Living In A Rat House

Colossians 3:12-17 (New International Version)

 ¹²Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ¹³Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. ¹⁴And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
 ¹⁵Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. ¹⁶Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. ¹⁷And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

We went on a mission trip to Belize and Guatemala on August 19-25, 2010. It was amazing experience of worship with the Guatemalan church. They worshiped God with their lives. They served us with humility. They were very poor. They lived in houses that were good for rats. When they I asked them where the garbage can was, one of the ladies took me their backyard--and there it was. Yet, when they cooked food for us, it was the best food we had during our whole stay there. No exaggeration. I felt that every bite of my food was made with love. There's so much more I want to say about that place, like for example the bathroom conditions and the bed bugs. But the way they worshiped God with their lives is more important than my so called "sufferings." They had so little and yet it was so much in the sight of God.
Going back to this passage, when I read over verse 16 and 17, it reminded me of their worship service. It went like this....first, the pastor goes to the keyboard and plays the reggaeton beat. Then plays the same riff and chord for 8 counts, and then heavens broke loose. Every song had the same beat, the same riff, and the same chord. I couldn't understand a word that they were saying because it was in Spanish, but every beat was accompanied with a clap and 40 Guatemalans singing from the bottom of their hearts to the top of their lungs with the same purpose, same mindset, and the same heart. It was a 3 hour service that felt like 15 minutes. It was 5 different cultures (American, Filipino, Belizean, Ecuadorian and Guatemalan) projecting one sound. It was a preview of heaven on earth. I hope to worship with them again one day..

I'm pretty strong!

Isaiah 40:31
 ³¹ but those who hope in the LORD
       will renew their strength.
       They will soar on wings like eagles;
       they will run and not grow weary,
       they will walk and not be faint.

 School. Work. Church. Ministry. Bills. Family. Relationship. Repeat. It can be pretty stressful sometimes! I found out just recently that working out is a good stress relief. It makes you feel good about yourself knowing that you're in shape. Plus, the endorphin high that you get from running is pretty awesome! But I must admit, working out to take stress out of my life is temporary. Pretty soon, I'm going to need something bigger than my muscles to carry my problems.
When I read this verse, it reminds me that God is my source of strength. It might be a cliche, but if you think about it, my Strength is BIG. IT'S GREAT. My Strength holds the universe. Because of my Strength, I am able to see the faithful sun every morning. Because of my Strength, I am held together, not breaking apart into 3 million pieces. Because of my Strength, I am able to breathe and enjoy life with my friends and family. My Strength is God. He is my source of strength. I'm pretty strong!

MI DAILY DEVOTION

 

time to listen. reflect. worship.

listen. reflect. worship.

Thank You by The Katinas

Just a little while longer I wanna pray
Can't get You off my mind so I came to say
Thank You Lord just for loving me
Many times as I do forget
Every need that You have met
Oh thank You Lord, I know You're showing me
You are there when I am down and out
You're holding me, Your love is so amazing
Oh it changed me
Chorus:
Here I am with all I am
Raise my hands to worship You
I wanna say thank you, oh thank you
For everything, for who You are
You cover me, You touch my heart
I wanna say thank you
I could have died in my sin but You saved me
Didn't have any hope at all
You gave me peace divine, strength to carry on
I should have been the one to pay
But instead You took my place
My Jesus, words cannot explain
Even though I don't deserve Your love for me
You look beyond my fault and You showed mercy
CHORUS
I wanna say thank you for the sun
I wanna say thank you for the rain
Everything You do is beautiful
I'm so grateful for Your love

too much to think about

^{Jeremiah 29:11-13
11} For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ¹² Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. ¹³ You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Hopelessness is the worst thing that you could go through in this lifetime. My Dad has been talking about Samson and Delilah these past 3 Sundays. It's a hard message. Samson lived a life that was worst death. He lived as if he had no cause. I encounter people who feel hopeless twice a week in my clinical rotation at psyche clinical. Some of them suffer through major depression disorder, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, etc. Unfortunately, the disease takes over and some don't ever go back to normalcy. Some feel that the only solution is ending their life because they feel so hopeless and there is nothing to live for. They go through a cycle of going to the mental hospital, take medications and join therapy, go back to the real world, stay unemployed, run out of medications, go through a "crazy" episode and then go back in the hospital again. They are chained to their illness and I believe that the only answer is Jesus. Jesus dealt with the sick in His lifetime here on earth. He was able to command demons out of the possessed and healed them of their disease. But more than that, those who were healed by Him were healed spiritually--inside out. 

Right when you think that it's the end of everything, He kept me going with this verse. I found hope. It's just a matter of trusting Jesus in everything--your future, your present, and even your past. You can be dealing with personal issues in the past, present, and future, but just know that God has a plan for you.

He wants you to know Him personally. He created the universe and everything in it. He planned to give His Son, Jesus Christ to die for your sins and your mistakes. He is the Only One that can save you from yourself. He can save you from your own personal issues, whatever it may be.

something to think about

Right now, I'm in my psych rotation for the nursing program. It amazes me everyday that people go through what they go through. I can't really give any information about the clients that I've met cuz it would be a violation of HIPAA, but it's really interesting. Some days are funnier than others, especially when it comes to group therapy..it gets pretty crazy sometimes. Some days, I feel that I can't take it because there's just so much to think about. When you deal with a client, you empathize for them. It would break your heart when you hear their stories.  On the first day of my clinical, I saw a guy walking around in circles for about two minutes, drooling on himself. He was spinning around so fast. It wasn't funny at all. I was floored. Some break down to a mental illness because they're substance abusers. Some go through alternations in their brain chemistry. Some have nervous break downs and they literally go crazy because of the stress that's happening in their lives like death in the family, divorce, separation with their kids, unemployment, homelessness---you name it. It is a reality that people are not in touch with reality and they go crazy because they couldn't handle life. I feel like I can't blame them because we do have so much to deal with in this life. One can just take so much before they break down....

..to be continued..

something to think about

First blog--so why did I make this blog? First of all, it's because I think too much. I think that this would be a good place to just express my mind. Listen to music. Reflect.