SAFE GUARD

Did you roll it on after you showered this morning? Honestly, without my Safeguard deodorant/anti-perspirant, I'd be so afraid to face the world---because, what if...?

İf you had tuyo and longganisang Lucban for breakfast this morning, you'd surely brush your teeth longer, then gargle, just to pulverize vinegary, garlicky breath. And for added assurance, floss da teeth!


I never leave home without them---my trusty sunglasses to shield sensitive eyes from glare, my anti-migraine protection.

Rubber shoes ready if you're up for long walks---otherwise, calluses and aching joints; or boots in really cold weather.

Our handbags, closets and car trunks are full of these. Thingamajigs and stuff without which our day seems to fall apart.

And they've almost become ritual. And just to make sure: a spare deodorant/anti-perspirant always on stand by; pills and health supplements in abundant supply in our medicine chest; umbrellas, slippers or walking shoes ready just in case.

Our doors padlocked double or triple for extra protection. Dependable wheels to safely bring us around. Hefty insurance in case the inevitable really comes knocking.

Wise is the man who does all these, not only to feel good and confident, but to make sure our days are marked with productivity, service and making lives rosier for our loved ones.

God has given us wisdom to be prepared for rainy days---or to take a bath and use another layer of protection if we're the sweaty type, so we don't cower in shame because of BO.

Didn't he instruct Noah to have his household ready for the great flood?

Or didn't my doctor tell me to always have my migraine pill "cocked," ready to "fire" at the first aura of pain so throbbing pain and puking never occur?

But we tend to get used to these tools we oftentimes forget that our first line of defense does not come from anything material---holdable, rollable, lockable, eatable, drinkable or wearable though it be.

İf you believe in the Christ and what He has done on the cross to "give us life and have it more abundant," we have confidence to come into His throne of grace, sure that He will provide all the tools we need to feel secure and confident, whatever it is we do---especially if our situations call for more than just deodorants or umbrellas and padlocks.

Our first impulse upon waking up should be to seek Him who knows our days from beginning to end. The Alpha and Omega, the Great İ Am holds the key to better days---in spite of our days becoming more dangerous!

His warehouse of Word gizmos is as real and way more powerful than the doodads we ordinarily depend on.

Afraid to go out or enter a bank because crooked men may be out there to rob you? His promise: The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him and delivers them. (Psalm 34:7)

Going through turbulent times? Unsure of your tomorrow? "Fear not, for İ have redeemed you; İ have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For İ am the Lord your God, the Holy one of İsrael, your Savior." (Psalm 43:1a-3a)

Your confidence chopped to pieces because someone said you'll not amount to anything? "İ can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:13)

Feel everyone ganging up on you? "İf God be for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31)

Reached a point where you feel alone? "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ..." (Romans 8:16,17a)

Could not go on because you're tired and old and lacking energy? "The LORD replied, 'İ will personally go with you, Moses, and I will give you rest--everything will be fine for you.'" (Exodus 33:14). Then Moses did his exploits, even though he was an old man.

God's promises are there for the picking. But sorry, it's not something you can casually pick as you would flowers in a garden.


He needs your heart first and foremost, just like David whom God said was after His own heart. 

Call on Jesus. Pray, meditate on His Word. Believe it. Wear it around your neck. Store it in your heart. Guard it and don't let the enemy steal it from you. İt's your Safe Guard, your Body Guard, your Soul Guard, your Life Guard.

Then you can go out confidently, knowing you've got your Safeguard deodorant and your all powerful and knowing Heavenly Guard who takes care of your every care. 

Jesus has your back, front and center. What better guard can you ask for?

And He's willing to make your life a demonstration of His power. Now, believe and obey.

LOVE MULTIPLICATION

I could have made it big, but my numbers sense hardly made it to "Pass", so my destined-for-greatness dream fizzled.

You see, when I was growing up and one-two-three marched to thousands, I developed a hate affair with numbers.


Grade 3 Math felt like helplessly surrendering to my executioner in a torture chamber. When Ms Z glared with her furrowed brows, flared nostrils and beat-box histrionics, I just wanted to run for my life. Why, even her eraser flew into space, reducing her naughtier pupils into a whimper!

Could that be the reason why my mind blanks at the mention of numbers? All in all, I went past elementary and high school math by the skin of my teeth, just like playing a game of Russian roulette. Pass or fail? Fail or pass?

I did manage to memorize my multiplication table, my only saving grace. I could have ended in repeat row were it not for the multiplication table!

I've lately been appreciating the multiplication table in a different light. And whether mostly right-brained, math-averse Yay can compute it or not, she's here to testify that God desires multiplication for you and me. It's a powerful concept that can totally turn your life around, as it has changed mine.

For the past few weeks, Pastor Paul Chase has been teaching us the principle of "seed, time and harvest" and its implications. "It's one of the laws operating in nature and in every area of our lives," he says.
 
God created everything just once---man and woman, animals, trees and every living creature. Generations after them replicated by multiplication, each species reproducing exponentially after its kind.  

Imagine the tiny mustard seed. Within that seed is a tree with more seeds to multiply themselves into an infinite number of trees. Mustard trees all, whose seeds are prized for their medicinal and culinary benefits.

The principle does not only apply to people and animals and trees.

Jesus says in Luke 6:38: "Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over..."

I've proven God's multiplication principle when my husband and I learned to give our tithe, a concept which we initially struggled with. But as we grew in our faith, we relented.

Malachi 3:10: "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it."

Yay's arithmetic computed "deficit" if we tithed. We wrote that first check anyway, sealed it with a bye-bye kiss, but relieved and at peace that we finally obeyed.

The rest is history---His Story. It was not necessarily "bye-bye" but a welcome party. His Story, His Word which took residence in our hearts, welcomed promotion after promotion into our laps, bringing with them blessings we didn't imagine we could have.

Too, when God pours out His blessings, you can be sure that money is just a fraction. You see, He's the El Shaddai, our God who's more than enough. Once Jesus becomes our Lord---but first and foremost Savior---peace, joy, grace, favor, mercy, contentment, healing, wisdom, etc., etc., become part of our blessings-filled terrain.

But the key is in dying. John 12:24: "I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds." 

Dying to self makes us alive in Christ, enabling us to act upon His promises---making us triumph even in the most dreadful situations. Though we walk through the valley of darkness, we fear no evil. For which power of darkness can come against the light of lights and the Lord of Lords?

So what seed will you plant today? Harsh words? Get harsh words in return. Unkindness? Reap unkindness then. And sometimes we wonder why some people don't want to be around us!


But try serving compassion, season your words with grace, dash it with a little helping hand, top that with a dessert of prayer; and those around you will naturally want to eat at your table, because Christ is seated there. 

God is in the business of multiplication! Multiply prayers and they will avail much. Multiply your time with God, and you'll see His character in you multiplied. Desire His will and see Him use you in things you've not even imagined yourself doing.

Oh, by the way, don't forget about subtraction. Grow proud and you'll get the red ink. Demerits---in the form of humbling experiences and negative consequences, we get a lot of these too on a daily basis.

Thank God for His grace too to start all over again! Jesus picks us up every time we stumble. He wants us all to receive our graduation certificate.

Really, the numbers business is much more exciting than third grade math. My goodness, my mind didn't go blank this time! I'm free to multiply!