Still Taking It Further Some More Post Script

I think this is the right time and moment to reflect on the things that I have done for the year. It's four years to go until the new year.

Back in 2009, when this blog was still in Multiply, I posted, just for the heck of it, a wish list that I wanted for the year. As the days past and the posts piled on, I totally forgot about my wish list. It was by accident when I stumbled upon it at the end 2010. I couldn't believe that 4 out of the 7 things on my wishlist was granted. I was able to obtain more than half of what I wished for. Actually, 2 of those could never be obtained in a years span considering that it was just my second year of work that time. I did it again each year with a post script after the year to look back at the list. It became a persona tradition. Funny thing is that I always forget what I wrote on that list every year.

This year was another year of blessings. I dug deep into my wish list before 2011 ended and found that I was able to get 3 out of the 7 items I have listed. 1 of the 7 is not a material wish. 3 out of the 7 are too expensive.

Then again, I am thankful to the Lord.

1. Running/Sports Watch - Since joining the running bandwagon, I wanted to track my progress. I was fortunate to find a real cool deal with Ensogo and bought it immediately. It also has a heart rate monitor that could help me track my hear and pulse rates while running. It's really cool.

2. Ipod/Iphone - OK, I didn't get either an Ipod or an Iphone, but I did get a new BlackBerry phone and I couldn't ask for more. I guess this year is not the year for me to get an Apple product. Although someone did gave me a charger as a present.Could this mean I'm going to have an Apple gadget next year? We'll see...

3. Hiking Stuff - I was only able to climb two minor mountains this year. But my impulsiveness allowed me to buy a Merrel Chameleon 3 for almost half the price. It was a big help for the two mountains I climbed. Apart from that, I was able to finally use my new hiking jacket and hat. I was also able to obtain other stuff but the major ones have to wait until next year.

Apart from that, I was able to own more than I deserved this year. I couldn't help but be thankful for what a wonderful year it has been. There may be a lot of lows, but this has definitely been a blessed year.

All Time Low

At the start of the year until leaving Multiply, this blog has seen a decline.

With only 8 posts for the whopping whole year, it has been the lowest since I started writing in Multiply in 2008.

Now the year is about to end, I couldn't catch up the 48 posts I had in 2011 or the 46 posts in 2010, much more the 91 posts in 2009.

But come 2013, I guess I have to write more and give this blog a personality like the other two. That is yet to be seen.

What A Year It Has Been

There were lots of hang ups and put downs. There has been a lot of battles and victories.

This year has been a great roller coaster ride probably bigger than the years before it.

I have learned an awful lot. I couldn't imagine how far I've gone from what I was last year. Not to boast, I have been placed in a bigger position this year that required me to make crucial decisions and rely on more people.

I have been blessed by a great Youth Council that knows how to carry the burdens with me. Some have brains the size of elephants that throws out great ideas. Some have dedication and commitment the size of whales who never tire of bringing out their best for the Lord. Some have the heart and passion for service that walked with me an extra mile. Some have the ear and shoulder that they offered to be cried on.

I couldn't ask for more. The youth council made up of the leaders of each ministry have become my strength for the past year. I know it sounds corny and stupid but I cannot help but look back at how far we have gone as a ministry.

I guess this is still not over. The stones we cast are good for another year.

Let's do this PAC-YM!
Let's keep the fire burning!

Invictus

2001 nang una kong makilala si William Ernest Henley at ang kanyang pamosong Invictus. Bilang isang kabataang nais ng malayang kaisipan (ang corny), nagustuhan ko ang sinasabi ng tula. Sinasabi lang na ako ang bahala sa buhay ko. Wala kayong pakialam. Wala. Kahit Diyos! Ang tindi di ba?

Naging paborito ko iyon hanggang sa maisip ko na hindi pala posible ang tula. Hindi natin mapapatakbo ang ating buhay nang sarili lang natin. Hindi natin malalabanan ang pagtawag Niya.

Ngayon may natagpuan akong tula na sumagot sa Invictus. Naaliw ako dahil akma at totoo ang sinasabi nito.

INVICTUS Out of the night that covers me, Black as the Pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul. In the fell clutch of circumstance I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed. Beyond this place of wrath and tears Looms but the Horror of the shade, And yet the menace of the years Finds, and shall find, me unafraid. It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll. I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul. By William Ernest Henley

MY CAPTAIN Out of the light that dazzles me, Bright as the sun from pole to pole, I thank the God I know to be For Christ the conqueror of my soul. Since His the sway of circumstance, I would not wince nor cry aloud. Under that rule which men call chance My head with joy is humbly bowed. Beyond this place of sin and tears That life with Him! And His the aid, Despite the menace of the years, Keeps, and shall keep me, unafraid. I have no fear, though strait the gate, He cleared from punishment the scroll. Christ is the Master of my fate, Christ is the Captain of my soul. by Dorothea Day

The Third Option Pt. 3: Deliverance (Final)

DELIVERANCE

Hindi na bago sa atin ito. Pero kasi, kailangan nating pukawin ang ating mga sarili, kasi tama man ang paniniwala at nalalaman natin, ang ginagawa naman natin mali. Minsan naman, tama ang ginagawa natin pero ang nalalaman natin kulang. Ibig sabihin, mali pa rin ang mindset natin kasi hindi nababago an gating ginagawa at hindi nadadagdagan ang ating nalalaman kay Kristo. Bakit parang ang hirap takasan?

James 4:1-3 says
“What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.

So unang gawin magtanong. Ask the right questions. Kung ang hihingiin natin ay Lord, gawin niyo po akong mabuti. Hindi ba parang malabo yun? Kung ang itatanong natin ay Lord ipakita niyo po yung daan para masunod ko kayo. Hindi ba parang may mali dun?

Ask God to revive our interest in Christ and it will lead us to live a better life. Kung pipiliin natin na pag-aralan at iappreciate si Jesus, mapapansin natin na ang maiisip natin ay puro kabutihan sa kapwa. Ang magiging mindset natin aypag-ibig. Ang pag-sunod sa batas ay parang magiging automatic.

Pangalawa, don’t make Christ a priority. I heard this message once that Christ shouldn’t be our priority. Sabi dun, hindi mo dapat nilalagay si Christ as a part of your priority. Blasphemy kung iisipin pero ang punto talaga, hindi dapat napapasama si Christ sa priority list mo sa mundo. Hindi maihahanay si Christ sa pamilya, sa trabaho at sa kaibigan. Christ is a category of His own. He should be your life.

Colossians 3:3-4
^“ For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.”

Siya dapat ang buhay mo. Meaning to say, kung magbabasa ka ng Bible, isipin mo nasan si Christ dito? Kung magtatrabaho ka, iisipin mo, nasaan si Christ dito? Ano ang nilalaman ng bawat prayer ko? Siya ba ang nasa puso ko? Ingat tayo mga kapatid, madalas madaling sabihin yun, pero mahirap gawin.

Assimilate. According kay Jean Piaget, Assimilation is the cognitive process of fitting new information into existing cognitive schemas, perceptions, and understanding. Nose bleed no? Ibig sabihin, kung may bago kang nalalaman, matuto kang idagdag ito sa nalalaman mo na. Halimbawa, kung nalaman mo na ganito si Kristo, ano ang kinalaman nito sa commandments na alam ko? Ano ang kinalaman nito sa psalm na kabisado ko?

Third, reform your ways. Naisip na natin kung sino si Kristo. Napili na natin siya. Ngayon isipin natin, ano ang mas maiging gawin para mas mapalapit sa kanya. Dito na papasok an gating devotional. Dito na papasok ang pag-aaral ng Bible, ang prayer.

Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, ¹¹ where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave norfree, but Christ is all and in all.
Colossians 3:9-11

Pero hindi lang basta Bible. Hindi lang basta prayer. Pakawalan natin ang isipan natin. Baguhin natin ang ating bukambibig. Baguhin natin ang ating ginagawa. Dapat, sa bawat bukas ng Bibliya, sa bawat panalangin, lumalago tayo. Unti unti. Hindi biglaan. Minsan kasi minamadali natin ang ating mga sarili. Tandaan, hindi ito karera. Hindi tsetsekan ni God kung sino ang may pinakamaraming nabaptize o sino ang may pinakamaraming nabigyan ng Bible study. Hindi rin puntos ang may pinakamaraming pinagdasal. Ang may pinakamalaking puntos kung sino ang may nabago sa sarili niya.

Accomodation according again to Jean Piaget is incorporating what you have learned to your daily life. Christ never pointed out the wrong beliefs openly. Hindi niya sinabihan na bawal yan Mary. O kaya wag yan ang sabihin mo Peter! Ano bang ginawa niya? Nagpatawad, nagpagaling ng sakit, at umibig. Patawarin natin an gating mga sarili, then move on. Patawarin ang mga kapwang hindi nakakaintindi, then move on.

Finally, practice love. There’s this thing called muscle memory. Ang utak natin sa sobrang galing, kaya niyang alalahanin ang ating mga galaw. One example, sa pagsasalita, kapag binulungan kita ng “God is love.” Kayang kaya mo ulitin kasi naalala ng utak mo kung ano ang mga masel na kailangan masabi ito. Naalala mo kung saan ang /g/ /o/ /d/ /i//s//l/ /o/ at /v/ para mabigkas mo ang buong sentence. Ngayon kung makita mo rin, pareho ang principle.

Ergo, we can train our muscles to say the right words and do the right actions. In the same manner, we can get away from the right mindset by thinking about Christ. We can train ourselves by approaching people of the world the way Christ approached them. We can train ourselves by approaching our brothers and sisters na nawawala by the way Christ approached them.

But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 
Colossians 3:14-16

Let us deliver ourselves from the bondage of a wrong perspective. Alisin natin ang nagtatalong kaisipan. Sa halip, isipin natin na may pangatlong choice na makakapagbalanse sa lahat.

Isipin natin ito ng mabuti ang mga bagay bagay. Break away from that mindset because you only live once. YOLO.

The Third Option Pt. 2: Decision

DECISION

Dahil dito mga kapatid, kailangan nating magdesisyon. Do you want to stay in this mode of going round and round without making any change in your life or do you want a radical change that will make you live better, see the world better. To make the right decisions, we need to have the proper mindset. Remember, YOLO.

Sa una, iisipin mo, gusto kong mapabuti, so dapat pag-aaralan natin yung mga doctrines. Pag-aaralan natin yung ten commandments, mga health principles, etc.

Pero pansinin natin kung saan patungo ang kaisipang ganito. We are looking at laws, principles, precepts, that are actually good and are given by God. Binigay ito sa tao para sundin.

Pero mahirap ito sundin. Sino ba dito ang nakakaalam na masama ang magsinungaling? Pero sino dito ang hindi nagsinungaling sa tanan ng buhay niya?

 Mahirap sundin kung yun lang ang nasa isip natin. Mahirap sundin kung ipinagpipilitan natin sa sarili natin at sa ibang tao. Nangyari na yan before, don’t put ourselves in the same shoes as the people who came before us. YOLO so choose to take ourselves away from the wrong mindset.

First example is Saul. Mas nagfocus siya sa offering kaysa sa pagsunod. Ang sabi sa kanya ni Samuel, lipulin lahat walang ititira kahit ano. Anong ginawa niya? Kinuha niya ang mga tupa at mga baka, inoffer niya sa Panginoon. Naisip niya, eto ay para sa Panginoon. Pero hindi siya sumunod sa utos. Ang sabi walang ititira.

Second examples are the Israelites. Naisip nila na eto ang batas, kailangan nating sundin ang Diyos kasi si Saul nagkamali dun. So sasabihin natin sa lahat na ito dapat ang gawin, kapag Sabbath, bawal ang magbiyahe, bawal ang magbuhat ng ganito kabigat. Bawal ito, bawal yan.

See anything similar?

Both decided differently. Sacrifice or Law? Serving the church or following what is right and wrong. Walang mali sa pareho, pero both missed the whole point of God. Tayo rin ganun. Minsan naglalaban sa isip natin ang pagsunod sa batas at pagbibigay ng serbisyo. Madalas ang focus natin yung mga bawal. Madalas naman ang focus nandun sa mga dapat gawin. Ang nakikita lang natin dalawang options pero may pangatlo na makakapagpadali sa lahat.

Hindi ko alam kung saan kayo dito.

Pero para maalis sa atin ang kaisipang ito, we need to focus on Christ. Hindi na bago ito sa inyo right? Tandaan natin na ang Bibliya ay nakapalibot hindi sa batas, hindi sa tama o mali, hindi sa paggawa sa simbahan. Ang Bibliya ay kwento ni Kristo. Jesus Christ is the center of the Bible. He is the whole point of Christianity. He is the whole point of our lives. He is the reason why we need to revive ourselves and reform our ways.

The Third Option Pt. 1: Deception

DECEPTION

 “What is a word made up of 4 letters yet is also made up of 3. Although is written with 8 letters, and then with 4. Rarely consists of 6, and never is written with 5.”

Madalas madali tayong naloloko. Deception is all around us. Hindi natin napapansin pero nakukulong pala tayo sa mga maling paniniwala or maling pananaw sa buhay.

Isang motto na narinig ko minsan sa internet mula sa ilang kabataan ang salitang YOLO. Isa itong acronym na ang ibig sabihin ay You Only Live Once. Isang beses ka lang mabubuhay. Minsan ginagawa itong excuse ng mga kabataan na gumawa ng mga kung anu-anong bagay. YOLO so I’ll drink. YOLO so let’s party. YOLO so I’ll try drugs, rock and roll. YOLO. Yan ang nangyayari sa mundo and I think everyone is familiar with it.

Maaaring totoo. Galing ako sa patay the other day and whenever that happens, napapaisip tayo kung gaano kaikli ang buhay. Gaano kabilis kung minsan ang buhay. YOLO. Maari nga na maikli lang ang buhay at kapag tayo ay namatay, hindi titigil ang mundo para sa atin even the people that we love will move on from the loss. Pero hindi ibig sabihin nito ay may excuse na tayo para gawin ang lahat ng gusto natin sa buhay. Instead, we should strive to make our lives meaningful by influencing other lives. Making the most out of our time by showing other people the clear path to Jesus feet. YOLO!

Now, going back to our little puzzle here.

We are being placed into a mindset that this is a question. Pinapaisip ka na may hinahanap kang salita. Pero kung aalalalahanin natin na kapag nagtatanong, may question mark. Kapag period, statement.

There fore,

“WHAT is a word made up of 4 letters, YET is also made up of 3. ALTHOUGH is written with 8 letters, and THEN with 4. RARELY consists of 6, and NEVER is written with 5.”

Ayos no?

The point is, kung paano kayo naloko or nauto ng statements na ito, ganun din tayo niloloko ng ating kaaway. Sometimes, our minds play tricks on us. Our minds are cruel. We are always trapped in a frame of mind that we cannot escape. For example, maglalaro tayo, ang mahuli magsspecial number mamayang AY.

Ibig sabihin ba nun, karera ang laro natin?

No. Not necessarily. Minsan napapaisip tayo na ganun, kasi ayaw natin magspecial number. But what if the prize goes to the one who comes in last? Hindi ba’t mas masaya o mas nakakagaan ng pakiramdam yung marinig mo na yung isang tao na kay tagal tagal nang nag-aaral ng Bibliya, kay tagal tagal nang nakikinig sa turo, ay finally nagdecide na tanggapin si Jesus?

Sometimes the deception comes from our mindset. We are deceived by ourselves. Remember brothers and sisters, I know everyone knows which is of the world and not of the world, but the enemy tries deceives us even as we sit in church or do church activities.

Most of the time, we are trapped in doing just the motions of church service. First going to church, then listening to the sermon, then joining the potluck, then attending AY, finally go home. We think that after all of this, everything is fine. We are assured of eternal life. Sige, tapos magdedevotional tayo in the morning tapos in the evening or afternoon.  Ang goal minsan ng iba, matapos ang buong Bible. Wala naming masama sa ganun. Actually, ineencourage pa nga ito. But we are so keen on doing these things. Masyado tayong nastuck sa ganito. Minsan ba naisip na ba natin kung lumalago tayo? Naisip na ba natin kung sa pagbasa natin ng Bible from cover to cover, nagbago ba ang buhay natin? Mas nakilala ba natin si Kristo?

 “If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religionis useless.”  James 1:26

Tama ang sumimba. Tama ang mangilin ng Sabado. Tama lahat yun. Pero kung hindi tayo magbabago, mananatili lang tayong umiikot sa tsubibo.