Precious Words

Guest written by our friend Mason Abbott My husband and I realized the other day that we could call www.DirectStarTV.com and also get our internet service through them. It’s incredibly affordable, and it’s one fewer bill to worry about. Given how busy and stressful our lives are these days, one fewer bill is a huge relief. I don’t know when it happened exactly, but our lives have gotten incredibly hectic lately. It feels like we run from one obligation to the next, with little to no time to relax in between. With our new bundle of television and internet, we streamline the time we spend paying bills. Plus, we get to enjoy a ton of awesome television channels and home internet for an incredibly affordable price. We loved making the phone call to our old internet provider to tell them we were canceling our service, and it took us only a couple of minutes to get our service switched over. It was so painless; I definitely recommend it. You’ll be amazed how much having one few...

We had our church Christmas party last December 17th which started around 10:30AM. We started the program by singing Christmas songs. Then some kids sang a special song The Little Drummer Boy in front. Two mothers did a duet "Christmas In Our Hearts" and then 4 moms rendered a couple of Christmas songs. I also sang Whispering Hope though my voice was not great. It was all for Jesus because we were celebrating His birth. Pastor George gave his Christmas message about the birth of Jesus Christ. Then we ate our lunch that was prepared by uncle Rudy who was in-charge of the cooking of our lunch. We had chicken adobo, bottle gourd squash, rice, bananas and orange juice for all of us. The expenses were from our church fund but the rice was courtesy of uncle Rudy. After lunch, we had the parlor games played outside which were joined by the kids and adults. I was the one in-charge of the parlor games too. I let the the kids play first the "Fanning the Fish" and...

Telephone calls used to be routed by operators, manually connecting circuits at a switchboard--plugging and unplugging wires all day long to keep conversations going. Today, think how many millions of calls are handled by computerized routers every second of the day. Better yet, imagine how many countless prayer "calls" God receives every moment from all over the world. It would be easy to be dissuaded from praying by thinking of our individual prayer requests getting lost amidst the millions God hears. Yet we are exhorted to "let [our] requests be made known to God" (Philippians 4:6), and to do so boldly (Hebrews 4:16). King David did (countless times in Psalms), and so did the apostle Paul--the same request three different times! (2 Corinthians 12:7-8) They didn't feel bad or guilty for continually asking God for help, nor should we. In fact, not to pray is to portray God as less than He is--a generous Father (Luke 11:11-13). If you are in a stressful place to...

British researchers analyzed speed dating--meeting people by evaluating prospects at an event through a series of brief one-on-one meetings--to see if singles with a wide variety of potential dates had a higher chance of meeting a partner. The verdict: They didn't.1 Catering to singles has opened up new multi-million-dollar enterprises from single bars to computerized dating. But we're mistaken if we take our cues from society on singleness. God doesn't think we need to spend time and money trying to "fix" it. Three times in 1 Corinthians 7, the apostle Paul talks about the unmarried, and he uses the phrase: "It is good." If you're single, God wants you to accept it as one of His gifts to you. Use your singleness to grow and become content with His plan. Perhaps you've heard--or even made--thoughtless comments like: "What's a sweet girl/guy like you doing single? Maybe your standards are too high for a mate. I prayed for my husband/wife....

The word "disappoint" comes from an old French word meaning to remove someone from office--to dis–appoint one who had been previously appointed to a position. Those who are fired or "dis-appointed" suffer crestfallen feelings of discouragement. Hence our English word disappointment. This is one of the most difficult emotions to reconcile. We all know how it feels to lose a game, fail at a task, be rejected in a relationship, miss an opportunity, or lose a job. The Bible says that hope deferred (disappointment) makes the heart sick (Proverbs 13:12). But we're also told God will never disappoint us and that His love never fails. According to Romans 5, we can glory in tribulation because tribulation produces perseverance, which leads to character, which develops hope--and God's hope never disappointments because the Holy Spirit sheds His love abroad in our hearts. Someone once said "disappointments" are "His appointments." He has a way of wo...

You and your friend have been close for years--never a cross word between you. But suddenly, you find yourself reacting with harsh, impatient words. Where did that come from? And your friend looks at you with a puzzled expression as if asking the same thing. If you will look beneath the problem, you will find a new perspective. Perhaps there's a wound that needs healing, a jealousy that needs confessing, or a resentment in need of repentance. Problems in life are tools in the Holy Spirit's hands to reveal things to us we might never have otherwise considered--truth about God, about others, and especially about ourselves. If we respond to the perspective God allows us to see, we can come out the other side more mature. Remember the problem Paul had that he asked God to take away--and God said "No"? Paul saw something new: God's grace is sufficient--so much so that he began opening his arms to problems in order to experience more grace (2 Corinthians 12:7-10). The n...

The day after Christmas 2009, Amazon.com announced that Kindle had become the most gifted item in Amazon's history. With Kindle available at the click of a button --we have more secular and religious reading choices than ever before. But as we pursue knowledge, will we make time to read God's Book? The Holy Bible still tops the best-selling books lists. Yet our insatiable quest for experiential knowledge can keep us from this source of Truth. The Israelites were not judged because they elevated knowledge, but because they elevated experience over knowledge (Hosea 4:6). Jesus rebuked the leaders of Israel in His day because they had "taken away the key of knowledge," misleading people from the truth of Jesus' words (Luke 11:52). Proverbs 1:7 clarifies our search for truth: "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge." In your personal reading time, are you pursuing the world's deceptive system of discovering truth? Or are you conforming to the...

Yesterday we started the discipleship training of the 4 ladies who have been baptized in our church. It was announced in our worship service last Sunday and I asked the ladies what is the best time for them to have the discipleship training and they said 1:00 PM and they agreed to do it every Wednesday at 1-2 PM. I noticed that the new converts are not growing spiritually and sometimes they don't attend our services regularly. Hubby and I were praying to the Lord to bless our members and that they will have a closer relationship with the Lord. We believe that the discipleship training will help the ladies grow spiritually after they accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

Even if you are not a gramma’, this will touch your heart. This is one of the sweetest prayers I've ever seen. Dear Mr. God I'm sorry for keepin' ya up late. But, I wanna know If' you're too busy, I can wait. You see grandma's been forgettin' A lot of things. Mamma says so. She forgot my name, today, Mr. God, And she's a walkin' kinda slow. Yesterday, she jest left Without even sayin' bye. Daddy brought her back and He had a tear in his eye. So, I was wonderin', can you fix her? She has somthun' called 'all tizers', daddy said. She forgets who we are sometimes, And she forgot that grandpa's dead. Mr. God, you give her a new brememberer 'Cause I miss her playin', and stuff, with me And the cookies she used to bake. And, she was so smart, wasn't she? She used to talk 'bout you a lot. Now, she jest talks to herself and, Mr. God, she don't know herself >From the pictures on the shelf. Sometimes, she calls me...

Last September 17th, there were 4 people from our church whom pastor baptized in the resort, just 15 minutes drive from our church. This was the 2nd batch who were baptized this year. The first batch was May 28th and there were 10 people whom pastor baptized in the beach. I praise God for souls being saved. We didn't here a jeepney this time. We only used the van of my brother-in-law and a tricycle of one of our church members. We limited the people to come because of the entrance fee in the resort which is P50 per person. When we went to the beach for baptism the last few times, many church members went with us and we hired a jeepney. It was okay because we didn't pay entrance fee there. This time, there were 17 of us who went and we brought lunch for all of us which we ate after the water baptism. The resort was nice. It was 2 swimming pools, one for the adults and the other one is for the kids. Pastor opted to do the water baptism in the kids' swimming pool. There were ...

My hubby always tells me that I have lots of clothes. He maybe right but I always tell him, look who's talking. He himself got lots of clothes too. In fact our closet is already full of clothes and there's no more space to accommodate new set of clothes. We are thinking of giving away some of our clothes that we don't use no more to those poor people in our church. I know they will appreciate it very much. Hubby had gained weight that's why most of his clothes don't fit him no more. I need to buy him Tall Mens Clothing with XL size so he can wear them to church. I was going through all his clothes the other day and I asked him to try his church clothes and most of them are already tight. Gosh, hubby had been eating good. You can't tell that we don't have much money, huh! Others thought that we have a huge bank account that's why last week, a neighbor came to our house to borrow money. I told him the truth that we don't have money right now and that ...

It's Sunday once again and we had a good service this morning. As usual, I taught the kids in Sunday School. There were some kids who were absent especially the boys. Sometimes they get lazy and I got so disappointed that they were not there on Sundays. Anyways, our Sunday School went well despite the lesser attendance. The kids memorized the memory verse that I gave last Sunday and they recited it in front of the class one by one. I gave them rewards for doing that. Our worship service had less attendance too. I don't know why but it's one of those days. Maybe we need to visit more and do some follow-ups. The problem is our car needs to be fixed and right now we don't have the budget for that. We are waiting on God's blessings so we can have our car fixed. The message this morning was entitled "Sanctify" and the text verses are found in John 17:13-20. Sanctification is regarded as a work of grace following one's salvation. God calls all believers to h...

How to stay safe in the world today 1. Avoid riding in automobiles because they are responsible for 20% of all fatal accidents. 2. Do not stay home because 17% of all accidents occur in the home. 3. Avoid walking on streets or sidewalks because 14% of all accidents occur to pedestrians. 4. Avoid traveling by air, rail, or water because 16% of all accidents involve these forms of transportation. 5. Of the remaining 33%, ! 32% of all deaths occur in Hospitals. So, .... above all else, avoid hospitals. BUT, ... You will be pleased to learn that only 001% of all deaths occur in worship services in church, and these are usually related to previous physical disorders. Therefore, logic tells us that the safest place for you to be at any given point in time is at church! ...And....Bible study is safe too. The percentage of deaths during Bible study is even less. So, for SAFETY'S sake...Attend church, and read your Bible. IT COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE! And remember this: When you are living...

We had a good service last Sunday. Though the weather was cloudy and rainy, we had more people than what we expected. As usual, the kids in Sunday School were there. The faithful kids who were always present brought their Bibles. I gave out memory verses for them to memorize and also I asked the boys to sing in front of the class and they did. Next I asked the girls to give a special song too and they complied. After that I gave them candies and lollipops which made them happy. I told them the story of the Widow's Mite found in Mark 12:41-44. Jesus praised the widow for giving her last penny to God. Our worship service went well. Pastor's message was entitled "Jesus, A Name Above All Names" and the text verse was found in Luke 1:30-31. He then explained What The Name Of Jesus Means. 1. J- ustification -(Romans 5:9) 2. E- ternal Life - (John 11:25-26) 3. S- acrifice - (Hebrew 9:28) 4. U- ndying Love - (Romans 9:35-39) 5. S- alvation - (Acts 4:12) What you do ...

It's a rainy Sunday! For a few days now, it's been raining cats and dogs due to typhoon Mina. I was praying to the Lord that it will not rain hard today so people will go to church. The Lord answers prayers. The people who were present this morning in our worship service were more than what we expected. Hubby prepared his message a few days ago entitled Christ as Lord in our Lives and the text verse is found in Colosians 3:1. We had a good service today though it showered a little bit this morning. Thank you Lord for you are the Lord in our lives. Jesus the Boss, Lord of lords and King of kings! If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. Colossians 3:1-3 KJV

It's really hard to forgive others who did us wrong especially if that person is one whom you consider as a friend. I used to have a neighbor who came and cleaned the house three times a week. She did some house chores like vacuuming, mopping, washing dishes, dusting, throwing out the trash and cleaning the bathroom. She worked for me for seven months and we became friends. She's the first Mexican woman who became my friend. Before she starts her work, we go out walking first for our exercise. While we were out walking, I asked her to take photos of me with the nice scenery that we passed by with my digital camera. Every time she make tortillas, she gave us a bunch and she even showed me how to do it. In return I gave her lumpia and pancit whenever I cook. I also tried to witness to her about the Lord Jesus Christ and invited her to church with her 2 grandkids. After 5 months though, I noticed that some of my jewelries were missing. The diamond ring that my hubby gave me and...

We had a great service last Sunday. Though there were some members who were absent, we felt the presence of the Holy Spirit. As usual, we started the service with opening prayer followed with congregational singing of hymns and praise songs. After that, we had the testimony time. One young mom stood up and shared her testimony. Her name is Marygen. She's been attending our church since February and was baptized in water last May. The past few weeks, she haven't been attending church because her husband had to go to the field to plant rice and she had to take care of her son. Then one day she had colds and that started both of her hears can't hear. She became literally deaf and can't hear anything. She said day and night she was praying to the Lord, crying out her heart to God. She asked forgiveness from the Lord for not going to church for 4 Sundays. She believed that God chastised her for not going to church. She promised that if the Lord will restore her sense of h...

Yesterday, hubby and I went to attend the orientation and to pick up the free Bibles from the Philippine Bible Society. We arrived there at 10AM because we were in the second batch. The first batch was not yet finished when we arrived and I was surprised to see a lot of pastors and ministers from different churches who were there to attend the orientation and to pick up free Bibles too. We have to pay Ph165 for the registration and they gave each church 50 Bibles and also 40 pieces free visual aids for the kids in my Sunday School with matching story and Bible reference at the back. We were also given 20 booklets of the Book of John. We saved more than Ph7000 just for the Bibles alone. During the orientation, the speaker told us that the donor of the Bibles is the Generic Pharmacy. They give out 1 million Bibles yearly to the Filipinos. According to the statistics in 2010, there are more than 94,013,200 million Filipinos and only 40% Filipinos own Bibles while the other 60% don'...

This is one of the best prayers I think I have ever read. Pray this even if you don't feel like it. It will only take a minute. You never know when God is going to bless you. Good things happen when you least expect them to. Dear Lord, I thank You for this day, I thank You for my being able to see and to hear this morning. I'm blessed because You are a forgiving God and an understanding God. You have done so much for me and You keep on blessing me. Forgive me this day for everything I have done, said or thought that was not pleasing to you. I ask now for Your forgiveness. Please keep me safe from all danger and harm. Help me to start this day with a new attitude and plenty of gratitude. Let me make the best of each and every day to clear my mind so that I can hear from You. Please broaden my mind that I can accept all things. Let me not whine and whimper over things I have no control over. And give me the best response when I'm pushed beyond my limits. I know that when I ca...

Ever wonder what the resume for God would look like? In this day and age, everyone's having to look for a job. This is an idea of what God's resume would look like if He were to apply as a manager in your life. To Whom It May Concern: I heard you were considering a new manager in your life. I would like to apply for the job. I believe I am the most qualified candidate. I am the only one that has ever done this job successfully. I was the first manager of human beings. In fact I made them, so naturally I know how humanity works, and what is best to get people back into proper working condition. It will be like having the manufacturer as your personal mechanic. If this is your first time considering me, I would just like to point out that my salary has already been paid by the blood of my son, Jesus on the cross of Calvary. What I need from you is the acknowledgment that the price is sufficient to pay for all of your sin and your independence from Me. I need you to believe thi...

Since we started our ministry, hubby and I have been praying for a lot where we can build our own church. It's been more than two years since we started and first, we held our services in our carport and sometimes in our living room. Then last year, we moved to a village and we've been renting a small house since then. The space is so limited and there's not enough room for the kids in Sunday School. Hubby and I keep on praying to God to give us a land for our church. Our church has savings from the tithes of the members but then it's not that much because not all are giving their tithes. Most of those people that come to church belong to poor families and only 3 families give their tithes regularly. So hubby and I haven't been looking for a land because we know our church can't afford it yet. Until last month, one of our church members offered us to buy their land for a very reasonable price just beside the lot that our church is renting. They needed the money ...

Some kids in my Sunday School class were given school supplies before the school opening last June. I told the kids that I only give notebooks and pens/pencils to those who didn't have more than 2 absences in their class during summer vacation. I did this to give incentives to those kids who attend regular in my Sunday School class. So far out of 18 kids who were enrolled in my class, only 7 kids were qualified. Those kids who received the school supplies were so happy and I'm pretty sure even their parents too. Most of those kids come from a poor family, mostly farmers. The kids received 10 notebooks each and pens/pencils. Last year, the church gave all the kids school supplies.

Every time I see those people in the medical field I always notice their fashionable and nice looking scrub uniforms. I was confined in the rehabilitation hospital a few years ago and I've seen the high fashion scrubs worn by my physical therapist both men and women. So for almost a month that I was in the hospital, all I see them wear everyday were their scrub uniforms and I still remember most of the colors they wore were green, white and maroon. I was wondering before where do those physical therapists buy their uniforms until I came across Blue Sky Scrubs. I was browsing their site and I've seen their high fashion scrubs like what my physical therapists were wearing. I also did see a section at Blue Sky Scrubs which was devoted to kids scrubs, so your child could dress up like a doctor for fun or on Halloween. So if you are in the medical field or for whatever reasons you have for medical scrubs, you can buy it online at http://www.blueskyscrubs.com/ . An import...

Ladies, your clothes are talking. I hope I can help you know what they are saying. Proverbs 7:10 says, "And, behold, there met him a woman with the attire of an harlot and subtle heart." Quite simply, a harlot wears clothing that purposely draws attention to her body, especially certain areas of her body -bust, legs and backside. 1st Timothy 2:9a says, "In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel." These two verses represent two extremes-the immodest woman wearing the attire of the harlot and the modestly-dressed lady. I looked up the word "modest," and it means "decorous" or "moderate." Of course, the woman dressed in modest apparel would not draw attention to her body. If you are a woman who has been involved in a good, Bible-believing, fundamental church for years, and you have worn dresses and skirts for years, you probably think you are doing pretty good in this area. The world has a wa...

The question of proper dress for women has been of interest to many. Actually, God's guidelines regarding clothing and dress are very general. God expects Christian women to dress in "modest apparel, with propriety and moderation (discretion, margin) " (I Timothy 2:9)—that is, in clothes that are not flamboyant and garish. A Christian woman should not be an "exhibitionist" in attracting undue attention to herself by wearing clothing that is provocative, suggestive, or outrageous. You can dress very stylishly, and nicely, as a Christian woman without showing everything. Christian women should not show a bunch of cleavage, I think that is first and foremost. Not a lot of skin. Not skin tight dresses or jeans that look like you had to be poured into them. Modesty is a virtue; that doesn't mean you have to cover up from head to toe, it means, exercise some common sense. You can look attractive without looking like a tart, and I don't think there is a woman l...

Hubby did the water baptism of the 3rd batch last May 28, 2011 at the beach. He baptized 10 people this time. There were 6 ladies and 4 kids who got baptized by pastor George. We hired a jeepney to go to the beach and we also brought with us foods for our lunch. One of the men in our church who is my uncle cooked the foods and I cooked the rice. Most of the ladies and some kids went with us too so we had a celebration after the water baptism. During the baptism, the waves were so rough unlike the last baptisms that we had. Nevertheless, we managed to take some photos as souvenirs. Hubby said that next time that we will have baptism,we will just hold it in the resort's swimming pool. Most of us went to the beach and had swimming after the water baptism. Though I don't swim, I went to the water and had a good time with hubby and the other church members. Then we ate lunch and enjoyed the food. My uncle was a good cook. The foods were great and all of us got full! We went home hap...

Authored by Raymond Whitney For those, like myself, who really like to see exactly how things work How It's Made is a fantastic show. This show is on regularly throughout the week providing a constant stream of interesting programming. Almost nightly I race home from work with the intention of kicking off my shoes, reclining in my chair, and watching this program on www.tvbydirect.com . There are normally two or three different products, concepts, or ideas showcased and explained during one half-hour show. One night they could be showing how candy bars are made and another night it might be the deconstruction of the U.S spacecraft. Regardless of the items featured??this show is captivating. It's sometimes hard to find a program that is both informative as well as interesting, but How It's Made has it all. I've watched the show for several years and doubt it will be off the air anytime soon. In fact, many times viewers write in to suggest topics for the sho...

(John 16:7--15) The moment we trust Jesus Christ as our personal Savior, we are adopted into God's family, and the Holy Spirit comes to live within us. His presence is a guarantee that we belong to our Heavenly Father. The Holy Spirit ministry is essential to our ability to carry out God's work - and do it in a manner pleasing to Him. Transforming us from the inside out to be like Jesus and producing godly fruits in our lives are significant parts of His work. The Holy Spirit also convicts us of sin, provides us with understanding and wisdom and gives us the spiritual gifts we need to serve God. Only through the Holy Spirit's divine presence do we receive the equipping and empowerment necessary to accomplish God's plan. As we serve in a godly manner, we will testify to the truth of who Jesus is. All truly saved people have God's supernatural power to accomplish the work He has for them to do. Yet not all Christians chose to operate out of the Holy Spirit's stren...

(Luke 24:44---49) After His resurrection, the Lord told His disciples to stay in Jerusalem and wait. Even though they had lived and served with Jesus for three years, something more was required before they could do kingdom work. They were in need of a divine presence, a helper who would equip and empower them to fulfill their divine calling. Who is the Holy Spirit? He is God the Spirit----- the third one of the trinity, who has equal standing and relationship with the God the Father and God the Son. Jesus spoke the words of His Father and sought to glorify God: so too the Holy Spirit speaks only what He hears, and His purpose is to glorify Christ (John 16:13--14) the Holy Spirit is the fulfillment of a promise made by God to everyone who has chosen to follow Christ. What is the Holy Spirit's purpose? Jesus called Him our helper, who teaches us and brings to mind what we have learned ( John 14:26) He is our constant companion, who will never leave us (John 14:16) He seeks to tra...

We had our church's VBS last May 2-6 2011. We started late this year, unlike last year, we started it on April 12-16. We had around 30 kids who attended the VBS this time. Our VBS theme was The Armor Of God from Ephesians 6:11, "Put on the whole armor of God that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." I was the only available teacher but it's good my hubby also taught the boys for 2 days. I prepared all the stuffs needed for their activities, crafts, lessons, games and snacks. It's like I was a super woman but I'm thankful my hubby was always there to give a helping hand. I slept late for a week doing all the needed stuffs for the next day. I thank God that He gave me strength to handle the kids in VBS. All the kids were able to memorized the memory verse and most of them accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. I enjoyed teaching the kids and 5 days passed so quick and last Saturday was their graduation. It was a blessing to see those...