Fresh Start Daily

My parents and I went to a restaurant in Tagaytay (Gabriela – Nurture Wellness Village) today for lunch. It was quite a challenge to find the place though because it’s secluded. I thought it’s just along the main road but getting there was like getting through a maze. However, the food was worth the travel. I’m happy because it did not disappoint. Two thumbs up also for the good service. I thought it would be nice to take my parents there because of the green ambience and the healthy food.

Anyway, I want to spend as much time as I can with my parents. I’ve been noticing the increasing number of white hair on their head. I always ask the Lord to give them long lives so we can spend more time together and enjoy each other’s presence. I’m learning to really appreciate them as I get older. They say that you appreciate your parents more once you become a parent but I believe we don’t have to be one to see our parents’ worth.

They are God’s gift to me and I am beyond grateful to and for them. They are not perfect like me, but God has been teaching me to honor them despite their imperfections. More than having a long life, I pray that my parents will grow more in the Lord and be confident of their salvation. I want to see them–my whole family–in heaven. I don’t want to be in heaven alone. When I pray, I always picture us meeting Jesus in the clouds when He returns.

One time in Sunday school, I heard some girls in my group arguing. Two girls were calling another girl a liar because she wouldn’t tell them the name of her teddy bear. The only response of the teddy bear’s owner was, “Jesus is in my heart.” It’s amazing to know that at a young age (5 years old), she already knows that her identity is not found in other people’s opinion of her but in the Lord. Even though the two girls called her a liar, she brushed it off because she knows who she is in Jesus.

There will always be people who will write us off because they don’t understand us, but if we know and believe what God says about us, our heart, mind and soul will be at peace. That is why reading the Word of God (the Bible) is important. If Satan knows the Word of God, we should know better. Satan is a destroyer (John 10:10). He likes to remind us of our previous sins, makes us doubt our worth in Jesus, shatters our confidence, and makes us lose hope. He hates God and therefore, hates God’s children, too. He continually accuses us through negative thoughts and people. He bombards us with lies until we become weak and can no longer worship God.

“For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.” – Revelation 12:10

God’s truth is our shield. It is our protection.

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.

And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints…” Ephesians 6:11-18

“His truth shall be your shield and buckler.” Psalm 91:4

“The spirit of a man is the lamp of the LORD, searching all the inner depths of his heart.” – Proverbs 20:27

When I read this verse, I envisioned people who are genuinely committed to God with hearts lit up. I imagined God looking at the earth from a distance and knowing those who are His because their hearts aglow with the fire of the Holy Spirit. I want that. I want my heart to light up for Jesus. It’s comforting to know that God’s children will never be lost because God sees the glow in their hearts radiating from the earth.

I always pray that God will make my heart clean for it to be a vessel of that light. God is still working on me and I believe He will continue to work on me until He calls me home. The other day I remembered a friend who, every time I looked at her, seemed to glow differently. I couldn’t put my finger on it then but now I understand it’s God’s glory shining through her. She told me during one of our many fellowships that she is beautiful because God created her.

Her confidence does not rest on her physical attributes but on the Word of God. That’s God-confidence! It’s easy to feel down when we hear people belittle us because of our physical shortcomings, lack of abilities, etc. However, when we are deeply rooted in Christ, no matter what other people say about us, we won’t be swayed because we know who we are in Christ. We know that it’s not about what we do but about what Jesus did for us. It is God who defines us, not people. In the same chapter I read my devotion from this morning are the verses below:

“Most men will proclaim each his own goodness, but who can find a faithful man?” – Proverbs 20:6

“Who can say, ‘I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin’? Diverse weights and diverse measures, they are both alike, an abomination to the LORD.” – Proverbs 20:9-10

We often hear people say, “Oh, he’s a very good man” or, “She is so kind”. Sometimes we even hear others say about themselves, “I am a good person” or, “I help other people so I’m a good person”. However, we as Bible-believing Christians know that we are all filthy rags before God. We have nothing to boast before a holy God. The goodness of all the people in the world combined is nothing compared to the goodness of God.

A co-worker told me one time that she described me to her friend as “super bait”. She actually always tells me that I’m kind. I told her that I’m not perfect. Without God, I’ll probably always be in a fight mode when someone strikes a nerve, or I’ll give the silent treatment for good. It’s easier to be annoying and annoyed than to be holy. God is my leash, my pacifier, my sedative… I am nothing without HIM. If there is any goodness in me, it’s because of God.