Steps of Faith… How Our Lord God Reveals Himself

Hello Dear Friends,

Have you ever come to the point wondering who our Lord God really is? What does He looks like? What is His character really is, aside from being omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent? How He thinks and feels? Why He does what He does? Where and when can we really find Him?

It’s past one o’clock in the morning and I’m already tired but still I cannot sleep. I read a few verses in the bible and asked the Lord what He wants me to do. I reflected over the past 2 years or more of my Christian life and it seems that my life has been a constant struggle between my flesh and the Holy Spirit that is within me. When I commit a sin, I felt weak and helpless, the Holy Spirit will convict me then I will repent and my strength and hope will be restored again. This has been a cycle, I asked the Lord for a clean heart, soul and spirit but my fleshly desires, lust and pride always surface. I’ve heard so many testimonies and stories about similar struggle but I never thought this would happen to me. Did I really surrendered my life to God and let Jesus Christ reign as my King?

Then I’ve come to realize that the one I feed the most always win. If I feed my flesh with worldly desires, lust, and pride, my spirit weakens. If I feed my spirit with the words of God, trust in Jesus Christ and do good works to exalt and glorify His name, my spirit strengthens (but honestly, my fleshly desires still emerge from time to time… argh@#!, I got to stop feeding the flesh and let it starve to death!).

Apostle Paul has a similar experience when he says, “For that which I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate… For the good that I wish, I do not do; but I practice the very evil that I do not wish… Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?” (Romans 7:15, 19, 24).

Fortunately, Apostle Paul also gave the answer on verse 25… J

It is written in Galatians 5:16-17, “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.”

Then “bang”! It hits me, our Heavenly Father is teaching me a lesson that in every step of faith I made, our Lord God reveals a little bit of Himself to me. He is teaching me to walk by the Holy Spirit and get to know our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ more, get to know our Heavenly Father more… I’ve learned that I need to look at my circumstances based on God’s character and really surrender to Him what I hold dear and important in my life… I’ve learned to thank and glorify Him for everything that is happening in my life and trust God that He only wants the best for me…

According to Gary Thomas, “Faith is not tested by how often God answers prayer with a yes but my willingness to continue serving and thanking Him even when I don't have a clue as to what He is doing.”

Dear Heavenly Father, we glorify, honor and praise You. Thank You for giving us Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Continue to teach us, Father, that our purpose and priority in our lives should be to glorify You and get to know You more and our relationship with You to be first in our lives, before anyone or anything. We ask and pray in Jesus Christ’s mighty name. Amen.

Let me know your thoughts and give me your comments… Share your Christian Journey…

Cheer-up! God loves you! Jesus loves you!

God bless you!

Your Friend in Jesus Christ,

Ron F.

God’s Blessings Are Always On Time

Hello Dear Friends,


Have you ever been in a situation where your back is against the wall and everybody wants to rip you apart?


This is what I felt these past few weeks; every creditors and banks that I owed money have been hounding me to pay my past due. One threatens to sue me in court and others kept calling on my phone, day and night. This situation kept me busy for the past few weeks (I guess I’m justifying why I was not able to write in this blog but the truth is I’m also tired because of my heavy workload… and I lack the energy to write… and…Ok, stop, before I write a whole page of justification :). Going back to my story, my wife nearly has a nervous breakdown when she received a demand letter from a bank. She confesses to me (her fear) that a sheriff might just take away all our belongings and I might be imprisoned and this will cause us shame in our community and etc., etc. Miraculously, even if all of these things kept my wife worried, I was at peace and I can sleep soundly. One night, I heard my wife crying and when I asked why she is crying, she said that she pity me. This is when I told her to stop worrying because I know deep in my heart that our Heavenly Father is in control and He will never forsake me. I told her that we have a rich Father and we need not worry. True enough before the deadline set by the creditors; I received bonuses and merit increases from our Company and was able to pay the creditors on time. Really, God’s blessings are always on time and never late, we just have to trust in Him.


I believe the peace I felt is what David felt when he wrote in Psalm 29:11; “The LORD gives strength to his people; the LORD blesses his people with peace.”

I believe the Holy Spirit also comforted me during this difficult time and gave me peace and more… as it is written in Galatians 5:22-23;
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control…”

I believe that our Lord Jesus Christ also comforted me that I am never alone when He gave me the Holy Spirit, He said, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:16-18).

Finally, I believe that our Heavenly Father is on my side and held my hand…


I would like to share this inspiring poem…

It Depends On Whose Hands It's In (by Paul Ciniraj)

A basketball in my hands is worth about $19
A basketball in Michael Jordan's hands is worth about $33 million.
It depends whose hands it's in

A baseball in my hands is worth about $6
A baseball in Mark McGuire's hands is worth $19 million
It depends whose hands it's in

A tennis racket is useless in my hands
A tennis racket in Pete Sampras' hands is a Wimbledon Championship.
It depends whose hands it's in

A rod in my hands will keep away a wild animal
A rod in Moses' hands will part the mighty sea
It depends whose hands it's in

A sling shot in my hands is a kid's toy
A sling shot in David's hand is a mighty weapon.
It depends whose hands it's in

Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in my hands is a couple of fish sandwiches.
Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in Jesus' hands will feed thousands
It depends whose hands it's in

Nails in my hands might produce a birdhouse
Nails in Jesus Christ's hands will produce salvation for the entire world.
It depends whose hands it's in

As you see now it depends whose hands it's in. So put your concerns, your worries, your fears, your hopes, your dreams, your families and your relationships in God's hands because....... it depends whose hands it's in.


Dear Heavenly Father, we glorify, honor and praise You. Thank You for giving us Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, through Him we now have the Holy Spirit as our Counselor and Comforter. Teach us, Father, to put all our concerns, worries, fears, hopes, dreams, families and relationships in Your hands. Heavenly Father, give us the courage to examine what we have made to be as our purpose and priority in our lives, and if anything comes before You, help us to put it where it needs to be. We want our purpose for our existence to be only to glorify You and our relationship with You to be first in our lives, before anyone or anything. We ask and pray in Jesus Christ’s mighty name. Amen.

Let me know your thoughts and give me your comments… Share your Christian Journey…

Cheer-up! God loves you! Jesus loves you!

God bless you!

Your Friend in Jesus Christ,

Ron F.

Glorify God Anytime, Anywhere and in Any Situation

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Hello Dear Friends,

What are you going to do when you are 40 years old, in a stagnant career, broke and in debt?

Well, my friend, this is my current situation and if this happens to me 3 years ago, I might have committed an “accidental” suicide (A suicide that looks like an accident so my family can still claim my life insurance, like crashing my car into a truck). In fact, I don’t know why I’m confessing this thing because I’m a very proud person and even my small group of Christian friends don’t know this situation I’m in. What I know is that whenever I decide that my sole purpose for existence is to glorify God and make Him smile, everything I do contradict my sinful nature (I guess this is the power of the Holy Spirit at work). I hope and pray that I can look back someday in this stage of my earthly life and say, I glorified God during this difficult situation (Although I must admit that I put myself into this situation in the first place).

While surfing the internet, I came across this story about the buzzard, the bat and the bumblebee…

The BUZZARD

If you put a buzzard in a pen that is 6 feet by 8 feet and is entirely open at the top, the bird, in spite of its ability to fly, will be an absolute prisoner. The reason is that a buzzard always begins a flight from the ground with a run of 10 to 12 feet. Without space to run, as is its habit, it will not even attempt to fly, but will remain a prisoner for life in a small jail with no top.

The BAT

The ordinary bat that flies around at night, a remarkably nimble creature in the air, cannot take off from a level place. If it is placed on the floor or flat ground, all it can do is shuffle about helplessly and, no doubt, painfully, until it reaches some slight elevation from
which it can throw itself into the air. Then, at once, it takes off like a flash.

The BUMBLEBEE

A bumblebee, if dropped into an open tumbler, will be there until it dies, unless it is taken out. It never sees the means of escape at the top, but persists in trying to find some way out through the sides near the bottom. It will seek a way where none exists, until it completely destroys itself.

In many ways, we are like the buzzard, the bat, and the bumblebee. We struggle about with all our problems and frustrations, never realizing that all we have to do is look up.

Sorrow looks back, worry looks around, but faith looks up… Looking-up means that we must be “God-centered” rather than “self-centered”, have “God-confidence” rather than “self-confidence” and to be “God-dependent” rather than “independent”…

I believe that we just need to look up and glorify God anytime, anywhere and in any situation…

I believe that our sole purpose for existence is to glorify God…


It is written in Ephesians 1:5-6;
“In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will – to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves.” (The emphasis is mine)

Glorifying our Heavenly Father also means glorifying Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, who is also God…

It is written in John 17:24, Jesus Christ prayed for all believers;
“Father, I want those You have given Me to be with Me where I am, and to see My glory, the glory You have given Me because You loved Me before the creation of the world” (Again, the emphasis is mine)

It is written in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20;
“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.” (Again, the emphasis is mine)

Dear Heavenly Father, we glorify, honor and praise You. Thank You for giving us Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Teach us, Father, to glorify You anytime, anywhere and in any situation, which is the sole purpose for our existence. Thank You, Lord Jesus, for dying for our sins and paying our debt, we give You glory, honor and praise. Thank You, dear Holy Spirit for continuing to guide us so that in everything we do it glorifies God. Heavenly Father, give us the courage to examine what we have made to be as our purpose and priority in our lives, and if anything comes before You, help us to put it where it needs to be. We want our purpose for our existence to be only to glorify You and our relationship with You to be first in our lives, before anyone or anything. We ask and pray in Jesus Christ’s mighty name. Amen.

Let me know your thoughts and give me your comments… Share your Christian Journey…

Cheer-up! God loves you! Jesus loves you!

God bless you!

Your Friend in Jesus Christ,

Ron F.

Hope in the Midst of Disappointment

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Hello Dear Friends,

“Will you continue to love, trust, obey and worship God, even when you have no sense of His presence or visible evidence of His work in your life?”

Day 14 of the Purpose Driven Life (PDL) book by Rick Warren asked this question that we need to answer when facing the “test of faith”.

Are we a fair-weather Christian and only drawn to God when everything in our life is going our way? Can we still glorify, honor and praise God when problems or trials came and God seems so distant?

In John 4:23-24, Jesus said, “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”

It is also written in 1 Peter 1:7;
"That the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

There is a reason for our trials or problems or chastisement (disciplines) that only God knows but there is always hope if we continue to believe and trust that our Heavenly Father only wants to give the best for us.

I must admit that over the past few months (or almost a year, as you have noticed since the last time I wrote in this blog was in April 2007), I’ve been disappointed, angry, frustrated and depressed. I’ve been waiting on God to fulfill His promise and answer my prayers over a desperate need. Perhaps you can empathize, and perhaps you understand when I say that this desperation lead me to a spiritual vacuum or desert. I’ve demanded God to provide for the need on my own timetable. Then I realized that there was absolutely nothing I could do to make this thing happen. I was totally and wholly dependent upon God to fulfill His promise. Not dependent because I obediently submitted everything to God, but totally dependent because I’d exhausted every other possibility or effort. ;-)

I've realized that our Heavenly Father is teaching me to be patient and to wait for this thing to happen in His time. This lesson is necessary and the intention is not to torture me, but to reinforce my faith and endure them in order that I may become stronger.

Only when our faith is tested will we know if it is genuine. A gold miner may believe he has found gold. It may look like gold. It may smell like gold. It may feel like gold. It may even bend like gold. But, the lucky individual will not know for sure until he takes his find to an assayer and let it be tested. After yielding a bit of his discovery into the care of this inspector, and after that individual runs various tests upon the product, only then the newly wealthy individual will know exactly what he has and how much he can expect it to bring into his pocket.

Our testing proves the quality of our faith which is of much more value than all the gold in the world. Gold gains and looses value. It can be lost or stolen. It will eventually be destroyed. A genuine faith will endure all tests, only grow stronger because of them, and last an eternity. A true faith not only endures the trials or problems it is exposed to, it shines a glorious light upon the author of that faith – Jesus Christ and our Father God.

You see, all of these problems, disciplines, testing and trials do have a purpose – beyond making us miserable. They show to the world that we are the real thing, certified in the fires of tribulation, and proven by the test of time.

Our response will show if we are on the road to a mature, true and spiritual relationship with God that is not just dependent upon how easy or difficult our life is.

So meantime, as we patiently wait and hope for God's answer, what are we going to do?

In the scripture, we are continually admonished and encouraged to PRAY. Jesus modeled this for us when He was on earth. If prayer would not affect the outcome, God wouldn’t ask us to do it; we would only be spinning our wheels in futility. It is written in Mark 11:24, “Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you.” The condition here is faith or believing.

We are commanded to PRAY even when life is thorny and difficult, we must trust in this promise of our Heavenly Father: “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know.'” (Jeremiah 33:3) WE JUST HAVE TO KEEP PRAYING AND ASKING! As my youngest daughter always says, we just have to PUSH (Pray Until Something Happens)!

Heavenly Father, Your Son Jesus Christ taught us to pray, "Our Father, Who are in Heaven, Holy be Your Name, Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done on earth as it is in heaven...". Help us, Father, to remember that we should obediently submit everything to You and be dependent on Your strength and wisdom. Father, You know what is best for us, help us to humbly say "Your Will be done in my life". We thank you, Father, for giving us Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Thank You for continuously blessing us. We thank, ask and pray in Jesus' Mighty Name, Amen.

Let me know your thoughts and give me your comments… Share your Christian Journey…

Cheer-up! God loves you! Jesus loves you!

God bless you!

Your Friend in Jesus Christ,

Ron F.

Heaven in our Hearts and Minds

Hello Dear Friends,


“When heaven is in our hearts we will look forward with hope to the day when we will emerge on the other side.”
(From Eternity by Joseph M. Stowell)


I always imagine this scenario when someday I will be facing the throne of God…it will be like a court of law… There is God who is the “Judge” sitting on the throne and in front of Him is my “adversary” who accuses me before our God day and night… Also in front of God is Jesus Christ, my “Defender”, and where I am, well, probably hiding at the back of Jesus out of fear from God… The court session will go something like this;


Accuser: Your Honor, this guy, Ron, who You call Your child, has done so many disgusting things during his lifetime… and he will show the “Judge”, a very long list of all my sins and faults …


Accuser: “Ron is not worthy… Pride, lust, deceit, anger, greed, envy, gluttony, laziness… and so on and so forth… linger within…” (He gave every detail of my sins, faults and errors… At this point, as he speaks, I felt like sinking… I have bowed my head so low and cried so much … tears of shame…because all that he have said are true)


Judge: “Ron, are all these accusations true?” (Of course, we know that God already knows the truth even before the accuser speaks)


Ron: “Yes, Your Honor, all that he has said are true… his charges are fair… I plead guilty, Your Honor” (I mumbled)…


Accuser: “Your Honor, the sentence?”


Judge: The wages of sin is death… but I will let Jesus speak first and defend My child… before I give the sentence…


Jesus Christ: “Thank You, Your Honor, for giving Me the opportunity to speak… Your Honor, it’s true that My client is guilty and his penalty should be death… but in this case the death has already occurred… because I already died for him so the penalty is already paid” (The accuser is suddenly silent and Jesus Christ is smiling at me)


Judge: “If that is the case, Ron, My child, you are free to go to heaven and have eternal life”


Ron: “Thank You, Your Honor, Father Almighty… Thank You, my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ…” (At this point, there is so much joy in my heart that I cannot help but cry… this time… tears of joy…)


For me, heaven meant being with Jesus Christ which as Apostle Paul said in Philippians 1:23 is “better by far”…


What is in our hearts and minds?

> “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21 NIV)

> “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33 NKJV)

> “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Colossians 3:2 NIV)

> “As he thinks in his heart, so is he…” (Proverbs 23:7 NKJV)


The benefits of putting Jesus Christ and His “heavenly kingdom” in our hearts and minds are:


1. SECURITY

> Jesus Christ gives us security and peace of mind

> “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created things, shall be able to separate us from the Love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39 NIV)


2. STABILITY AND SUPPLY

> Jesus Christ is our compassionate Mediator. He will maintain stability in our souls regardless of what is happening around us and help us in time of our needs.

> “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has similarly been tested in every way, yet without sin. So let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace for timely help.” (Hebrews 4:14-16 NKJV)


3. ADVOCACY

> Jesus Christ is our Defender against the accusations and attacks of our adversary.

> “…we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense – Jesus Christ, the Righteous” (1 John 2:1 NIV)

> “…For the accuser of our brothers is cast out, who accuses them before our God day and night. They conquered him by the blood of the Lamb.” (Revelation 12:10-11 NKJV)

> Right now in heaven Jesus Christ is restricting the work of the devil against us. His present work in heaven guarantees that in every trial of life, He will make a way of escape that we will be able to bear it.

> “No trial has come to you but what is human. God is faithful and will let you be tried beyond your strength; but with trial He will also provide a way out, so that you may be able to bear it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13 NKJV)

> “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them.” (Psalm 34:7-8 NKJV)


How can we put Jesus Christ and His heavenly kingdom in our hearts and minds?

We need to entrust our lives to Jesus Christ and believe in the gospel of salvation that Jesus died for our sins; He was buried; and was raised on the third day …


As it is written in. 1 Corinthians 15:3-4;
"For what I received I pass on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures."



Jesus Christ is God’s only way to heaven. In John 14:6, Jesus answered "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."


Jesus Christ promises eternal life. Jesus Himself said in John 11:25-26, "...I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die..."


If you haven’t entrusted your life to Jesus Christ then you can pray this simple prayer to express your faith in Jesus Christ and receive Him into your heart as your Lord and Savior. You only have to pray this prayer once but with sincerity because when He enters your life, He will never leave you.


PRAYER

Lord Jesus, I need you. I confess that I am a sinner. I believe that you died on the cross to pay for all my sins. With your help, I will turn away from all my sins. Please come into my life and be my Lord and Savior. I accept your free gift of eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be. Thank you for coming into my life and giving me eternal life. AMEN.


WHAT'S NEXT


God's Word admonishes us not to forsake the "assembling of ourselves together..." (Hebrews 10:25). Several logs burn brightly together; but separate one and its fire goes out. So it is with your relationship to other Christians. If you do not belong to a church, do not wait to be invited. Take the initiative; call or visit a nearby church where Christ is honored and His word is preached. Start this week, and make plans to attend regularly.


Let me know your thoughts and give me your comments… Share your Christian Journey…

Cheer-up! God loves you! Jesus loves you!

God bless you! Happy Resurrection Day!

Watch out for our next blog… “Hope in the midst of disappointment” …and find out how God will give us hope to face the “disappointment in life” and how to be always on the right path during our Christian journey…


Your Friend in Jesus Christ,


Ron F.

A Life That Pleases God (Part 2)

Hello Dear Friends,

"Since God knows what is best, in what areas of my life do I need to trust Him most?"

Day nine of the Purpose Driven Life (PDL) book by Rick Warren asked this question to consider.

As for me, I find that finance (anything related to money) is a difficult area to trust God, although He has never let me down in this area. I often feel that God has overlooked something and that He really should be giving me more (smile…). My work experience in audit and finance taught me to plan my finances by doing cash flow analysis. As such, I account for money that goes in and out and that includes tithes. I always have this struggle that if I give a 10% tithe then it affects my future cash flow and I end up having a negative balance (expenses are greater than earnings and cash-on-hand). Deep in my heart, I know that God is in control and that He knows best…

It is written in 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 you will not have room enough for it.”

In part 1 of this blog’s subject, we learned that God smiles when we love Him supremely, when we trust Him completely, when we obey Him wholeheartedly.

To continue, below are the remaining 2 acts of pleasing God that makes Him smile :-)


4. God smiles when we praise and thank him continually

“Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it.” (Genesis 8:20)

“Noah’s first act after surviving the Flood was to express his thanks to God by offering a sacrifice… Because of Jesus’ sacrifice, we don’t offer animal sacrifices as Noah did.” Instead we are told “in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship.” (Romans 12:1)

Remember the time when we are given a round of sincere applause and congratulations, or when someone honestly thanks us for something we have done for them. God loves it too.

It is written in Hebrews 13:15, "...By Him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name."

God has put the feeling of praise and appreciation in our hearts because it reflects His character. Like Noah, “we praise God for who He is and we thank God for what He has done.” “An amazing thing happens when we offer praise and thanksgiving to God. When we give God enjoyment, our own hearts are filled with joy.” Learning to praise and thank God continually makes God smile, and we are warmed by the radiance of His glory.

God smiles when we love Him supremely, when we trust Him completely, when we obey Him wholeheartedly, when we thank Him continually.


5. God smiles when we receive his gifts joyfully

“Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth… Everything that lives and moves will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.” (Genesis 9:1, 3)

After the flood, God gave Noah and his family the same command he gave Adam and Eve, “Be fruitful”. God delights and blesses us when we receive His gifts, including His physical gifts of our bodies, joyfully and reverently. This means everything we do can be done for God’s pleasure if we do it with an attitude of praise.

When we watch our children display their talents, whether they be academic, athletic, or performance, doesn't it feel great? God feels the same about us. “Like a proud parent, God especially enjoys watching us use the talents and abilities He has given us.” God enjoys watching every detail of our lives, whether we are working, playing, resting or eating washing the dishes, fixing the car, weeding the garden, raising a family. He doesn’t miss a single move. Even the little things can bring a smile to God’s face.

It is written in Psalm 37:23, "The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and He delights in his way”

Every activity we do can be an act of worship. Every ability God gave us can be used to His glory. As Rick Warren says, “There are no unspiritual abilities; just misused ones… use yours for God’s pleasure …

God smiles when we love him supremely.
God smiles when we trust him completely.
God smiles when we obey him wholeheartedly.
God smiles when we thank him continually.
God smiles when we receive his gifts joyfully.

God knows we are incapable of being perfect or sinless.” Noah certainly wasn’t. It is written, “For He knows how we are formed, He remembers that we are dust.” (Psalm 103:14)

What God is looking for in us is an attitude of our heart and our motivation. The PDL book’s chapter 9 closes by asking, "Is pleasing God your deepest desire?"

When we live in the light of eternity we should come to the realization that the amount of pleasure we get out of life is far less important than the enjoyment God gets out of our lives.

Apostle Paul put it this way in his second letter to the Corinthians, “So we make it our goal to please Him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it.” (2 Corinthians 5:9) Could we say that? “My goal is to please God.”

God is looking for people like Noah… today… people willing to live for the pleasure of God… willing to live to make God smile. It is written, “The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who are wise, who want to please him.” (Psalm 14:2).

There is nothing [absolutely nothing] that God won’t do for the person totally absorbed” with the desire to make God smile.

It is written in Galatians 1:10, "For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ."

What can we do to make God smile?


Heavenly Father, Thank You for loving us that You gave Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, as a sacrifice for our sins. We commit our lives to pleasing and loving You. Father Almighty, give us the courage to examine what we have made to be as our priorities in our lives, and if anything comes before You, help us to put it where it needs to be. We want our relationship with You to be first in our lives, before anyone or anything. Help us so that in everything we do, we will always give You glory, honor and praise. Father, we desire to always make You smile. We ask and pray in Jesus Christ’s mighty name. Amen. Amen.

Watch out for our next blog… “Heaven in our hearts and minds” …and find out what are the benefits of seeking first Jesus Christ and His kingdom and how to be always on the right path during our Christian journey…

Your Friend in Jesus Christ,

Ron F.

A Life That Pleases God (Part 1)

Hello Dear Friends,

"The smile of God is the goal of your life."
(From the Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren)

Day nine of the PDL book begins with the statement above and since this is our ninth blog (Wow! How time flies…tempus fugit), I was inspired to write and figure out what will please God and makes Him smile…

If pleasing God is the first purpose of my life, my most important task is to discover what will please Him and how to do that… I also have to figure out how to spend my remaining time on earth and do more what pleases God…

I tried computing how much time is left for me on earth based on a typical lifespan as written in Psalm 90:10 “The length of our days is seventy years or eighty, if we have the strength…” I hope my engineering skills can be of use :-)… Here it is…

I’m currently 39 years old, so if I live up to 70, I only have 31 years to spend on earth… Out of these 31 years, I have computed the following based on my typical activities/events in my life in a year:

Sleep--------------------9.0 years----------- 29%
Work--------------------7.0 years------------23%
TV-----------------------2.5 years-------------8%
Eating-------------------2.5 years--------------8%
Travel-------------------4.0 years-------------13%
Leisure------------------1.3 years--------------4%
Illness------------------1.3 years--------------4%
Hygiene & Dressing----0.7 years--------------2%
Pleasing God-----------2.7 years--------------9%
Total-------------------31.0 years-----------100%

Oh… Oh… based on the above computation, it seems I’m failing in providing more time to please God… Starting today, there will be less TV, eating and leisure for me (Ouch! :-))… I will also devote time for worship while I’m travelling… (Hmm, maybe I can squeeze more time during hygiene and dressing)... I can also be God's ambassador at work... And I pray to God, that there will be less illness for me so I can devote that time to Him…

Lord, “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12 NIV)

This is on the quantity part only but how about the quality part… The Bible gives us many examples of people who succeeded in pleasing God. One of these is Noah.

Rick Warren in the PDL book listed five ways - five acts of worship as demonstrated by Noah that made God smile…

In Noah’s day everyone lived for their own pleasure, not for God. God couldn’t find anyone on earth willing to please him - except one man. On man made God smile - Noah.

It is written in Genesis 6:8 (NIV), “But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD”.

Think about it - you and I are alive today because God smiled on Noah and Noah found favor in God. Why did God smiled on Noah?


1. God smiles when we love Him supremely

“…Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God.” (Genesis 6:9 NIV)

This is what God wants most from us “A relationship!" God made us to love us and He longs for us to love Him back.

This is why learning to love God and be loved by Him should be the greatest objective of our life. Nothing else comes close in importance. Jesus called it the greatest commandment. “Jesus replied: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.” (Matthew 22:37-38 NIV)

When does God smile? God smiles when we love him supremely. Secondly,


2. God smiles when we trust Him completely

“By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith” (Hebrews 11:6 NIV)

God warned Noah He was going to flood the earth. As such, Noah had to build a giant boat hundreds of miles or a long way from the sea. He also had to care for large numbers of animals in which he had no experience of. Noah had plenty of reasons to doubt. But he did it without complaining and without questioning. For 120 years, he builds that giant boat while people around him is mocking and teasing him. What an amazing example of trust and obedience to God!

Noah trusted in God’s word when he couldn’t understand God’s reasons. But you see, God commanded Noah to build a giant boat to save and protect his family and the animals. God’s commands are there to protect us from harm and provide for our future.

Sometimes, I can identify with Noah… I feel like sometimes I’m being asked to do things beyond my experience… beyond my comfort zone… I prayed and asked…Lord, help me…

I have learned that this is the type of "Holy Spirit led" life the Lord is requiring of me -- of all of us. God wants us to trust Him even when it doesn't make sense to us. Trusting God completely means having faith that He knows what is best for our lives. He is requiring us to take a step of faith into the unknown way of the Father. He is asking us "How much do you love and trust Me?"

"Preserve me, O God: for in Thee do I put my trust." (Psalm 16:1 KJV)

Trusting is an act of worship. Just as parents are pleased when children trust their love and wisdom” trusting God makes Him happy” Also, isn’t it interesting that just before the writer to the Hebrews mentions Noah, he says “...Without faith it is impossible to please God.” (Hebrews 11:6).

When does God smile? God smiles when we to take a step of faith and trust God completely… and walk with and led by the Spirit of God… God smiled at Noah because he loved Him supremely & trusted Him completely. Thirdly,


3. God smiles when we obey Him wholeheartedly

“Noah did everything just as God commanded him.” (Genesis 6:22)

“Noah obeyed God wholeheartedly… without reservation or hesitation.” No wonder God smiled on Noah.

Noah obeyed God to the smallest detail. He did not try to do things His own way, but trusted that God's ways were best. Any parent knows that delayed obedience or partial obedience is no different than disobedience.

The two paragraphs below in the PDL book are the highlight of what I learned;

"God doesn’t owe us an explanation or reason for everything He asks us to do. Understanding can wait but obedience can’t. Instant obedience will teach us more about God than a lifetime of Bible discussions. In fact, we will never understand some commands until we obey them first. Obedience unlocks understanding."

"Often we try and give partial obedience to God. We want to pick and choose which commands we obey. We make a mental list of the commands we like and of those we think were written for other people. Then we ignore “the ones we think are unreasonable, difficult, expensive, or unpopular. I’ll attend church but I won’t tithe. I’ll read my Bible but won’t forgive the person who hurt me. Partial obedience is actually disobedience."

“…but I gave them this command: Obey Me, and I will be your God and you will be My people. Walk in all the ways I command you, that it may go well with you.” (Jeremiah 7:23 NIV)

On the other hand, “an act of obedience is also an act of worship. Why is obedience so pleasing to God?” For the same reason it is pleasing to you when your child obeys joyfully and willingly. It proves they trust you. It shows they love you. It demonstrates they respect you. Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will obey what I command.” (John 14:15 NIV)

I am convinced that if we live this way, loving, trusting and obeying God, we will find our lives most exciting. We will find that we are doing things that we could never imagine doing. I suspect that if we lived this way, we would find that we are living the way we always wished we would live -- doing the things we secretly always wanted to do.

When does God smile? God smiles when we love Him supremely, when we trust Him completely, when we obey Him wholeheartedly.

I’ll share the remaining 2 acts of pleasing God that makes Him smile in part 2 of this blog since this is getting longer…I might bore you if you are not bored already :-)

Heavenly Father, Thank You for loving us that You gave Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, as a sacrifice for our sins. We commit our lives to You and we love You supremely. We trust You completely and we commit to obey You wholeheartedly. Give us the courage to examine what we have made to be as our priorities in our lives, and if anything comes before You, help us to put it where it needs to be. We want our relationship with You to be first in our lives, before anyone or anything. We ask and pray in Jesus Christ’s mighty name. Amen. Amen.

Watch out for part 2 of our blog… “A life that Pleases God” …and find out how to live a disciplined life that makes God smile and how to be always on the right path during our Christian journey…

Your Friend in Jesus Christ,

Ron F.