To Prosperity and Beyond

Today is our 1st wedding anniversary.  Talk about how time flies.  Whew.

My husband and I got married last year during the time of Typhoon Frank.  We got married before a judge in less than 30minutes.  It was brief and may be a bit unromantic (fine, it’s not romantic at all).  But we were and still are happy.  The brief ceremony was witnessed by 2 friends, my husband’s mom, 2 nannies and our daughter, darcy.  Our other close friends and family members were not able to make it on time thus we just asked them to head straight to the restaurant we chose to have a little celebration with us.

Of course we are still hoping and praying for a wedding that will be officiated by our pastor and witnessed by all our family members and very close friends.  But our current finances forbids it for now. 

It’s ok though.  We know that when the time is right, God will grant us our dream wedding with all the works. But for now, a great big thanks to HIM for being at the center of our marriage and for being the foundation of our family.

Matthew 19:6

So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”

I miss my dad.  It’s been years since the last time I spoke to him.  And now that it’s father’s day, it struck me that I’ve been missing him for the longest time now.

I have fond memories of my dad.  He’s always been strict and authoritarian though during the later years when we live under the same roof, he became more relaxed. I remember how much he likes taking long drives and listening to the Beatles.  I remember all those times when we would eat out as a family at those great eat-all you can buffets.

He now lives abroad and I am so ashamed to admit that I don’t even remember how long it has been since he left. We were able to talk on the phone about a couple of times during the last few years but that’s it.  Now there’s nothing. I really hope he’s ok.  I don’t even know if he has a new family now.

I’m not depressed, but I am sad because I know how much I am missing because my dad is not here anymore.  It also saddens me that my daughter wouldn’t be able to grow up around her grandpa.

But I have hope.  I know that God can make a way to bring him back.  I believe it’s only a matter of time.

The last  couple of months has been very rough on my husband.  I can see how troubled and worried he is about the state of our finances.  There will be times when I look at him in the mornings and I can see on his face how I must’ve looked during the last several months of last year when everything looked bleak for my career and the threat of unemployment loomed over my head.

Well the threat has passed.  I lost my job during the second month of this year.  Yet only after two months, the Lord gave me a new job for which I am very much thankful and grateful.  The pay is ok though not enough yet to compensate for the overall needs of our household.  My husband is now thinking of giving up the car he worked so hard for just so we can make ends meet.

There are times really when I don’t know what to say to ease his worries, there are times also when I pass on to him all the encouragement he gave me when I was the one experiencing these dark and depressing moments.

For the past couple of weeks I’ve been praying hard for God to once again reach out and ease my husband’s pain.  To help him through this season of his life.  True, our financial struggles affect both of us - especially as parents.  But in the end, he is after all the husband, the father, the head of the family.  The impact is quite heavier on him I suspect.

I’ve been praying for the right things to say to him - to encourage him, to cheer him up.  But really I think the best advice I’ve given him so far is to point him back to God.  How important it is to continue praying and reading the word.  How important it is to still ourselves and just LISTEN to God’s answer.  I know that if everything else fails, even if I fail in giving him the support he needs, God won’t.

Isaiah 26:3

You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You.

I want to greet all the mothers out there A Blessed Mother’s Day!   May the Lord’s grace be continually upon us so that we would always be a blessing to others, not just our families.

May we strive to become women after God’s own heart.  Like Mary, Ruth, Noami, Esther…

Proverbs 31:28-29

²⁸ Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:

²⁹ “Many women do noble things,
but you surpass them all.”

For the past few weeks I can see how my husband is very much stressed out by our situation.  One time in a text message, he admitted how desperate he feels sometimes.  Endless worries are crushing his spirit.

I try really hard to cheer him up, to give him words of encouragement but I feel that I am not able to give him anything of value.  Maybe because at the back of my mind, I bear the same worries.  The fact that I’ve been less than faithful in reading the Word doesn’t help our situation either.

I long to be a better support system to my husband and I know I couldn’t be nor I wouldn’t be if I am not “well-supported” myself from the inside. 

Thank you Father, for reminding me the importance of being faithful to your word regardless of our situation and the changes that come our way.  Thank you for tirelessly showing me that You are the only support-system that we’ll ever need for we cannot do it by our own might but only through your gracious Spirit.
 

Zechariah 4:6 (New International Version)

So he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty.

Aside from being regular church-goers, my husband and I seek to become more involved in Children Ministry.  We are currently team members now but we hope that we would be able to serve more in different ways.  But there was a time back then when my thoughts were I would get involved in ministry as soon as everything goes well for us financially.

But somewhere along the way I got convicted.  I knew deep inside that it might take years and years before we are prospered.  I mean, who’s to say we would still be around tomorrow to be able to make a difference?  Why not now?  Why wait?  Because this line of thinking means that as soon as a sense of security is attained then that’s the only time we should serve others and God. As soon as the money begins to pour in then we’ll start trusting in God to provide, enough to spare the time to be a blessing to others.  This is not faith based on God, but on what we can do for ourselves.  Of course, we know that this will only lead to disappointments and lost opportunities and lost time.

So I encourage you to get involved with your church not just as a regular attendee but to be an active one.  Be it with the ushering team or worship team or children ministry team - there are many ways we can be of service to others and to God.  Let’s not wait for tomorrow, for it may not come.  Instead, let’s live for today and share with others all the blessings that God gives us now.

The usual saying goes that experience is the best teacher.  But wouldn’t it be great if we learn without having to go through all the trials in our lives?  Of course, the ironic thing is that we don’t really absorb any lesson in our lives unless it created such an impact on us.

But God gave us wonderful examples - people whose lives we can learn from - of varying personalities and situations just about applicable to everyone.  He wants us to learn, yes.  But as much as possible, He also wants to save us from needless heartache if only we learn to listen and learn.

There’s Abraham, the courageous pioneer who went to an unknown land to claim his inheritance.  He was considered righteous because of his great faith in God.  Joseph, who was sold for a pittance by his own brothers, imprisoned for a crime he did not commit and yet in the end, he became the right hand man of the Pharaoh.  In his life we can see how God can make all the bad things work together for good. Job, who despite all the calamities and tragedies that brought him to his knees refused to denounce God and continued to cling on to Him.  Esther, at the risk of losing everything including her head, believed wholeheartedly on the power of prayer and fought for what was right.

All these wonderful stories of courage and faith, of tragedies and triumphs, of heartbreak and hope are contained in the Bible.  Our handbook, our manual to life.  Let’s take advantage of it.  For the words within are God’s words.  If we follow them closely, we are assured of a victorious life even here on earth.

My husband has always been a kind person.  This weekend he asked his dad (who’s coming to Manila from the province) to bring some Chinese noodles they make to give to our new neighbors and landlady.  I mean, I haven’t even thought about doing something like that.  When I asked him why is he giving these people we barely know noodles he just shrugged and said: “just because.”  He’s always been like that.  He likes doing thoughtful things for people around him without expecting anything in return.

This is not actually the first time he exhibited such thoughtfulness.  I got acquainted with some of the employees who directly reports to him and I know for a fact that they even approach him for advice on personal issues.  I have never seen him back away from getting involved personally with them.  He’s all heart.

We are similar in many ways but also different in a lot of ways too.  I have to admit that I find it difficult to open up, to share a bit of myself with other people.  How it is to be able to reach out and touch someone else’s life with yours.  I don’t think I’ll ever know the true meaning of sacrifice until I learn how to share myself with others.

It’s not enough to help others in material ways or even spout out advices to those who seek it.  A bit of ourselves have to be in our giving as well.  God is the best, the prime example of a wonderful giver.  He did not just send money or His angels, He sent His only Son. He gave Himself to us.

I pray that just like my husband, but most importantly just like our generous God, I would learn how to give and to help others with a little of me as well.

It is really difficult to find a job.  It’s been over a month now and I’m still unemployed.  My husband and I have started feeling the pressure of our dwindling finances. I really hope that I’ll land a job soon.

This morning I prayed for guidance and wisdom.  I prayed for a direction as to the kind of job I should go after.  Should I apply for a job that involves my previous industry or should I go for something in an entirely different one?  Should I work from home? If I do, what kind of work can I do?  Where can I find leads? How do I start?

God’s word for me today is once again, right on target.  I want to share it with you especially those who are in the same situation as I am.

Psalm 46:1-5,10

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.  There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.  God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at the break of day.

“Be sill, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”

Becoming a christian does not mean that all tangles in our lives will be straightened out magically.  It took long years for these tangles to get there, thus it is only logical that it will also take a long time for each to be straightened out.

More often than not in my own life, I sometimes feel that no progress is being made.  I think it’s because of our human nature.  The impatient side of us.  I mean, the problems seems recurring and arriving one after the other.  When will it end? When will I improve?  When you begin to feel this way, remember to thank God for your progress.  After all, Jesus will continue the Good work He started in each and every one of us.  He is the author and perfecter of our faith.  Let’s also trust in His promise to lead us to victory, disentangling our knots slowly but surely.

These knots will come undone depending on our obedience and faithfulness to God.  With each trials that come our way are opportunities to overcome our problems - in this case, our knots and tangles.  Most of the time though, we only have ourselves to blame because we stand in the way of our own disentanglement.

I think it’s because we become accustomed to having these problems around.  We unconsciously cling to them.  We can’t let them go.  One good example was my situation before.  I was in a kind of a working environment that wasn’t doing me good and my family.  But it took a long time and a couple of interventions by my spiritual family before I came to accept the fact that that situation was not what God wants for me anymore.  I was too stubborn to see His will even though I was suffering everyday.  But when I finally surrendered to His will and decided to let go, God made things happen that made the decision to go less painful.  He took the decision really out of our hands and He made all things to work together for good in the end.

So let’s all make a decision today to let go of the things that are holding us back both in our walk with God and our personal growth.  Let’s not waste anymore valuable time by getting in the way of our road to freedom.  Let’s untangle all the knots in our lives by the grace of God, doing it one day at a time.