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Wed, Apr 29th - 6:05PM
He Cares for You
"Cast all your anxiety on him because He cares for you." 1 Peter 5:7
The world is in panic and it's not getting any better . While economic crisis is still brewing, now it's swine influenza virus taking its havoc in most people's minds bringing more sicknesses from stress than the virus itself. What's next? Many of us maybe wondering, "Is the world coming to an end?" Are all these distressing news just a "wake up call" to humble us and bring us down to our knees ?
God cares for us. But you may ask, if He cares for us, then why are many people suffering right now? You may even wonder why bad things happen to good people. I don't have the answers to these questions but God sees the big picture. We just have to TRUST HIM.
As a nurse, I know how important it is to frequently wash my hands before and after performing any nursing procedures to my patients. This helps prevent transmission of bacterias and viruses from patient to patient. And as a Christian, I also know how important it is to pray day and night and ask God to cleanse me of my sins to prevent gratifying the desires of my sinful nature. When anxieties and worries start crawling in me causing battlefield in my mind, I will just rely on the Word of God because I believe that it is "sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow, judging the thoughts and attitudes of the heart (Hebrews 4:12). "
"If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him." James 1:5 Rest in the assurance that we are not alone. God is watching us. His Word is true and will stand forever. He gives wisdom and instructions. Lean on Him. "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. " John 14:27
God did not promise a life of no troubles, but He promises strength during storms.
It had not been too long since I discover the fun of blogging. To be honest, I don't even know why many of us write down our thoughts for others to read, dissect, and at times get misinterpreted. As someone who loves to write, I know before hand that with every word I write, I can either be liked or disliked. I can either have friends or enemies.
And so is true with evangelism. The moment you decide to share about the Gospel or Good News about Jesus, be ready for the Enemy to start attacking you. He can use anyone, people who are close to you, people you don't know, even other Christians. But is that enough to stop doing what you're doing for Christ? I know sometimes it hurts when others throw tomatoes in our face, say insulting remarks against us, saying sarcastic words either out of envy or to cover up for their stagnant faith or lack of it.
It's important for me to always remember in my writing ministry that I am writing for One audience alone- Jesus Christ. His Word assures me to go on and not to give up:
"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you, because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you." Matthew 5: 11-12
So when you attack a brother or sister in Christ who is just trying to encourage others and share what The Holy Spirit has put in their hearts, you are really attacking Christ. Someone of faith once said, "Evangelism is like a beggar leading another beggar where to find the bread." We are only servants of Christ, following His lead.
"Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know." Jeremiah 33:3
How wonderful it is to know that God is available anytime and anywhere. We can call on Him through prayers, tell Him all that we need and just speak to Him about anything and we can be assured that He listens . That is, if we believe.
Most of us know how frustrating it can be when we have problems and there seems to be no one available when we call. People get so busy with many responsibilities that it's kind of sad when we feel like we are bothering people when all we want from them is to listen to us as we tell them our needs. Most people pay a lot of money just to get to a counselor or psychologist whose job is usually just to listen and say, "I hear you..go on.."
God will tell us great and unsearchable things we do not know only if we trust in Him and communicate with Him with our whole heart. He gives us power and insights that this world can not give. Our human understanding is limited but God will give us power and reveal to us many things if we are just in tune with Him.
Call unto Him now. Whatever your needs and problems and desires of your heart. And yes, His line is never busy.
"Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace in time of need. Hebrews 4:16
"It is good to praise You Lord, to sing praises to God Most High. It is good to tell of Your love in the morning and Your loyalty at night." Psalm 92
God is good and all the time! He needs our praise all the time- good times and bad times. His will is perfect. He deserves our praises!
Thank God for my sister Remy's successful surgery yesterday . After many months of waiting, and of prayers of people of faith as well as her own deep faith in God, she passed one of the most difficult trials in her life. After 3 surgeries within a year, she came out clean- no cancer! May we continue to pray for her complete recovery. "But I will restore you to health and restore your wounds." Jeremiah 30:17
This is the year of restoration and God is doing many amazing transformation in the life of those who put their trust in Him. I believe that God will do amazing things and use my sister for His glory!!
Please pray for my sister Remy who is undergoing total hysterectomy and cholecystectomy today.
I believe that as we unite in prayer, she will have a successful surgery and complete healing. May God bless the hands of the medical and nursing team who will attend to her.
Thank you all and God bless you, Gloria
"Worship the Lord your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you." Exodus 23:25
"But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds," declares the Lord. Jeremiah 30:17
"Is any of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." James 5:14-16
As I mentioned last week on my blog titled, "Life's Smoothies" I need some patience and self-control. One thing that I am sure of is that if I try to develop these virtues on my own, it will be impossible. But as I walk daily with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, I will not gratify the desires of my sinful nature. I will be more dependent on God's power to produce the transformation.
Yet, I need to do my part too. My part is to learn to diligently wait . Romans 8:25 says "if we hope for what we do not have, we wait for it patiently."
Impatience is when I want something so bad that I want it right at this very minute. Like one time I signed in for a guitar lesson that promised I can learn how to play guitar in an hour. You can just imagine how frustrated I was after the class because the only thing I learned was don't ever be fooled again!
When God says, "wait" to our prayers, are we willing to wait or give up?
An impatient person's prayer: Lord, give me patient and I want it NOW!!
A patient person's prayer: Lord, please grant me the strength to be patient and the courage to wait for Your answer according to Your best plan for me. AMEN!
Please be patient . God is not finished with us yet. "Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Christ Jesus." Philippians 1:6.
Are you excited getting out of bed this Monday morning? “Yeah, right!” Did I
just hear you said that?
Seriously, if we can say TGIF, why can’t we say TGIM?For everyday deserves a celebration .
Areyou ready to anticipate the many blessings from above, and the love that
our Heavenly Father is ready to bestow upon us this week?
I was up all night working 12 hour shift. As I got off from
work, one of my co-workers told me, “Do you know that I heard today is the best
day of the year?” And I looked outside and I can tell why she said that. The
morning sun greets us with the warm splendor, the skies so clear and blue, the
Spring bring forth blooming flowers around the walkway in different magnificent
hues, emerald streaks of grass and leaves of trees swaying gracefully with the
serene winds, birds chirping melodies making me smile that even my tired feet
are bouncing with each and every step.
Thank God it’s Monday! Another day to praise the Lord. And an added bonus, I am off today. (Smile!)
"It is good to give thanks to the Lord, and to sing praises to Thy Name, O Most high; to declare Thy loving-kindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness by night." Psalm 92:1
Philippians 4:6-7 says, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
God commands us to pray. What a joy and privilege for us to pray to the Sovereign, Almighty, Powerful and All Knowing God, who is available 24/7 !
Time with God in prayer should be our number one priority. Do you have needs right now? We all do. Do you also have reasons to be thankful? I bet you do too. God wants to fellowship with us by telling Him our needs and thanking Him for all His blessings of the week and days to come. Are you stressed or burdened by nagging thoughts of an uncertain future? Most of us are worried about our job security, some are worried about their health, while others are worried about where to get the next meal to feed their families. No matter what our needs are, God hears all prayers from the heart.
Come boldly to His throne of grace and experience His blessings unfold. Receive His mercy and grace. But first, let's examine our hearts. Repent of any hidden sins. He's ready to forgive.
Galatians 5:16, "So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desire of the sinful nature.
"Galatians 5:22, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control."
On Self-Control
Yesterday, I mentioned that my faith "smoothies" need some patience and self-control. So, that's what I'm asking the Holy Spirit to guide me in growing as an effective witness for Christ by developing these two very important attributes of an authentic Christian.
First, I will start with self-control. I will appreciate any comments or suggestions as I grow with you all, as I walk step by step with the Holy Spirit and with all the saints out there as they travel with me through my journey of faith.
To be self-controlled is to acknowledge that not everything is good for you; therefore, we need to learn to choose wisely among life's smorgasboard. "For God has not given us a spirit of fear but a Spirit of power and love and self-control" (2 Timothy 1:7).
A mature life of self-control is characterized by love. Quoting Dr. Larry Crabb, a Christian psychologist, "The real proof of self-control is that I am willing to control whatever within me interferes with the expression of love. Genuine self-control will develop only as we understand where life is: in loving God and loving others." May I add here, in loving ourselves too. For example, if I love this body that God created, I will not eat junk foods that are not good for my health and I will exercise regularly. If I love my family, I will be healthy for them so I can take care of them . If I want to be a good testimony for Jesus, I will be as healthy as I can physically and mentally.
Self-control is not as easy as it seems, but with God's help, it can be done. It takes self-discipline to pen these words. But this is just a start. It begins with this simple step. I also started with a prayer of repentance. I am also keeping a journal of my successes as I try to beat the bad habits, including controlling my anger, my temper and my greediness for food and material things.
Please pray for me. I will be praying for all of you out there who has the same struggle as I have.
My daughter Cheryl and I were making smoothies from tropical frozen fruits last night. I found out that she only likes strawberries and pineapple, but I like the other fruits like papaya, cantaloupe and bananas to go with the other fruits. Anyway, to satisfy my daughter’s taste buds (and me, the ever sacrificial mom), let her blend what she loves- with low fat milk, yogurt and a little maple syrup with strawberries and pineapple. The blended mixture was kind of sour to my taste ,so we decided to put a little ice cream at the top. Well, it turned out kind of okay to me, although Cheryl just loved it!
Talking about blending fruits, it would be nice to taste all the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. Love, joy, peace, gentleness, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, patience and self-control all blended together for a victorious life. Personally, my faith smoothie needs some patience and self-control.
Please pray that as we walk in the Spirit, all the 9 fruits of the Spirit will manifest in our lives so we can be effective witnesses for Jesus.
"Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!" Psalm 133:1
Greetings to ChristiansUnite members and readers everywhere!
My name is Gloria, and I am so excited to find a place where I feel safe to
blog my thoughts, experiences and God's revelations in my heart. I love writing and I am here to share my testimonies on what God has done and continually doing in my life with the goal of encouraging others for Christ.
I am God's work in progress and I believe that being here, I will grow with you. I have a dream that someday, all Christians will unite in one love for Christ, regardless of denominations and backgrounds. For example,I may belong to a Baptist church, but that doesn't make me a better Christian than Methodists or Presbyterians. We are all God's workmanship.
I am praying that I can put all my devotionals and poems in a book soon. To view some of my writings, please log in at Faithwriters.com and search my name. I will appreciate any recommendation for a good Christian agent and publisher for my poems and articles.
Name: Gloria Tiquia ChristiansUnite ID: onevoice4jc Member Since: 2009-04-13 Location: Los Angeles, California, United States Denomination: Christian About Me: Full time wife and mother, nurse by profession, and loves to write.
I'm God's work in progress. "For we are God's workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God has prepared in advance for us to do." (Ephesians 2:10)
Name: Gloria Tiquia
