Awesome Power of Cameras

Accountability is why NGOs like GMA-7 have their relief operations videoed and posted on social media. People donate to them for the purpose and they have to show themselves honest and trustworthy with the donations. Secondly, it encourages more people to help and donate. I'm all for this. [Picture above by ShareGrid, Unsplash].

But it's different with church. Church has clear directives from Jesus not to display or showoff its good deeds "to be seen by men," no matter if it "glorifies" God, done with a clean heart or with pure motives, or "inspires and encourages" others to do likewise. It's so plain and clear:

Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. [Matthew 6]

It's self explanatory, doesn't need any further clarification or discussion. You don't need to add anything to it, especially not your opinion. If you have common sense, you'll easily get it--more so God's common sense. The Father is particular about doing good deeds in secret. Quite a simple thing and yet so many fail. Churches and pastors manipulate or doctor this truth, adding in a lot of their own ideas, saying that as long as we have "clean motives" (whatever that means) and inspire others to do the same, it's okay to showoff on social media. In effect, it's okay to disregard what Jesus said.

Almost no one in church believes God's Word anymore. They believe their own words. What's even scarier is that video cameras have the power to make Christians disregard God's Word.

Letting Our Light Shine

Earlier in Matthew, Jesus talked about letting our light shine. Probably, showoff Christians refer to this passage to support their videoed good deeds. Here's how Jesus said it:

You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

It actually supports Jesus' statement about keeping our good deeds secret. If we're genuine lights of the world, we don't need to showoff. Our deeds will naturally be seen (without effort, without announcing or posting anything) precisely because "a town on a hill cannot be hidden." It's a fact. The town need not shout and announce itself. Even if you keep it secret, God will make sure it's seen by the world for his glory.

A lighthouse need not shout, bark, or promote itself as thus, especially in the dark. It simply needs to shine.

That is, if we're really the light of this world. If not, we're going to do it ourselves, with our own efforts (and our cameras on) to make the world see. This is called, hypocrisy. It's Pharisaical. Parading our good deeds. Remember the prayer of the Pharisee? He enumerated to God his good deeds in public. If we do it ourselves, it's religious big pretense, or pietism, which feeds our ego, whether we admit it or not. If God does it (promotes what we do in secret), it's not hypocrisy. It's glory to the Father.

Jesus didn't say, "MAKE your light shine before men." He said "LET your light shine." The shine should be natural, not artificial or man-made. This means we allow the light to shine without any effort on our part. This way, it is God who makes people see and it brings glory to the Father.

Somebody Else Should Put the Lamp on a Stand

A lighted lamp is put on its stand to give light to the house, not put under a bowl or bed. Someone's going to put you up on the stand, not you yourself. A lamp should not (and cannot) put itself up on a stand. That's scary. Someone else should do it---particularly other people who see what you're doing and "light up" your lamp (make other people see it). I remember the Samaritan woman discovering Jesus as the Messiah and "lighting" him up (giving him the limelight) to the people of the village by promoting and talking excitedly about him. It wasn't Jesus or his disciples who did it. It was the people the Father had inspired.

I am not seeking glory for myself; but there is one who seeks it, and he is the judge.[John 8.50]

All over the Gospel, it was the public that put Jesus and what he did in the limelight. He didn't go around telling people that he fed 5,000 men or healed multitudes of sick people or brought back the dead to life. Church today give away some small groceries and announce it to the world via social media.

Churches Have Been Doing It

Well, they've been doing it for decades, actually. They advertise the name of their churches and ministries, making sure people know who they are. When they serve a community, they display their names on big tarpaulins and distribute leaflets to promote their good deeds. They make sure people know it was their church that did it. Jesus never did these things.

If you are a genuine light, people will promote you. They will post what you do on social media, not you yourself. Believe me, you won't need to focus your cameras on yourselves.

Let someone else praise you, and not your own mouth; an outsider, and not your own lips. [Proverbs 27.2]

Do They Talk about Jesus?

Once, Jesus asked the disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" Don't apply this to yourselves or your church, being concerned about what people think about you after doing them a favor. The principle here is--your secret good deeds should make people talk about Jesus and know who he is. Does your ministry make people talk about Jesus and know who he is, or do they just remember the name of your church?

Why You Can't Do It Without a Camera

Why can't church simply do it without posting a video on social media? Senator Tito Sotto said people do this to feed their ego. And he's right. There's no other reason. Jesus didn't do his ministry with fanfare or ads. He wouldn't have videoed it if cams were already around. It was kept to a limited audience, like in "secret." This was why his unbelieving brothers told him to do what he did in Jerusalem if he wanted to be a star.

4 "No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world.” 5 For even his own brothers did not believe in him. [John 7]

But no secret is really secret. Jesus himself said this.

For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. [Luke 8.17]

But it shouldn't be you yourself who'd disclose your "secret" good deeds. It should be other people blessed by your deed as the Father prompts them.

Video Cameras Control People's Behavior

Cameras are powerful. They control how people react and behave. People become super spiritual and pro-poor in front of it. They become kind to old people and the sick. They shake hands with the working class and market vendors. They carry dirty kids in their arms and kiss them. They become intense worshipers and serious prayer warriors. But I wonder if they do the same when off cam. Do you worship as intense in your bedroom without video cams?

The church must learn to go back to pleasing the Father "who watches what is done in secret." The Word declares how secret things belong to God, and that includes what we do for him, not just the things of prophecy. Secret good deeds kill the flesh, and that's what really counts in our service and worship. The flesh cannot please God. "Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God," [Romans 8.8].

Continued here....

How Thanking GOD Expands Brain Capacity and Rewires Neuro Pathways

Robina Weermeijer@averey

I did a research on nuero-plasticity years back for several blog articles and confirmed what I've been suspecting all along. Our brain capacity can increase as we age, not weaken--if we choose to. It's a myth that human brain power is designed to lessen and eventually self destruct with age--even with man's Fall at Eden. Well, yeah, the brain is observed to weaken with age, sometimes leading to neuro-degenerative diseases, but it's because we've simply allowed it to be so.

Experts now tell us that normally, human beings just use about 20 to 30 percent of their brain capacity in their lifetimes, no matter how clever they may be. So that leaves us 70 % more room for improvement. But neuro-plasticity science tells how the brain has the capacity to expand more as we age. And more recently, the same science tells us the key to a re-wired brain is gratefulness.

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"Give thanks in all circumstances," says the bible, "for this is God's will in Christ Jesus." Now we know better why God insists on a grateful heart no matter what. It's to increase brain power, among other reasons, because it's in the brain where transformation happens. Mind renewal enables us to find out what God's good, pleasing and perfect will is and also the antidote against worldliness--the world's system, included.

Now, imagine if our brains use 100% full potential (not just 30%) and even expand beyond its initial designed limit. That's zero conformity to the world and 101% clarity with God's perfect will. And the only thing needed is to give thanks in all circumstances. And mind you, nothing is impossible with God and with those who radically believe HIM. This is no fairy tale. This is reality.

Okay, but let's talk of "re-wiring" the brain. One topic at a time.

Rewiring means putting in a new and better system of wiring to maximize (if not double or triple) capacity and proficiency. In short, so your brain can do better. And it does so even as you age, says neuro experts. Oh, before I go on, "wiring" is how thoughts are processed in the mind from one point to another via what experts call neuro pathways. This process can become faster and even "expand" and build new neuro routes to open up entire new worlds and dimensions in your brain's neuro system.

Says an article on RealFarmacy.Com, "According to UCLA’s Mindfulness Awareness Research Center, regularly expressing gratitude literally changes the molecular structure of the brain, keeps the gray matter functioning, and makes us healthier and happier." Imagine a new dimension or level of happiness. Another site, Learning-Mind.Com talks about how "the brain develops new neurological pathways whenever one learns something new, i.e., dancing, drawing, etc. The brain puts out new pathways that contain the specific information of what you’ve just learned," in one of its articles.

Here's the thing. The Word of God keeps increasing. Acts 6:7 says "And the word of God increased." No, it doesn't mean more words are added to it. You cannot add or subtract from God's Word in Scriptures anymore. But what it means is increase in insights. Same Word, different meanings. In Acts, the Word increased and produced evangelists who were instrumental in "spreading" the Gospel all over, reaching the unreached. Prior to this, there were no evangelists. But God's Word gave them a new perspective. See now?

One thing God has spoken, two things I have heard.." [Psalm 62.11]

When God opens up a new insight in his Word, you learn something new. Your mental and spiritual horizon broadens. A new "pathway" has been created enabling you to step forward onto new territory--new Spirit dimensions. In your awe, you break out in praise and thank God for the revelation. You feel ecstatic and radically elated. Now that neuro-plasticity defines it, we see better into the workings of God's revelation. A new neural pathway has been established, increasing your brain capacity in the process.

Your mind is once more renewed, taken farther from the world, transformed to better see and understand God's perfect will. As you go on meditating and getting God's increasing (or proceeding) Word, the entire Kingdom process happens again and again and you transform in ever-increasing glory. The bible says "ever-increasing." Doesn't stop. Everything is taken beyond limits. Everything takes on new pathways or routes. Everything expands. The Jesus DNA in you increases. In Paul's words, "Christ is formed in you."

You get what I call, "third-heaven" revelations---something given you by grace but which you cannot share with non-Kingdom people because these are "inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell...surpassingly great revelations" [2 Corinthians 12]. Holy Spirit excitement never ends at this point, even amid troubles and problems. You feel unearthly happiness because you understand Kingdom matters more deeply. Most important of all, you become simpler, humbler and contented. More quiet. Somewhat a nonjoiner. You don't need to prove anything to anyone. And a vital key here is simply giving thanks to God in all circumstances.

Then you begin to look different to earthly people--and they sometimes despise you for that. According to the Word, that glorifies God. It's great! ☺

The Magic in the Rain When Classes are Suspended

Rainy days that suspend classes bring back lots of fond childhood memories. I'm sure Lito Yunzon and Pedro Aldave would agree if they were reading this. This early morning we were greeted with a suspension of classes due to anticipated heavy rains from typhoon Falcon.

Actually, I'd been prophesying about it last night to my wife but she was a bit hesitant to buy the idea because the news said only the countryside would be affected, especially to the north. But I had a big hunch we'd get a suspension early today. And I was right.

I woke up early this morning listening to the rain and asked my wife if I were an accurate prophet. She muttered her agreement then begged to be allowed some more sleep. I seldom miss when it comes to predicting things. I have a keen sense of anticipation, seeing where things or events are headed for.

After a short sleep extension we finally got out of bed and was shocked to see it was 11 am. It sure felt like a short nap but apparently we had a 5-hour extension and missed breakfast. We decided on a brunch (breakfast and lunch) and cooked fried eggs, native sausages (longanisa), fried ground beef and some corned beef---actually mostly leftovers. We added a bowl of atsara (pickled veggies).

Now here's what's super. After brunch I, my wife and our grandson went out the front porch to enjoy the rain while our two sons fixed the table and dishes. We relaxed at the porch while grandson entertained us with talks, songs and dance. After his special numbers we watched the water flowing in the canal down the street and I casually mentioned about how my friends and I made small wooden canoes and placed them on the water when we were kids.

My wife immediately took out some papers and a pair of scissors and started making paper boats. Then she and grandson went out and placed them on the canal water. Soon, as I watched them, I was transported back to my childhood. Suddenly, I was young again and felt the rain on my face when I and my childhood friends had bathed in the rain, running up and down the street as we followed our makeshift toy wooden boats on the canal flowing down the street.

The very same street my grandkid was now enjoying with his grandma, huddled securely together under their umbrella while I stood nearby at the porch.

Rain is mysterious like that. It takes you to a different dimension if you're sensitive enough to the atmosphere it's creating and if you let it take you to the place it's recreating. If you just connect with it, it'd let you see in the distant past and revisit every detail like it was only yesterday. I could almost see Arturo and I soaking wet in the rain when we were grade 4 kids, shouting as our stick canoes raced each other, while Dennis Pido sat in the canal allowing the strong current to carry him down the street.

Yup, the water flowing in the street canals back then were that strong and that clean.

My wife called to me and I was immediately back to the present. Our grandkid was now bored of the rain and wanted to go back to our house. My wife seconded the motion and remembered the lessons she had to prepare. They went ahead while I looked back over my shoulders to watch my childhood friends slowly disappear in sight.

Is There Really a BIG ONE?

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Experts maintain that we have to brace ourselves for the BIG ONE--a major earthquake with intensity 7.2. If my memory serves me right, I think I remember reading somewhere that it could go up as high as intensity 9. Well, what's sure is, there will be a BIG ONE any day now, they say.

According to J. Green (2019), when the West Valley Fault finally starts moving, the feared tremor will happen (PhilNews.Ph). The valley fault system moved 4 times in the past 1,400 years. If this is a trend, then it is expected to move again after 400 years--and the latest it moved was about 361 years ago, in the year 1658.

And it's 2019, meaning, we have 39 years left. Or do we? Some experts say (experts are known to scare the hell out of people), there's no way of pinpointing the exact year. It may happen earlier or later. But to be sure, Jerry Velasquez of the United Nations Strategy for Disaster Reduction insists it will happen.

Again, if my memory serves me right, I remember reading somewhere that we've actually been behind schedule. The big one should've happened years before but it hasn't, so it can happen any day or time now, the report said. Some people think the recent tremors that rocked Zambales, Samar and Bataan (happening successively in 3 days) were indications of the big one.

But it's not just the Philippines that has a Big One. Other countries also have dangerous fault lines waiting to go off anytime and cause major quakes. Some experts say there's a big fault line somewhere in California waiting to make a major tectonic plate displacement. So with others in the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire which, besides the US and the Philippines, includes Chile, Japan, Solomon Islands, Antarctica, Mexico, Russia, Canada, Peru and many more.

Why is this?

All these "Big Ones" are reserved in these last days, if we're going to believe what the bible says. The Book of Revelation says there will be major worldwide earthquakes happening in the end times--really Big Ones--timed accurately by God in response to man's extreme rebelliousness. Here's the account:

Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred since mankind has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake. 19 The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath. 20 Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found. 21 From the sky huge hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds,[a] fell on people. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible. [Revelation 16]

My theory is that the earthquakes we now experience are really "minor" ones compared to the worldwide BIG ONE scheduled by God in these last days. These minor ones are but warnings to give us a chance to repent and prepare for the big ones which I think will happen simultaneously worldwide. Each earthquake is really a "voice" from God reminding us to take Him seriously this time. Here's how to claim God's promises in the bible. Click here.

Well, nonbelievers will probably just laugh this off and insist that earthquakes are purely accidents of nature that happen several miles deep beneath the earth. No one's controlling them. They're movements of plates and rocks below the earth that just happen. God cannot have anything to do with them, they add. Well, let's see.

However, some major key points in the book of Revelation are happening now while you read this blog, like serious talks about having a one-world government, a one-world religion to end all religious conflicts and wars, the use of microchips embedded in the hand or forehead in lieu of ATMs or credit cards or money paving the way to a cashless world economy, plus electronic personal identification systems.

All these developments (plus the technology of GPS and robotics) fulfill the prophecies in Revelation pointing to these Last Days (being fulfilled right before our very eyes) during which the Anti-Christ will appear and rule--and it's just fascinating how all this coincides with experts' estimates of when the Big Ones are supposed to happen---"any day now."

They're all timed.

So, is there really a Big One? Yup. It's just a matter of time. When exactly, no one knows--just like no one knows when exactly Jesus Christ is returning. You see the pattern? The timing is perfect. They will all happen according to God's time table--nothing will happen ahead of time. God has synchronized everything.

What should we do? Start seriously studying the bible--I suggest you begin with the Gospel according to John, and then study the Gospel according to Luke, Matthew, and Mark--and then the rest of the New Testament. After you're done with the New testament, proceed with the Old Testament. Ask God for wisdom to understand. Then anything God shows you in the bible, do it and live it out everyday.

Meanings of Earthquakes

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Of course, science says earthquakes are movements of rocks and plates below the earth's surface. And I'm sure, God designed earthquakes that way. Question is, why would he allow earthquakes? In fact, sometimes he personally triggers them, if we're to believe the bible. Why does he do that?

There are lots of records in the bible where God had to do with disasters, including huge earthquakes. And I believe all earthquakes (and all disasters for that matter) are directly by the hand of God. Jesus once said not even a bird falls to the ground without God's will [Matthew 10.29].

And there are several reasons for earthquakes, says the bible:

God's Presence

Even earth has to worship when God is around. Yeah, he is omnipresent, but there are occasions when his manifest presence is more pronounced. For instance, God is everywhere but it's a wonder why his holy presence does not kill liars everywhere. But when Ananias and Sapphira told a lie to the Holy Spirit, they died instantly.

The bible says "The mountains quaked at the presence of the LORD, This Sinai, at the presence of the LORD, the God of Israel," [Judges 5.5]. Nahum speaks in the same breath:

Mountains quake because of Him And the hills dissolve; Indeed the earth is upheaved by His presence, The world and all the inhabitants in it. [Nahum 1.5]

God is Angry

Earthquakes remind us of our need for repentance because God triggers it when he's angry. So earthquakes don't just happen or aren't by nature's freak accidents. A supernatural cause made mountains and the plates underneath to move and create a tremor.

"Then the earth shook and quaked, The foundations of heaven were trembling And were shaken, because He was angry." [2 Samuel 22.8]

God's Judgment

When a people have become too rebellious or too fond of disobedience, God sends his judgment to wake them up and repent. So his judgment is his love and mercy and vice versa. "From the LORD of hosts you will be punished with thunder and earthquake and loud noise," [Isaiah 29.6]

God is at Work 

When God is about to do something he sometimes creates tremors. He may do it to rescue his people or prove to unbelievers that he is God.

"and suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were unfastened." [Acts 16.26]

The same thing happened when God was working on Jesus' resurrection.

And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it. [Matthew 28.2]

A Great Event in Heaven is Taking Place

Sometimes, God allows earthquakes triggered to announce an event in heaven. To ordinary people, earthquake is just a disaster, but believers know that something (like a breakthrough) is taking place in the spiritual realms.

And the temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple, and there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder and an earthquake and a great hailstorm. [Revelation 11.19]

These are just examples. There are many more. Remember, in God everything has a purpose. Nothing happens by accident or something just went out of control. To be sure, HE is up to something.

Eating Fish on Lent as Penitence

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Fish and seafood prices are bound to jack up again this Lent because of penitence. As a kid I remember how grandma was careful not to cook fish deliciously on Lent because it was supposed to be self-punishment. The Lord suffered so we should suffer with him. Fair enough.

But later, being a decorated expert cook, grandma could not but put garnishing and spices to improve the taste of tough dried fish (daing). So it tasted like first class imported sardines instead! Her reputation as a good cook was at stake and she didn't want her grand kids saying grandma's cooking was the pits. Instead of self-punishment, eating dried fish became indulgence on Lent since.

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But well before that, we suffered big-time on Lent eating nothing but daing--and the worst kind at that. Simple joys of summer like laughing, playing, running, shouting and taking baths were strictly forbidden. Any form of happiness was considered demonic. So we wore long faces the whole week to express sorrow for our sins--well, that is, except me and my cousin Arnold. We preferred to be "demonic" at times.

I couldn't understand then how happy could be demonic. Must be boring in heaven, I thought. You could not even take a bath on Thursday until Saturday--Thursday because God was suffering, Friday because God was supposed to be dead. And to think that summer's the hottest time of the year. I don't know why summer seems hottest on Lent. You noticed?

Anyway, so we kept to extremely bland food dishes each meal because of Lent. I remember having plain boiled upo for lunch and you can imagine what that did to our facial expressions. When my dad was really in a religious mood, we'd have the same boiled upo for dinner. I felt our sins were totally wiped out with that daily menu, like what muriatic acid did to our toilet bowl.

But then on Saturday late afternoon, my childhood friend, Arturo, would be back from Bataan and tell me how he and his family spent Lent there. They had roast pig, fried chicken, barbecues, ice cream and cakes. They had a lot of fun and laughter at the beach--and his family was supposed to be among the religious in our village. They were among our leaders in the community parish.

"Why, what did you do all Lent?" he asked when he saw how I was a bit upset. "We suffered," I said, regretting why I didn't go with him to Bataan when he had invited me. I thought they had planned to suffer religiously in Bataan, so I thought I'd rather suffer in Project 8, Quezon City. Well, I was wrong. "Pre, you mean you had fun? Isn't that strictly forbidden?" He looked at me and chuckled. "Seriously, CS?"

Later, I also learned from my cousin how they had big-time picnic at the beach of San Juan, La Union during Lent, "especially on Friday!" he said, with a look on his face that said "Man, you've been missing a lot!" And these relatives were supposed to be "devout" Catholics. He said everyone in San Juan was at the beach enjoying lechon and barbecues. Then they spent overnight there.

Then, I got the whole picture. We were the only ones who suffered during Lent. Everyone else was enjoying it outside the city.

Much later, in college, someone shared with me the good news of the Gospel and I received Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. I learned that there's no need to "suffer" for your sins in any manner because Jesus paid for ALL of them when he died on the cross. And I mean ALL. He left nothing unforgiven. It's all by God's grace, NOT because of anything I do or have done.

I still don't eat pork or meat on Lent because I'm a vegetarian, but at least I now enjoy my summers. A lot. I appreciate gourmet fish. I don't observe Lent--I just enjoy what Jesus did for me.

When You Have Everything But You Think You Don't

How do you explain being blessed and not looking anything like it? Like when Christ lived an extremely humble life, born to poor parents in a poor village, and yet supposedly blessed. He himself said, "the Son of Man has no pillow to lay his head." That isn't what we would call "blessed" today. Even in church, we see those with big money and bountiful material possessions as blessed, not those who can't even afford a pillow. 

Photo by freestocks on Unsplash.

It's easy to be recognized as "blessed" if you have most everything you need and want within easy reach. People see it and believe you're indeed blessed. But what if the tangible proofs aren't there? What if, like Lazarus (the poor guy at the table of the rich man), you have nothing but dire poverty all your life? What if like the poor widow at the temple treasury all you can give are "two very small copper coins"?

Blessed and Miserable?

Depressed and frustrated. That was what most prophets were in the bible. Job was extremely downtrodden and even grossly misunderstood by friends, no less. Yet God said he was extremely blessed. He himself didn't believe it. He thought God was cursing him. His friends thought he was under severe punishment for his sins.

But Satan knew the real score. God had told him how Job was really His "favorite" even right during the peak of his miseries, while Job was suffering the brunt of the tests. Often I try to be in Job's shoes and couldn't get myself to believe I'd feel blessed in that condition. I'd feel like a jinx rejected by GOD and unfit to live, exactly how he felt and how his friends saw him. But believe it or not, he was God's favorite. He was extremely blessed.

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Looking accursed while really being blessed? Talk about extreme paradoxes. God is often fond of doing reversals like that. Blessed yet needy. Poor yet rich. Least and yet the greatest. Last but first. Underdog yet favored. Loser yet winner. Weak and despised yet power is perfected. Dead yet possessing life. Full yet empty. Empty yet full.

The Enemy Knows

Because he sometimes manages to get a glimpse of truth in the spirit world, Satan knows you're really blessed though you don't look like it. God orients the devil before you're subjected to his tricks and stratagems, putting limits to what he can do to you to make you feel bad about yourself. God's idea is to show the devil why God has made you His favorite. 

Worse is Jesus' case. God said plainly that Jesus was his "beloved Son" in whom He was "well pleased." Well pleased? Another favorite? So how come he was given a not-too-glamorous life on earth, without much fanfare and entertainment, not even the glamour of average middle-class perks? And he died like a criminal suffering the worst death penalty, besides having almost all his friends and supporters abandoning him. That's favored? Is that what it means when GOD is pleased with you?

Why not die of old age or as a war hero everyone loves? Why a gory and shameful death of a criminal? It would be easier to be deemed favored by God if you were a religious leader looked up to in church and then die while being busy in ministry. Why didn't Jesus die that way? It would've moved everyone's heart. No more persecution and cross.

The Wicked Prosper

Sometimes it drives you crazy to see how the wicked and mockers seem more blessed than you are, but then you read in Scriptures how God supposedly hates them. Isn't God very angry with sin and punished disobedient people in the bible, supernaturally wrecking their idols as well? How come idol worshipers today even get their prayers answered and their diseases healed? Well, that's what a lot of them claim. So, why does God allow that miracle effect produced?

Many times, we feel like just giving up. How can you remain competitive when God seems to support the enemy team? Why should I even take part in the competition? If God wants them to win, then let them. Why should I struggle? There they are, wicked, corrupt, boastful and all, and yet enjoying miracles, life favors, financial prosperity and career promotions. And here you are, believing God's Word and living it out, yet getting no miracles from God to back it up. I mean, I'd just be a jerk insisting on something that holds no water.

But actually I know the real score when the smoke clears. I mean, after a while of drooling over these crazy thoughts, I come back to my senses and know that God means the best for me despite what I see happening. I know that, though I don't feel or see it yet. I barely experience it. I know he blesses me and my family well, providing for everything, though frankly I see lacks more than I do abundance. Faith assures me that positives outnumber negatives, though for now I can't see how.

Lack is Opportunity for Glory

God is faithful though we often lack basic things. We lack money to pay for bills, for example, and miss out on what we direly, urgently need--like meds and treatment for illnesses we've been living with. Our wages disappear faster than our payables which grow in leaps and bounds while our pays remain dormant. Yet, in all these, we maintain that God's blessings are definitely more than our life woes. Blind faith? A big YES. Blind to the lies of the devil and having faith in what God says despite what we see to the contrary. 

Often we either borrow money, take a loan, beg or make salary advances, and this makes us look so bad to most people, especially church people, like we have denied Jesus or committed blasphemy. They look at us as the scum of the earth, suffering want because of our unfaithfulness. But Jesus issued a warning against those “who are rich, for you have already received your comfort. 25 Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. 26 Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets," [Luke 6]. The warning came because these rich guys hated, excluded, insulted and rejected the poor, hungry and those who weep. That's plain in the passage context. 

Sometimes we can't help but wonder about God providing our needs. Does he, for some reason, want us to lack finances or are we handling our money the wrong way? But how could we handle money the wrong way when there really isn't much to handle? There's just enough for food, bills, and our kids' daily allowances. I mean, most of us DO NOT live in luxury the way others do (probably at this point most readers would reason out that they aren't rich so the passage above is not for them). There's no way we can be mishandling money if the little we have always comes short of paying for basic needs. And with all this, how do we claim we're blessed?

The Poor are Unfaithful

Some of us would charge the poor of being unfaithful with giving. Well, to help open up your eyes a bit, we see poor people unable to be faithful with giving because we fail with giving, too--giving or sharing our blessings with them. God let's us see the poor so we can help them become faithful. In short, we should give them financial help. But we never see it this way. We'd rather blame the poor and take pride in our faithfulness and blessedness. Garbage. Really garbage.

Is there a thing as being partly blessed? Doesn't the bible say, "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not lack"? The words "shall not lack" do not mean being partly blessed but fully blessed. However, when you have dire lacks and deficits that compound daily you can't look and feel and claim to be blessed. And yet the fact remains that in Christ you are a child of GOD--child of the extremely wealthy owner of everything. You are blessed. I know this is hard to swallow but we need to and insist on it in our minds. 

Stick to Truth

Even if we see the proud and arrogant, wicked and corrupt, and those who misuse the Name of the Lord for their ulterior religious motives enjoying more than enough money to pay for all their needs and wants and desires and caprices, we should quietly believe that we are much more blessed. They have retirement plans, health cards and life insurances. They even have investments and money in the bank. Most of us have literally NONE of these. We probably have Php 3,000 or 2,000 in the bank, if any. I don't know. Probably less. But despite all this, we must believe and maintain by faith (as radical as Jesus' faith) that the Lord is faithful and provides everything we need. We must believe that with all our hearts even if our experience tells us otherwise.

We cannot adjust truth to our realities. We adjust our realities to God's truth. Being genuinely in Christ, you're God's "favorite" notwithstanding how you feel about it or what your situation is.