Encounter With An Orange Robed Man

It was a regular day this morning when I got to the train station on my way to work. I was walking towards the platform when I saw something that turned my day unusually regular. In the platform was a tall and lean man wrapped in a light orange robe. As I got nearer, my eyes were drawn to his feet. He was barefoot and on his right foot was a huge cut of a not-so-fresh wound but with some blood still showing. I felt my defenses weaken and my heart fainting.

I was very curious about him that I immediately forgot his feet and watched him in my peripheral vision. Now that he's closer I was even more surprised by him. "A western monk? I thought Buddhist monks are supposed to be Asians."

The train came and we sat across each other. I got occupied in thinking of Buddhism and why this man is walking barefoot around the city. I decided that he must be a pilgrim trying to fulfill some Buddhist vows to save his soul. Then it struck me. This man needs the Gospel.

How I suddenly wished that I've gotten over my flesh earlier and thought not of his wounded feet. How I wished I sat beside him and chatted with him even for a few minutes of our train ride together. It was too late for that but I know I can give him the Gospel in some other way. I quickly rummaged  through my bag for something; a tract, a sticker or a card that has the Gospel or a Bible verse in it. There wasn't. I felt so helpless that I cannot give him anything.

I frantically thought of what I must give. I asked God to show me what I must give this man and to my excitement He answered right away. I remembered that I have a copy of Do Hard Things with me and it has the Gospel on its last pages.

It felt weird giving him Do Hard Things as I got off the train. How on earth is Do Hard Things relative to a western Buddhist monk in a pilgrimage excluding himself from the world? I may not know the exact answer now but I do know that it has the Gospel in it and God will be the one to work in his heart.

I'd like to invite you to pray for this man. That he'll read through the book and hear the Gospel in the end. Don't just stop praying with this man but for all Buddhists in the world.

LEARN MORE ABOUT the BUDDHIST PEOPLE

and HOW YOU CAN PRAY FOR THEM

Passion Is Coming Back!

Remember Passion Manila 2008? The long line outside Phil. Sports Arena (Ultra), the amazing worship experience, and the hearts that were changed and renewed for JESUS!

PASSION IS COMING BACK!

Passion Conference 2010 Live at the Araneta Coliseum on May 25, 2010 7:30PM 

Calling this generation of young people committed to glorify God! 

This is a rare chance for tens of thousands of young people ages 16-25 to gather at Araneta Coliseum on May 25, 2010 to celebrate their common faith and purpose.

Featuring: Louie Giglio, Kristian Stanfill and Chris Tomlin - PASSION Conference 2010

Join us! Get your tickets now for only P200 in all sections. Patron section will be opened first so if you want the best seats in the house. Buy now!

Patron, Lower box and Upper Box A tickets are available ONLY at Becca Music office. Call now! 910.5524 or 910.5352.

Upper Box B and General Admission tickets are available at all Ticketnet outlets. Call 911.5555.

Log on to www.passionworldtour.com or www.beccamusic.com for more details.

To get a glimpse of Passion, join their Live Link now!

Live Link Monday 8:30p EST (Tues 9:30am in Manila) We will be gathering with students from around the globe for a time of prayer and worship. More details at: http://www.livelink.268generation.com/

 

Please feel free to pass this info to your friends and youth groups! God bless!

You're a Christian and You're Proud?

Recently on Facebook, a small icon on my sidebar caught my attention saying, "I am A Christian & I'm Proud."

That statement confused me for a moment, "Are Christians supposed to be proud?" I explored the linked page and found out that it isn't really about being proud. It's just the statement that misled me to think that Christians are proud people.

I feel sad at the growing vagueness in word usages today. We use words without really knowing what they mean and even use them flippantly. What does the word proud really mean?

PROUD (Dictionary.com)

adjective,-er, -est, adverb, –adjective

1. feeling pleasure or satisfaction over something regarded as highly honorable or creditable to oneself (often fol. by of, an infinitive, or a clause).

2. having, proceeding from, or showing a high opinion of one's own dignity, importance, or superiority.

Isn't it very embarrassing (for me it is) to claim ourselves creditable to something that we do not really deserve? Becoming God's children was never to our credit and something we should not be proud of. Nowhere in the Scriptures are we admonished to be proud. Wherever you see the word proud in the Scriptures, it will always be followed with some sort of condemnation.

I think the right word that we should use in making ourselves known as followers of Christ is, Unashamed. The word means this,

1. not ashamed; not restrained by embarrassment or consciousness of moral guilt

2. open; unconcealed; unabashed:

And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. 1 John 2:28 (NIV)

I don't judge the motives of those who call themselves Christians and are proud to say it. It may be that they mean something else and just used the wrong word to express themselves. But let us no longer tolerate the use of words without meaning it. God knows well the meaning of what He is saying and so should we.

Do not keep talking so proudly or let your mouth speak such arrogance, for the LORD is a God who knows, and by him deeds are weighed. 1 Samuel 2:3 (NIV)

Do Hard Things Conference in the Philippines!

A Tip on How to Effectively Memorize Verses

When I was in 4th grade, I won Best Speller of the year. If a human resource manager would interview me for a job and ask me what the greatest accomplishment in my life is, I’d probably say, “Becoming the Best Speller when I was in 4th grade.”

I wasn’t one of the top students in class but my English teacher picked me for the spelling competition anyway. I was nervous. I’d never entered an academic competition before. The competition droned on and scores were tight. I ended it when I spelled ‘kayak’ correctly and won one point ahead of the rest. I walked out of the school library a bit shaking. Did I just win? I could not believe it. I returned to my room and my classmates asked what happened in the competition. Someone asked if I won. I nodded and everyone cheered.

They asked if I’ve memorized the dictionary. No, I didn’t. I just happened to read ‘kayak’ a few days back and looked it up in the dictionary.

Ten years later, people still ask if I memorize the dictionary. No, I don’t. I still commit spelling errors at times with the most common words. While I don’t memorize the dictionary, I do read it occasionally. It wasn’t because I wanted to win that I won.  I just wanted to be a good speller.

Well, what does this post got to do with memorizing verses? Oh well, I just thought that it runs the same way when we memorize verses. Most Christians brought up in church, if not all, were brought up memorizing verses so we can have special rewards. While that may be an effective motivation to memorize, it isn’t giving the reward that our spirit craves.

I’ve noticed recently too, that many Christians who’ve read Do Hard Things have included “Memorizing Verses” in their list of Hard Things. It is good that memorizing verses have captured them because of Do Hard Things but it isn’t good to memorize just for the sake of doing something hard.

I’ve memorized a lot of verses but it isn’t because I want to accomplish a hard thing. I just want to know Jesus more.

"End of the Spear" (Missons Week)

Worship Team leads in praising the Lord

Watched End of the Spear and shed many a tear.

Played a game. We had to close our eyes and shout out a phrase or sing a song to find our teammates.

Debriefing time. We talked about what stood out to us from the movie. This eventually led to talking about people we were in conflict with. Although the Aucas were the tribesmen who had murdered their husbands, the wives of this men chose to minister to the people.

The Urgency of the Great Commission (Messiah College Missions Week)

First day of "Step Out! Stand Out!"—our college's Missions Week. We started with prayer for the Christians around the world, missionaries, church elders; prayer for unreached people groups, countries which have never yet heard of the Gospel; nations, governments, authorities, etc.

Our president, then, called to our attention the importance of the Great Commission:

"Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Matthew 28:18-20

As Christians, we are missionaries to the people we meet everyday. They may be our neighbors, our classmates, relatives, friends, acquaintances...and they all need to hear the Gospel. It doesn't matter where you are; you are called to be a missionary. As the song The Mission says: "...across the street or around the world, the mission's still the same: proclaim and live the truth in Jesus' Name."


In the afternoon, we watched Beyond the Gates of Splendor. Most of us have heard about them—Jim Elliot and his companions (Nate Saint, Pete Fleming, Roger Youderian, and Ed McCully)—but this movie provided fresh insight to the story and a deeper meaning of the Great Commission. Through the stories and the testimonies of the wives, we were able to hear how these young men found their passion in the field of missions and shared their dream of reaching the Auca tribe.



We had the opportunity to hear from students as well. These are our graduating batch. They went to Cambodia during the summer for a short-term cross-cultural mission trip. They shared their experiences (eating delicacies such as spiders and crickets, visiting cultural museums, going to a park where the walkway is paved with silver, meeting missionaries who work and give so much and have no one to really help them, yet continuing in the work for the glory of God) and what the trip made them realize.



We also heard from the head of the youth missions department of a church. He shared to us how God called him, as well as the challenges he and his team have experienced. He also shared about God's goodness and faithfulness even in the most difficult situations.

"I have but one passion - it is He, it is He alone. The world is the field and the field is the world; and henceforth that country shall be my home where I can be most used in winning souls for Christ."
Count Zinzindorf

SOLI DEO GLORIA!

Self-control... wait, I got to check Facebook before I post this

There, I finally got to post this.

But then just after you've opened this page you took several detours first just like I did before getting to see this video. Like any other teen, you probably checked another web page to "maximize your time" while our blog's page is loading. You must have checked Twitter, Facebook, email, Skype, a friend's blog, or done a personality quiz. You also probably have 6 tabs open in one window. Or 6 tabs in each possible Internet window you have opened.

And there, the video is done loading. You watch or maybe not. You'll just listen while checking another page. Make no more detours, this video is worth your time. Watch and listen.

Step Out! Stand Out! (Messiah College Missions Week)

This week is our school's Missions Week. We set aside a time every year—one full week—to review once more the challenge of the Great Commission. During this time, we usually invite guests (missionaries, pastors, etc.) to speak to us.

This year's slogan is Step Out! Stand Out! Our theme is military. In this present age, there is an ever-increasing need to share the message of salvation. As Christians, we need to answer to that call. We need to take the challenge. We need to be soldiers for Christ.

It's only the second day, but I have been challenged, inspired, blessed. I look forward to the rest of the week.

Pictures and stories to come!!!

Your Dollar Can Be A Blue Gold

Alyssa and I have been very much occupied for the past month. But we have not forgotten that we have a blog. :)

A year ago, a sixteen year-old guy decided that he wanted to help people in Sudan by building wells for them. One well costs $8,000. By December 2008, he raised $10,000 and was able to build one well for the Sudanese people. This year, he's at it again and we're very excited for the raising of $24,000 to build three wells!

Well, Joshua Guthrie is not your higher than average Joe. In fact, he's completely normal for his age doing school, playing video games, enjoying time with his family. The difference? His compassion for people who need so much of what we constantly take for granted: water.

Watch the video and tell your friends about it! Share it on emails, Twitter, Facebook,  YouTube, or blog about it! Give up a dollar and make a difference in the lives of people in Sudan!

.:::: www.DollarforADrink.org ::::.