April 26-30, 2012 Quiet Time Series

DAY 26

YOUR FOCUS

2 Corinthians 4:18

Paul clarified that we need to fix our eyes not on what is seen but what is unseen. What is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. Our inner person is being renewed day by day.. Our focus doesn’t need to be on the visible things, which are temporary, but instead on invisible things, which are the promises of God – eternal life.

When eternity is our primary focus, we are more courageous.  We are able to recognize the temporary nature of our troubles, which are momentary and light compared to the highest weight of eternal gain it is promised by God.

Prayerfully, we will move as Christians.  We need to concentrate, focus on the positive side and lift up our eyes in heaven and start seeing God as He is and our life through His perspective. Then we can be joyful and thankful in all circumstances.  We need to focus, concentrate and fix our eyes to the author and perfector of our faith which is God.

Julian Baga

DAY 27

LOVE YOUR FAMILY

1 Timothy 5:8

One of the special treasures that God gives to people is the family. The bonds of love within a family are deep and go beyond words. I have a simple family.  We might not be, shall I say, lucky enough to have the things what we wanted, and our deep relationship maybe working silently, but I can say that we are happy deeply as we gather together even if we can only do it often times. Sometimes I envy other families, wishing that I could have that in my family too.

I know that I have the best family for me. We have our parents who will do everything to provide us our basic needs with all the best that they can. We have a loving and caring family who will always be there in sickness and in health.  My family is one of my inspirations, through the years. I do all the things that I can to provide them with a good life, a life that we are dreaming of. That is why our loving God helps me to find a way to do that for them.

I believe that without God I can do nothing. But with God, there is nothing that I can’t do. Building my relationship with God, being a disciple of Jesus, helps me to realize that the best thing that I could provide to my family is to give them the love and care in different ways that I could. I am really excited and hoping that prayerfully, I could have them as my spiritual family too.

What is the most important way to love our family and provide for them? We can give them the chance to know and respond to the gospel of Christ and bring them to God’s great family. Amen.                                                                               

Alvin Comendador

DAY 28

DECISION MAKING – ASK: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

John 8:31(NIV)

“If you abide in my word, then you are truly disciples of mine.”(John 8:31 NASB, 1978 edition)

In order to build your life on the Bible, it must become the authoritative standard for your life. It must become the map you rely on when you need direction, the counsel you listen to for making wise decisions, and the benchmark you use for evaluating everything. The Bible must always have the first and last word in your life.

Many of our troubles occur because we base our choices on unreliable authorities: culture (“Everyone is doing it”), tradition (“We’ve always done it”), reason (“It seemed logical”), or emotion (“It just felt right”). This is very hard to see or even do when all of your life, you were programmed to follow what your parents were doing or practicing, what tradition dictates, and what religion says about morality or immorality. Yet, what we need is a perfect standard that will never lead us in the wrong direction. Only God’s Word meets that need: “Every word of God is flawless” (Proverbs 30:5a NIV).

The most important decision you can make today is to settle this issue of what will be the ultimate authority for your life. Decide that regardless of culture, tradition, reason, or emotion, you choose the Bible as your final authority. When making decisions, determine to first ask, “What does the Bible say?” Resolve that when God says you do something, you will trust God’s Word and do it whether or not it makes sense or you feel like doing it.

Based on the current way you make decisions, who or what is the ultimate authority in your life?  How would your life change if you always give God’s Word the final say? (Or, how has your life changed since you gave God’s Word the final say?)

Annie Angel

DAY 29

ARE YOU REALLY A BROTHER/SISTER IN CHRIST?

Matthew 14:13-21

I have this question in my mind a while ago and it inspired me to research the answers in the Bible. Does baptism alone make me a sister to all of you? And the following are the results of my research:

• From Matthew 12:48-50

Aside from knowing God, His Words and participating to His death and resurrection, I must do the Will of the Father in Heaven to be recognized as your sister.

• From Ephesians 4:25 and Ephesians 4:29

Another thing is to speak truthfully to you, remembering that it is God whom we intend to please and not one another. And watching one another to be righteous is a way to please Him.

• From Ephesians 4:2

For it was God who chose you to be my brothers and sisters, though you have characters that conflict with mine, I must learn to accept and love you unconditionally.

• From Galatians 6:1-2

And finally, I must not be surprised if I am affected by your situations. Because it is a proof that I weigh a part of your burdens as your sister and vice versa.  You weigh a part of mine as well. But just a part, not the whole.

How about you? Are you a brother or sister too?  God told us to meet together regularly because He knows we need each other to enter the narrow gates of Heaven.

Rowena Digal

DAY 30

GOD IS NOT LIKE THOSE PEOPLE WHO REJECTED YOU

Psalm 27:10; Psalm 55:12-14

There are people who we could not please or win over, who give us no attention or who give up on us. Who is this person in your life?

For me, it was my aunt. My aunt didn’t love me or like me. My aunt passed away when I was 16. It took me a few months to think it through.  After I was twenty years old, I came to understand that my view of my aunt was wrong.  But it was my view and I was consciously adopting it. I believed it within my deepest self but it was not my aunt’s fault. It was just the way I took things. I would have done it with someone else other than her. It was the way my mind worked. And because I deeply embedded these thoughts in my mind and emotions, I easily transferred them to God.

But God is not like us. God is always eager to forgive and to have a relationship with us. He lets us make our own decisions, but He is not like those people who rejected us. Whoever it was who rejected you, perhaps they may not have really rejected you anyway.

Vivian Belmonte

APRIL 21-25, 2012 QUIET TIME SERIES

DAY 21

DON’T GIVE UP

Galatians 6:9

God knows we easily give up.  At times we throw our hands and say “I surrender.  It has been too much. It is still too far to go.” But Paul encourages us not to become weary.  A harvest of righteousness will begin to grow.  Perhaps, it has grown already, we just need to open our spiritual eyes and be grateful. Some things might not be changing but someday or one day a fruit will bear and be ready or ripe for harvest. It’s a promise.  Let us continue to persevere and fight the good fight.

Raul Pabilando

DAY 22

EVERYTHING IN HIS HANDS

Ecclesiastes 7:14

Times are good,

 Times are bad,

A winding road

Shifting sands

But through it all

He understand

It’s in control, its in his hands..

Oh, I love this song! It reminds me of how God heals my wounded heart from all the challenges and struggles I encountered each day of my life. But through it all God is in control

Scripture to ponder: Ecclesiastes 7:14

When times are good, be happy

When times are bad, consider

God has made the one as well as the other.

Therefore, a man cannot discover anything about his future.

                                                                                                                                                                         Arcel Nistal

DAY 23

MAINTAINING SELF-CONTROL WHEN STRESS HITS

Proverbs 25:28

Have you tried to talk to yourself when you feel angry about a particular person? Or sometimes our mind wants to explode and confront the person who gives us stress in our lives.

Sometimes, there is miscommunication between me and my boss. I want to confront him of some of his decisions. That is really in my mind, every time I feel stress with all the things that he wants me to do. But because he is my boss, I respect him, and of course, I don’t want to lose my job either.

The only reason why I am not giving up on my job until now, is because I still remember that I am a disciple. Every time I feel upset with somebody, I will go out to a place where I simply remind myself that God is in control.  You may be at work, at home, or wherever, but it’s always good to keep an eternal perspective when stress hits. 

Maybe today, you need an eternal perspective in a stressful situation. Perhaps you’ve even already snapped at someone and you need to apologize for that. Whatever it is, remember that in the midst of stress, God wants you to have self-control by remembering that He is the one who really has the control!

WHEN THE STRESSES OF LIFE HIT, MAINTAIN YOUR SELF-CONTROL BY REMEMBERING THAT GOD IS THE ONE WHO’S REALLY IN CONTROL!

Halbert Tillor

DAY 24

WHO IS THE GREATEST IN GOD’S KINGDOM?

Matthew 18:1-4

Of all virtues, Jesus elevated meekness above the rest. Why humility? It is the door opener to grace, and no virtue enters our lives except that humility acknowledges our need and requests virtue to come. Without humility, we see no reason to change or appropriate future grace.

Yet, humility not only hosts the other virtues, it is also the life essence that sustains them. It is humility that recognizes when love is growing cold and humility that confesses our need for greater purity. Without humility, our virtues harden into lifeless statues; we are outwardly religious, but inwardly unable to change.

Humility is the taproot of true nobility. For it provides increase to wholeness, and life and maturity to all other virtues. It is the antidote to Pharisee-ism and the cure for a Jezebelian attitude. -  Francis Frangipane

A Child

Consider: when Jesus was asked by His disciples, “Who then is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?” He put a child in their midst. He said, “Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven” (Mathew 18:1,4).

In Heaven, the height of greatness is measured by the depth of one’s humility.

Consider Wuest’s Expanded Translation of Jesus’ statement:

“Therefore, he who is of such a nature as to humble himself like this little child, esteeming himself small inasmuch as he is so, thus thinking truly, and because truly, therefore humbly of himself, this person is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.”

Jesus came to establish Heaven in the lives of His followers. Thus, He introduces the realm of God to His disciples with the words, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven” (Matthew 5:3).

The Kingdom of Heaven belongs to the “poor in spirit.” Who are these poor? They are people who “know their need” . In God’s kingdom are filled with people who, at some time or another, failed and fell short. There are adulterers who’ve been washed and cleansed by Christ’s blood, ex-drug dealers and prostitutes whose hearts are filled with praise to God – all who came face to face with their need, repented and found forgiveness of their sins.

But there is not one proud individual in Heaven. There are no self-righteous beings in Heaven.  Here on earth we see the prideful – the air of self-importance . We see unrepentant pride in the conflicts that lead to disunity, envy and jealousy – in our selfish desire to be glorified before other men.

Jesus said the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to the poor in spirit! Not the perfect, but the poor. Yes, we are called to standards of perfection, and strive we must toward that upward call. Yet, perfection in Heaven is measured, not in degrees of self-sufficiency, but in degrees of dependency and surrender.

The disciples were arguing about who is greatest in the Kingdom. Jesus placed a child in their midst. This is greatness in the Kingdom of Heaven: TO POSSESS A HUMBLE HEART.... This is my greatest challenge as well.... How about you?

                                                                                                                                                                    Raqz Culango

DAY 25

PLEA

Psalm 31:1-5

I’m four days late in submitting my quiet time contribution. I tried to write my quiet time two weeks before submission but nothing good would come out from my head. I tried a couple and more strategies to bring up the fire.

I tried reading the Bible to draw inspiration from it, but I felt nothing. The words seem to stare back at me blankly. I tried praying, but in the middle if my prayer I get distracted because my words sounded empty. I could not put myself on it. I also tried reading inspirational books but I could not feel anything about it. I understand the words but it won’t go down to my heart. I tried cleaning the mirror hoping to see my self clearly on it. But the only thing I saw was my oily face and my unkempt hair. I know something was wrong with me but I could not put my finger on it. I am totally perplexed. I wanted to talk to someone but I do not know where to start. I don’t know how to say what’s in my head because I don’t understand myself in the first place.

I know I needed help so I lay on Raq’s bed, stared at the ceiling for sometime [as if there’s something interesting in there], reckoned the things that had happened to me (especially those things that made me downhearted), shed some tears (to complete my little scene of mellow drama), then I took some really deep breathes and finally doing again my strategies on the second paragraph, but doing the prayer first. I did the prayer with pleading, begging God to cast all my insecurities away. But nothing changed overnight. There is no short cut for my battle. I have to undergo a process and I am going take it even if it hurts. I can’t quit now. I just can’t. So, help me Lord.

Ruby Digal 

April 16-20, 2012 Quiet Time Series

DAY 16

ANOTHER NORMAL DAY

James 4:13-17; Psalm 90:12

Every time we wake up, we may think it’s another normal day. We take a shower; we go to work or school; we meet together with the Church, friends and family; we do our responsibilities, perform our many roles, do some errands, and try to balance things; we have fun and enjoy – movies, dine out, jog, etc. If we have the time, we say a little prayer and read a little of the Bible. We rush through the day and hopefully end with a good night’s sleep. It is one of the usual normal days.

Who of us are consciously thinking that perhaps today would be different? James states “We are only a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” Moses prayed to God “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” Knowing this, will we just rush through today and think this is just another normal day? Or will we decide to make this day different for God? If we make the prayer of Moses be our daily decision, wouldn’t we make the most of each day?

My family is important to me. God is most important to me. My relationship with them matters more than any task that I need to accomplish. May my thoughts and my heart be filled with joy and love for them. May my actions speak of how important they are to me each day. Let’s not take for granted what truly matters in our lives. Go ahead and treat them extra special today!

January Samson

DAY 17

TO BELIEVE

James 1:6-7

A person who does not believe that God can provide wisdom is like a wave or the sea, blown and tossed by the wind and is never able to settle down.

A believer or Christian who is spiritually immature may respond in a similar manner. He reacts emotionally to his difficult circumstances and problems and does not fully trust God. In his trials, he does not respond with a joyful attitude or with a believing heart because he does not ask for wisdom from God. He is unwilling to use the resources God has provided for him and he does not know that a solution is available for him through faithful and persistent prayer to God.

Today, if we have trials or problems, we need to think that God is always available. We simply need to pray with all our hearts to ask God to help us solve our problems or for God to give us strength to endure and be victorious. We need to believe, trust and be faithful to God.

Julian Baga

DAY 18

THE WAY

John 14:6

I am very inspired of God’s love written in the book of Robin Weidner, a sister from Chicago. In one of her insights: “Why did Jesus die on the cross? It’s because he made the way safe for us.” This statement makes me all the more see God clearly. My view of security of who is God is getting clearer and clearer every single day.

When John the Baptist prepared the Way, in which he encourages us to have confession, repentance godly sorrow and fruit, (in one fo Romy’s preaching) it was really true that The Way refers to Jesus.

So there is no other Way to be secured in our walk of life, in our walk with the Father, it’s only through Jesus.

Irene Glinogo

DAY 19

FINDING TRANSLATION

Matthew 14:13-21

I was not able to resist from crying when Annie sang the song “Five Loaves and Two Fishes” for the communion during one of the Sunday Worship Service. I cried because every word of it speaks my heart’s contents. “The boy looked in his lunchbox at the little that he had. He wasn’t sure what good it’d do.”

I have no faith in myself for many, many years because I felt so inadequate. I feared to be ridiculed or be shamed and criticized, so I withhold myself from plenty of things. I cowered at almost everything. I failed to see my potentials then, which I greatly regret. I could have enjoyed during those times – exploring and taking adventures. I could have built friendship with many people my age. I could have that confidence which I envy from others. I could have learned more.

“But he saw the twinkling eyes of Jesus, the kindness in his smile.” I almost forgot that I have Jesus who is more than willing to catch me when I fall. He’ll speak for me when I run out of words. He’ll fight for me when I grow weak. He’ll stay with me even when everyone else turns his back from me. He’ll heal me when I’m spiritually ill. He’ll forgive me even when everyone else despises me, and He’ll surely love me even in times when I’m unlovable. Knowing these, I will not fear any longer. I’m sorry God if I insulted your love and grace.

“I surrender. Take my fears and my inhibitions. All my burdens, my ambitions, you can use it all to feed them all.” These very words were exactly what I badly wanted to tell God for so long. I just can’t find the most appropriate words until I heard that song. GOD I SURRENDER TO YOU MY EVERYTHING!

“And every door that slams in my face, I will offer up in prayer.” Lord, teach me to pray when I’m happy and when disappointments crash on me. To everything teach me to pray. “I TRUST IN YOU! I TRUST IN YOU!”

Ruby Digal

DAY 20

HELPING OURSELVES

James 2:26

Have you ever thought that God can richly bless your life spiritually, physically, financially & all?

There is no doubt that God can do everything for mankind. I have heard stories of people who work so hard to reach their goals. They did not simply sit down and wish to make it happen! In life I have learned that sitting and wishing never accomplish anything. We are to trust God of our future that we cannot see or fully grasp. That is what we call faith. But faith without works is dead. (James 2:26).

I need to have a good decision and proper action for my life. There are many things I wanted to see for myself such as character growth, personal dreams and all. These would take faith and effort. I could not afford to just keep waiting without doing anything. We are fortunate because God is with us. We need to trust God who can do everything. But we must help ourselves to do our part.

It pleases God when we work hard and make plans. I believe God loves to bless the work of our hands when we walk with Him faithfully. Let us stop wishful thinking. Let us have the faith which is accompanied by action.

Rosalie Natural

April 11-15, 2012 Quiet Time Series

DAY 11

BE SORRY FOR YOUR SIN

James 4:7-10

When we sin, it should sadden us; it should disappoint us; it should cause us to mourn. We cannot mumble, “Excuse me, Lord” and just go on our way. Nor can we take sin lightly as if it were not that serious. To do so is to diminish God’s holiness and presume upon His grace. It is the gravity of sin that makes grace amazing.

How sorry do we have to be? We have to learn a sense of proportion in dealing with our sin. All sins are sin, and all sins are wrong. But not all sins are equal in their results. It is often difficult to quantify how much sorrow we should feel over our sin. Can any of us ever feel enough sorrow? Will we ever know the pain we caused Jesus or our Father in heaven? Will we ever fully understand how much we have grieved another person?

We need to learn this lesson not only in dealing with ourselves but with others as well. We must strive to be gracious to others as God has been to us.

Vivian Belmonte

DAY 12

SLAVE OR SERVANT?

Hebrews 3:6

When I was still a teenage girl, I had the opportunity to go to college because someone offered me to work for them as a working student. It was not easy because I had to wash clothes, clean the house, cook food, etc. In other words, I chose to be a slave because I was determined to earn a degree. But as I look back, besides being a slave because of my ambition, I was also a slave to sin.

Now that God has made us His disciples, we are slaves and servants. We are slaves to righteousness (in which we are works in progress and forever battling with God and Jesus) and servants (following the example of Jesus when He washed the feet of His disciples in John 13:15.)

Irene Glinogo

DAY 13

GOD’S STRENGTH

Hebrews 3:6

I am weak but God is strong. Yes, Jesus loves me and I am so thankful. My weakness is so apparent all the time. I should be old enough to know better about everything. But I don’t. I always take false steps in strange directions. I strive to measure up to the world’s expectations.

God’s strength teaches me to turn my hope into true strength. I am weak but I know the One who lifts me above my circumstances is strong.

Betty Belmonte

DAY 14

LOVE: SUPERIOR TO ALL GOOD DEEDS

1 Corinthians 13:3

Love is more important than all the spiritual gifts exercised in the Church body. Great faith, acts of dedication or sacrifice and miracle-working power produce very little and provide less impact if done without or with less love. Love makes our actions and gifts useful.

Although we have different gifts, love is available to everyone. Let us all freely, joyfully and gratefully share with each other the same love we received from God.

Romeo Samson Jr.

DAY 15

THE EXAMPLE OF JESUS

2 Thessalonians 1:11

Personally, I was convicted about what Jesus did 2000 years ago. He is the Son of God but when He was still on earth, He lived as an ordinary human being.

And now, I am called to be His disciple. In reality, it is not easy to live a true Christian life because it entails a lot of decision-making to choose what we think is best for us as Christians. The important thing is that whenever we decide, we should not forget the example that Jesus set for us during His life here on earth.

With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. (2Thess 1:11)

Arcel Nistal