Wednesday, December 21, 2016

IN DARKNESS NO MORE

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(A reflection on the spirit of the seasonshared recently with my friends in the Christian Writers' Fellowship at OMF Literature. Edited for this blogsite.)


Isaiah 9:2 "The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned."

Have you experienced being in an unfamiliar dark room, where all you can do is grope? Where the only steps you could take are so tiny because big ones might make you stumble big-time? Then your ears become so acutely sensitive like a dog's; your hair bristles in fright; and your blood tsunamies to the point of cardiac arrest.  

Darkness withina life apart from Christis scarier! Way frightening!

When did Christ come to your own dark room? Were you just walking in darkness or were you in deep darkness?  

How is it to be in deep darkness? Ask me, I know!

When my life was just about me, myself and moi, bitterness, anger, resentment and unforgiveness were my daily grindon top of teeth grinding in my sleep. I spiralled into periods of despair and hopelessness (without anyone ever noticing because I was a great pretender). It was utter darkness, where the only way out seemed to be to escape it all.

But just in time, Jesus came, changed my life of angst and drama into one joyful and peaceful. Ah, pwede palang matulog nang mahimbing sa gabi! And my midnight snack could be about God's goodness instead of my fearsof death, sickness, failure, financial lackad nauseam!

And so this is Christmas! A simple but powerful and life-changing message (in Hillsong's "Here I Am to Worship" lyrics):

"Light of the world
You stepped down into darkness
Opened my eyes, let me see…
King of all days
Oh so highly exalted
Glorious in heaven above  
Humbly You came to the earth You created
All for love's sake became poor."

That's the reason Christian writers write. That's the reason we sing and live as Christ didfor blind eyes to sparkle again through the little lights that we've become.

"Let your light so shine before men that they may see our good works and glorify our Father in heaven," Matthew 5:16.

Lights flood homes and malls and a lot of public places every Christmastime. OK din naman yun, di ba, para makulay ang selebrasyon. Para hindi natin makalimutang mag-shop para sa inaanak o sa anak.

But the greater (and real) light must not be snuffed out by the insignificant kumukuti-kutitap lights around us. Jesus in us should so shine through our lives and our writings that people would crave what we have. "Iba ka, bakit ka ganyan? Ganyan ba talaga ang born against?"   

What is your story? The story of your ascent from pitch darkness to light? The earth will become darker, we all know that from prophecy. Statistics tell us that suicides are at their highest at Christmastimeand becoming higher especially among millennials.

This is our story: Isaiah 9:6, "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

That's why we write what we write, so that those who read our books would experience Christ every day of their lives, in their place of work, at home, and in spite of challenges.


Lord, may I not miss the real essence of Christmas. Help me to rise above the clutter of partying and materialism and indulge instead in your loveyour free gift of grace for all those who would confess Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Usher me into your kingdom of light, where peace and joy abound because of Him who reigns there, forever. 

Saturday, December 3, 2016

BIPOLAR FAITH

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It feels a lot like Christmas, doesn't it?

Well, it's not just about the increased foot traffic in malls, especially because many have already received their 13th month pay.

But the air is cooler, more pleasant and more conducive to wearing more layers of clothing. Rejoice my fashionista friends!

Our weathermen credit Arctic (North pole) winds for our cool breeze, which hopefully lingers.

How utterly different the Arctic and the Antarctic (South) poles are. The North Pole, it seems is kinder to humans (Remember Sarah Palin, the most popular Alaska resident?) with its minus 34 degree celsius temperature; versus the Antarctic's minus 49 degrees.

The South pole is simply uninhabitable, except by penguins, and humans who visit during summer for weather tracking.

Guess what, polar bears live only in the North, according to listverse.com, which reports that the lowest temperature ever recorded on earth was minus 89 degrees celsius, at the Vostok Base, near the geomagnetic South.                                                            

I wonder if "bipolar" has its roots from the North-South pole juxtaposition: the earth's opposite hemispheres looking seemingly similar (for their icy nature), yet very dissimilar.

Recent news have reported of popular bipolar personalities. 

The term describes someone with manic depressive tendencies characterized by serious and significant mood swings or alternating highs and lows, per John M. Grohol, Psy.D, psychcentral.com.

Would some of us be diagnosed as bipolar too in our faith-walk?

Our faith goes on high-mode when we read about God's promises; yet this same faith gets deflated, as if infected by dementia, when confronted by disappointments.

"Such a person is double-minded and unstable…" James 1:8. "When we ask, we must ask in faith, without doubting, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind." (James 1:6-7)

I've at many times been a bipolar Christian. When I was new in my faith, I learned to pray, and pray earnestly. Yet, when the answers came, I dismissed them as pure coincidence. Double-faced na, bipolar pa!

I recently prayed with a young couple for a house of their own. Could God be waiting for them to step out in faith (in spite of their parents' objections), since it is His perfect will for man and woman to cleave as one and be separate from their parents' household?

Jonah, perfect example of a bipolar believer: Called by God to preach repentance to the Ninevites, he instead ran away because, in his heart of hearts, he wanted Nineveh destroyed. Yet, Jonah was God's prophet!

Allowing our more carnal selves get the better of us that's when we become bipolar believers.

Only by His grace and His Holy Spirit can we obey. So we need to rely daily on Jesus for our strength.  That's why 1Peter 1:10 encourages us to "make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble."

Want to be rid of bipolar faith? Let the mind of Christ inhabit yours.