the wonderful creation that God has made and placed in your circle of influence. The power to sacrifice to give or do something that you have the ability to do for the people around you. Draw from Christ who is our never ending source of love and power!

In closing, I want to share a powerful video clip I watched on Facebook during the week, I believe it was based on a story I read in an email a long time ago. I'll let the video speak its volume for itself. Be blessed and reminded of how infinitely deep our heavenly Father's love is for us all.

[Love] always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 Corinthians 13:7

In His love and mine,
Isaiah

  • Digg
  • Del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • RSS
Read Users' Comments (0)

Day 14 - Choose to Accept, Choose to Sacrifice

Posted in Labels: | at 9:50 AM

Choose to Accept
What struck me most about acceptance was what Holladay shared:
"When someone has a viewpoint on an issue that is different from the one I have, I need to accept [...] When someone's personality causes him or her to deal with a situation in a different way from how I would handle it, I need to accept [...] "

My first thought came upon a friend who is going through a really difficult time emotionally. Having gone through an emotionally fragile and hurt stage before, I sympathized with him and made the conscious effort to be there for him whenever he needed someone to talk to or to get advice from. There were times I revisited unpleasant memories by sharing my painful experiences with him, for the purpose of encouraging and building him up, to direct him back to God for healing and learning.

Despite all that however, my friend still continues to dwell in pain and heartbreak, and chooses to do things I had suggested he shouldn't do repeatedly, even after persistent encouragement. Gradually, it took its toil on me, I became so discouraged and so angry to a point where even reading his depressing nicknames on MSN or status updates on Facebook would affect me really badly for the entire day. And I allowed this to be manifested in my own relationships with others and began hurting them as well.

In reading the quote I shared earlier I was reminded (or rather reprimanded severely) that I cannot impose my beliefs and convictions on someone. Just like Christ who doesn't shove the gospel of love down our throats. But in this case, to accept that God is working in the person's life in His time and His way, one that is uniquely suited to him. All I'm called to do is to keep loving my friend with Jesus' power and love, and to keep pointing him back to Christ. And that is what I will persevere in doing with Christ.

Choose to Sacrifice
When I think of "Sacrifice" it always comes with a certain noble grandeur aura, that it is a great and mighty power that only the big heroes seem to have. I acknowledge that this perception is often influenced by what we see in the cinema, think Leonidas in 300 holding the line against the Persian army, or Aragorn in LOTR who leads the charge into the massive armies of Mordor, or even Jack in Titanic, who lets Rose lie on the plank to stay afloat from the freezing Atlantic water.

More often than not however, the power of sacrifice is not only reserved for big heroes or the romeos that we are exposed to. The power of sacrifice can be manifested in the seemingly small daily things that we all can do. Whether its being that little bit more patient with your family after a long and tiring day at school or work (I'm often quite guilty of snapping at my family when I've had a bad day). Being kind to offer to do the unpleasant house chores like washing the toilet and or doing dishes without being asked to. Persevering in holding genuine conversation with a friend from school or colleague from work that you're not entirely comfortable with and not just thinking of making an excuse to run and turn the other way (again something i'm not proud in admitting)

Like the Ah Lau planeteer challenged us, the power is yours. The power to accept others for who they are, the wonderful creation that God has made and placed in your circle of influence. The power to sacrifice to give or do something that you have the ability to do for the people around you. Draw from Christ who is our never ending source of love and power!

In closing, I want to share a powerful video clip I watched on Facebook during the week, I believe it was based on a story I read in an email a long time ago. I'll let the video speak its volume for itself. Be blessed and reminded of how infinitely deep our heavenly Father's love is for us all.

[Love] always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 Corinthians 13:7

In His love and mine,
Isaiah

  • Digg
  • Del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • RSS
Read Users' Comments (0)

Day 13 – Choose to Fellowship, Choose to Forgive

Posted in Labels: | at 10:46 AM

How many of us are able to confront the people who hurt us and tell them “I forgive you”? For me to do so, it is really a humongous step out of my comfort zone. How bout you?=) As I read today’s chapter I discovered a little secret from God on why we humans are not able to forgive. Are you ready?

The little secret is spelled as P-R-I-D-E. Yes, our pride! Now, what has pride got to do with our forgiveness?

Here’s the yummy part from the little secret, we as humans are born with pride, we all cannot escape the fact that we have pride. To forgive someone is taking a step in our life where we need to stop and take that bag of pride which we clinged closely to our shoulder, and place it on the ground. Then, after placing it on the ground, we need to lift up our foot, one at a time, that suddenly seemed to be stucked so heavily to the ground and walk (or call) towards the person who had hurt us. Some of us might reached to the point where we are able to approach the person, but as we draw nearer and nearer to the person we find ourself dragging out feet, and even at some point you have the thought of running back to where you started and pick up your “precious” bag of pride. FINALLY, you reached to where the person is, you thought that was tough enough but little did you know that those were the easier parts because now you have to face the hardest part. To say the words “I forgive you”. Ugh! The feeling of disgust suddenly reaches up to your throat. You are so tempted to say something instead of “I forgive you”. But no, you didn’t. No matter how hard it is, you took the courage to say it even though you stuttered as you said “I..I…I…for…forgi….forgive…y…yo…you!”, and viola! The disgusted feeling just lifted away. You felt as if the heaviest burden you’ve carried in your life is lifted away. Then you think to yourself, it isn’t that bad after all isn’t it?=)

But sadly, because of our pride that prevents us from confessing these 3 words, many of us struggled to face things in our life. Because of our pride, relationships are broken, hearts were left wounded. Just imagine that, the power of saying these 3 words can change lives, can heal lives that are broken!

“I forgive you”.

The only way we can find the strength to forgive others is to embrace the fact that Jesus has forgiven us [Eph 1:7]. Yes! That is what I believe we all need to know and understand. That Jesus has died for us 2000 years ago to cleanse and set us free from all our sin. Then you and I are able to set that bag of pride down from our life and forgive [Eph 4:32]. You might be thinking, “Oh yes, I know about Jesus dying upon the cross so that I will be forgiven”. BUT, how many of us really BELIEVE that God has already forgiven us? I’m not asking whether you know or not. I’m asking whether you BELIEVE that God really did died so that you will be forgiven. Knowing is one thing, believing is another. We might have heard this so many times that we are IMMUNE to it. So whenever anyone said this statement we’ll be thinking to ourselves that we know it and we turn a deaf ear towards that statement. Sounds familiar?

It won’t be easy, and you would not be able to trust that person automatically, but with God’s strength in you, just follow the example of Jesus and let the trust for that person slowly built in you after you forgive him/her. Let God be the strength in you [Phil 4:13] as you understand that He has forgiven you, to take your pride away and forgive others!

Have a blessed day! =P

Love,
Steph

  • Digg
  • Del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • RSS
Read Users' Comments (0)

Day 13 – Choose to Fellowship, Choose to Forgive

Posted in Labels: | at 10:46 AM

How many of us are able to confront the people who hurt us and tell them “I forgive you”? For me to do so, it is really a humongous step out of my comfort zone. How bout you?=) As I read today’s chapter I discovered a little secret from God on why we humans are not able to forgive. Are you ready?

The little secret is spelled as P-R-I-D-E. Yes, our pride! Now, what has pride got to do with our forgiveness?

Here’s the yummy part from the little secret, we as humans are born with pride, we all cannot escape the fact that we have pride. To forgive someone is taking a step in our life where we need to stop and take that bag of pride which we clinged closely to our shoulder, and place it on the ground. Then, after placing it on the ground, we need to lift up our foot, one at a time, that suddenly seemed to be stucked so heavily to the ground and walk (or call) towards the person who had hurt us. Some of us might reached to the point where we are able to approach the person, but as we draw nearer and nearer to the person we find ourself dragging out feet, and even at some point you have the thought of running back to where you started and pick up your “precious” bag of pride. FINALLY, you reached to where the person is, you thought that was tough enough but little did you know that those were the easier parts because now you have to face the hardest part. To say the words “I forgive you”. Ugh! The feeling of disgust suddenly reaches up to your throat. You are so tempted to say something instead of “I forgive you”. But no, you didn’t. No matter how hard it is, you took the courage to say it even though you stuttered as you said “I..I…I…for…forgi….forgive…y…yo…you!”, and viola! The disgusted feeling just lifted away. You felt as if the heaviest burden you’ve carried in your life is lifted away. Then you think to yourself, it isn’t that bad after all isn’t it?=)

But sadly, because of our pride that prevents us from confessing these 3 words, many of us struggled to face things in our life. Because of our pride, relationships are broken, hearts were left wounded. Just imagine that, the power of saying these 3 words can change lives, can heal lives that are broken!

“I forgive you”.

The only way we can find the strength to forgive others is to embrace the fact that Jesus has forgiven us [Eph 1:7]. Yes! That is what I believe we all need to know and understand. That Jesus has died for us 2000 years ago to cleanse and set us free from all our sin. Then you and I are able to set that bag of pride down from our life and forgive [Eph 4:32]. You might be thinking, “Oh yes, I know about Jesus dying upon the cross so that I will be forgiven”. BUT, how many of us really BELIEVE that God has already forgiven us? I’m not asking whether you know or not. I’m asking whether you BELIEVE that God really did died so that you will be forgiven. Knowing is one thing, believing is another. We might have heard this so many times that we are IMMUNE to it. So whenever anyone said this statement we’ll be thinking to ourselves that we know it and we turn a deaf ear towards that statement. Sounds familiar?

It won’t be easy, and you would not be able to trust that person automatically, but with God’s strength in you, just follow the example of Jesus and let the trust for that person slowly built in you after you forgive him/her. Let God be the strength in you [Phil 4:13] as you understand that He has forgiven you, to take your pride away and forgive others!

Have a blessed day! =P

Love,
Steph

  • Digg
  • Del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • RSS
Read Users' Comments (0)

Day 13 – Choose to Fellowship, Choose to Forgive

Posted in Labels: | at 10:46 AM

How many of us are able to confront the people who hurt us and tell them “I forgive you”? For me to do so, it is really a humongous step out of my comfort zone. How bout you?=) As I read today’s chapter I discovered a little secret from God on why we humans are not able to forgive. Are you ready?

The little secret is spelled as P-R-I-D-E. Yes, our pride! Now, what has pride got to do with our forgiveness?

Here’s the yummy part from the little secret, we as humans are born with pride, we all cannot escape the fact that we have pride. To forgive someone is taking a step in our life where we need to stop and take that bag of pride which we clinged closely to our shoulder, and place it on the ground. Then, after placing it on the ground, we need to lift up our foot, one at a time, that suddenly seemed to be stucked so heavily to the ground and walk (or call) towards the person who had hurt us. Some of us might reached to the point where we are able to approach the person, but as we draw nearer and nearer to the person we find ourself dragging out feet, and even at some point you have the thought of running back to where you started and pick up your “precious” bag of pride. FINALLY, you reached to where the person is, you thought that was tough enough but little did you know that those were the easier parts because now you have to face the hardest part. To say the words “I forgive you”. Ugh! The feeling of disgust suddenly reaches up to your throat. You are so tempted to say something instead of “I forgive you”. But no, you didn’t. No matter how hard it is, you took the courage to say it even though you stuttered as you said “I..I…I…for…forgi….forgive…y…yo…you!”, and viola! The disgusted feeling just lifted away. You felt as if the heaviest burden you’ve carried in your life is lifted away. Then you think to yourself, it isn’t that bad after all isn’t it?=)

But sadly, because of our pride that prevents us from confessing these 3 words, many of us struggled to face things in our life. Because of our pride, relationships are broken, hearts were left wounded. Just imagine that, the power of saying these 3 words can change lives, can heal lives that are broken!

“I forgive you”.

The only way we can find the strength to forgive others is to embrace the fact that Jesus has forgiven us [Eph 1:7]. Yes! That is what I believe we all need to know and understand. That Jesus has died for us 2000 years ago to cleanse and set us free from all our sin. Then you and I are able to set that bag of pride down from our life and forgive [Eph 4:32]. You might be thinking, “Oh yes, I know about Jesus dying upon the cross so that I will be forgiven”. BUT, how many of us really BELIEVE that God has already forgiven us? I’m not asking whether you know or not. I’m asking whether you BELIEVE that God really did died so that you will be forgiven. Knowing is one thing, believing is another. We might have heard this so many times that we are IMMUNE to it. So whenever anyone said this statement we’ll be thinking to ourselves that we know it and we turn a deaf ear towards that statement. Sounds familiar?

It won’t be easy, and you would not be able to trust that person automatically, but with God’s strength in you, just follow the example of Jesus and let the trust for that person slowly built in you after you forgive him/her. Let God be the strength in you [Phil 4:13] as you understand that He has forgiven you, to take your pride away and forgive others!

Have a blessed day! =P

Love,
Steph

  • Digg
  • Del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • RSS
Read Users' Comments (0)

Day 12 - Act Immediately, Act Radically

Posted in Labels: | at 9:22 AM

Gosh I love this chapter.

We (Well, the majority of us that meet up on Saturday mornings) have agreed that God has put us here on this Earth to master the human experience and not just to have a spiritual experience (Talk to any of your friendly Cell Leaders for a more detailed explanation). =) So, it is safe to say that the way we behave, the way we act, react, respond, the choices we make is really an outward expression of our internal experience. Life is lived from the inside out. Isn't it true? People tend to do whatever they 'feel' like doing. If they don't 'feel' it, they begin to reason in their mind that it is not worth doing.

That's why the game was/is/will always be all about influence. God has given us the power to choose (Duet 30) our own destiny, and Satan knows that. That is why, from the Garden of Eden up till today, Satan's tactics have not changed. He is here to influence the choices that we make, be it via media, the company we keep around us, money and yada yada. Something to think about. A wise friend of mine once told me: Whatever controls your choices controls your life. Whoever controls your life controls your destiny. =) (Okay, no side-tracking... Gosh I love this topic!)

On the other side of the ledger (Yes, I am an accountant), God does the exact same thing. To simply put, most of the things that happen in your life is designed so that you would come back to God or turn to him. Agree? Yes we do! God is also constantly trying to show us what choices we should make. Now, he does not impose his will on us, but he DOES know how to make us willing. =D We can read about Jonah on that one.

I have a little personal saying that I keep close to me that helps me guide, guard and govern the choices that I make: The word of God is sole source of faith and my absolute rule of conduct. This is my reality. We have been at those crossroads where we have to make choices, and being tossed between the easy way out or the hard way out. Now, I'm not saying that we should always take the hard way out simply because we are Christians. The easy way doesn't mean it's the wrong way. Flip-side, just because it's the hard way, doesn't mean it's the right way. But all that won't matter if we do not have a guide or something that tells/shows us what we should do, would it? So, we just resort to what we 'feel' we should do simply because... we 'feel' it. So if I ask "Can you explain the reasoning behind why you did that?" "Nope, I just 'felt' like it." .....

The bible was given to us as a standard for living and a guideline on how we can and should master this human experience. What I meant by my little saying above is this: If what I feel is right and the bible says it's wrong, then the bible is right and my feelings are wrong. =) I know I'm not perfect, and I'm sure I'll make mistakes, and that's all the more reasons why I have to put my trust in someone greater to guide, guard and govern my life.

So how does this whole sharing relate to Acting Immediately and Acting Radically (The reading today)? Easy, I'm saying that acting immediately and acting radically won't matter if you do not know what/how you should act. And the only way you can EVER act immediately and radically is when you get the word inside of you and at that crossroad, you know exactly which choice will bring the most glory to God. Be blessed!

Have an outstanding day.

  • Digg
  • Del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • RSS
Read Users' Comments (0)
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)