after winter comes spring

I took a breath of fresh air and stopped short: is it really December 30^th? How time flies! The year has almost ended and 2012 is well, just around the corner. What could be more exciting than anticipating what is going to unfold before our eyes – the very promise that God “is before all things, and in HIM all things hold together" (Colossians 1:17, ESV)

Life is super sweet and so full of joy every single minute (literally) when we surrender our life to the Lord Jesus. It isn’t easy, but I’d say it’s more of a sweet ride on the waves. When we meditate on His Word and stay in His presence wherever we are and whatever we may be doing, it is always worth it.

May the sunshine warm you. May the rain fall sweetly on your head. May you lovingly gaze at the sky. And may you always be in awe of the one True King, the Prince of Peace, the Lover of our soul, the ever sweet presence of the Lord..A toast to the great days ahead, as we pursue Jesus Christ more, honor Him more, and continue to be His hands and feet in this aching world. Happy New Year, everyone!

In pursuit of something more..

In My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers truthfully gave an account of his leaving the Christian game with the following:

“I was doing Christian work and winning souls for Christ, but I had no conscious communion with Him. The Bible was dull, and if what I had was all the Christianity there was, the whole thing was a fraud.” He desperately needed a true encounter with the King, after having realized that all his Christian training, religious activities, and spiritual leadership did not add up to a fervent relationship with Jesus Christ.

Like what Oswald Chambers said, it is so much possible to look and sound godly without really living Christianity in its truest form. What a challenge this is to us, to relinquish our selfish robes and recognize the need of our hearts to something more - because there’s got to be more in Christianity than the namby-pamby ways we’ve allowed ourselves to soak in.

Piercing as they may be, here are some things to zealously commit ourselves: Let us not reduce God’s expectations for our lives to a set of “godly-sounding” guidelines. Let us take up our cross and follow the Lord daily, letting righteousness rule over us rather than selfishness and taking sin lightly. Let us not settle for indifferent, self-built Christian game and comfortable religiosity. The Lord longs for our love, devotion, and time for Him in place of spiritual pretense and accomplishments without the Lord’s Spirit going before us.

May Jesus Christ be our only standard as we run the race. May we humbly allow the Lord to show areas that are off-track in our spiritual life. For we know that “HE who began the good work within us, will continue His work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns." [Philippians 1:6]. 

Press us closer and closer unto You, Lord..Give us an undivided heart..

 _________________________________________

Unhealthy relationships

I would like to bring you back to what profoundly caught my attention last September, to an article written by an anonymous warrior-poet on unhealthy guy-girl interaction that every believer who is in hard pursuit of Jesus Christ ought to know..

He focused on what unhealthy interactions between guys and girls look like. He showed candidly what we have overlooked, because even the Christian world has done so and accepted what there is.

A pressing thing to look at nowadays is the time alone that guys and girls spend together, where a lot of strong Christians fall and give in to temptation. They think so foolishly that it is just OK because they are marrying them anyway. But does it really showcase the attributes of true Christ-likeness? Are we really strong enough to handle things our way? If we really love the Lord Jesus Christ and choose righteousness because of what He has paid for, should we be asking how far "too far" is? Shouldn't we be seeking how to honor the Lord more? Shouldn't our question be, "What more can i do, Lord, so i can honor You in my life?"

Chasing after opportunities on how to spend time alone with a guy can be extremely deadly. A Christian author said, "A man and his wife do not belong to each other until vows are said and the marriage ring is on both of their fingers." And Proverbs 25:28 says with caution, "A person without self-control is like a city with broken-down walls." (NLT). Now, who would want to be a defenseless city, with broken-down walls that invite the enemy to come and tear you to pieces?

Don't put yourself in vulnerable situations. The wisest thing to do is to hold yourself accountable through godly influences in your life (and i mean, really godly). "A true warrior-poet will notice when he's been left alone in a room with a girl, and (with gentility and politeness in tact) will make an exit as quickly and as courteously as possible. A man of God values his honor and a young woman's dignity too much to carelessly give a place to accusation or suspicion." 

Here's a rule to live by:

(Here's a similar post on how to deal with men the Godly way.) 

Merry Christmas!

The only name i know that's synonymous with Hope is Jesus Christ..Heaven's Best, that we may have life and have it abundantly (victoriously) (John 10:10)..Have the happiest CHRISTmas, dear everyone! 

"Questions to consider" (on friendships)

"What are some of my favorite things to do with my closest friend? Are those things drawing us both closer to Christ, or are they causing us to become more fascinated with the world?"

"What are some new things I could do with that friend that would serve to more intentionally promote a Christ-centered relationship?"

"Is it weird to discuss spiritual things with my best girlfriend? If so, how can I purposefully seek to bring Christ into our conversations?"

"What (or who) am I left dwelling on after a coffee date with a kindred spirit? Is it God? If not, what are we talking about instead? Does it have eternal value?"

"What is the normal tone of the conversations I have with friends? Is it made up mostly of sarcastic comments, silly remarks, and shallow chatter? Or is there a heavenly substance and honorable attitude?"

"When two people are following hard after Christ, the substance of their friendship will flow out of that relationship. God does not intend for us to take time off from being a Christian when spending time with our friends. Everything we do, alone or with others, ought to lift high the person of Jesus Christ, that He alone might be seen and glorified."  

Excerpt from Set-Apart Friendships. 

"Reviving Etiquette"

True, lasting beauty..

"If any soul has any beauty, it is because Christ has endowed that soul with His own. For in ourselves, we are deformed and defiled! There is no beauty in any of us but what the Lord has worked in us."

- Charles Spurgeon

True, lasting beauty comes when Christ works His beauty in us..A godly beauty does not flaunt itself..It is gentle and quiet, filled with God's Spirit and drawing eyes to Jesus..A godly beauty is graceful, that is, being "full of grace." A girl with this kind of beauty recognizes God's grace to her and seeks to extend that grace to others..

finding peace (in the midst of chaos)

I’ve had the most amazing two weeks of my life - so indescribable that I can’t even begin to put words together – they won’t do justice at all! Looking back at the days leading up to it, I know I wasn't anticipating anything like what I am actually experiencing. I was frightened, at the thought of going through the days ahead (as something was supposedly a big deal).

But God’s hands of grace have been shining ever since, I am literally awestruck by how He has filled my waking and sleeping hours with His joy. I have totally forgotten what it was I was worried about! He truly is the only Treasure that counts! He is our greatest Advocate, Rescuer, Comfort, Joy, the Prince of Peace, the All in All. I wish I could lay out every detail of what He has done, but it wouldn't fit on one blog.

He has taught me how fulfilling it is to seek His presence and stay. What a gift it is to invite Christ to be with me as I walk on the street, work in my cubicle, ride the jeepney to meet with friends, go home, eat my lovely meals, sleep, listen to audio messages, pore over His Word, make everyday decisions, and just to commune with Him in everything.

There is so much more detail I could go into, and I would love to tell more, but there is one thing He zeroed in on, as He taught me new revelations: that living a poured out life for Jesus Christ requires basking in His presence and not running around “trying to accomplish a ministry.” It is all about making Christ our all in all, falling in love with Him first, satisfying our heart and spirit with Him first, before we can ever go out to the world and minister to others.

Because how can we even give to others something that we do not have? And how can we have a “ministry” like that, when His Spirit doesn’t go with us? What difference then would there be, between us and mediocrity, if the very lives we live do not please our King? How then can we listen, when we hardly have time for Him throughout the day?

Ministering to the least as Christ’s hands and feet is an overflow of a life that is ardently devoted to Christ. And in the most compact way that I can put it, total devotion to Christ is to be passionately in love with Him and being about His business, attending to the needs of others out of genuine love and not out of recognition, choosing to honor Him in everything we do and not be focused on self, and trusting His perfect wisdom with reckless abandon.

It is not always an easy task, because our spirit is willing yet our flesh is weak. But it is a battle worth fighting for (with His strength), as we resolve within ourselves to run to Jesus and pray, “press me unto You, Lord, press me closer unto You.” There is a great deal at stake if we live for ourselves and our own selfish desires. But if we humbly ask for His grace to desire more of Him and allow Him to mold our hearts into becoming more like His, and declare faithfully that He is indeed worth far more than fine gold, Jesus will surely take root and make our heart His dwelling place, always..

May His name be great in our lives,

camille..