No one is as awesome as God. The Alpha and Omega. The All-in-All. No can compare to His Glory. Only He has brought me to my knees in awe. In His love I find all that I need. He completes me.

So latetly I haven’t been able to blog. There’s been so much at work in my life–great things that even though I wanted to share them here, I never had the chance. I finally attended the Encounter with God Retreat (ER), the one retreat I’ve waited to join for so long! And it was great. It’s beyond words. And it was there that I learned or was reminded of three things:

1. The God I serve is the True and the Ever-Living God;

2. My parents love me so much they don’t know any better; and

3. My best friend is the Holy Spirit: one with Christ and one with God.

The first point made me cry because of the awe of its truth; the second one made me cry because I already knew it but neglected it (it struck me so hard during the “Family” session, tears just never stopped streaming); and the third one just overwhelmed me so much it was WAY beyond words!!!

You are wonderful, marvellous… Forever
Beautiful… Prince of Peace… faithful One… Forever

Aren’t we priviledged that even though we are unfaithful God remains faithful to us? He stands by us and never stops tapping our shoulders to remind us of His presence. All of my thanks will forever be His, all of the glory and honor are forever His, and all my praise shall go out to Him alone.

What I’m really thankful for, is that God has revelead to me that the one factor that I needed but did not find before was the fellowship with other Christian youth–those with such strong testimonies and very deeply rooted faith. All of us–despite the differences–keep each other in the faith. When one is down, the rest is always there to encourage them with the Lord; and like recently, when most are down, the few intensify their prayers and their encouragement.

It’s awesome to be around a group of young people who are truly passionate for God: who do things to Glorify Him and not themselves, who are commited to His service. As one of the youth, there is no other inspiration than co-youth doing their best for their Maker.

So to all KKBs, I LOVE YOU GUYS!!! Keep the fire burning! Win more souls for Christ! Keep focused on God alone! And be radical!!

To Kuya Chris, Kuya John, Kuya Philip, Ate Chette, Ate Leslie, and Bheng: nakuuuu, nakuuu, nakkuuuu. Salamat ng marami sa mga uplifting words nyo at sa mga messages na nakakaiyak at nakakatawa. The way that you guys never stopped encouraging me in Christ, is the same way I will never stop encouraging you guys as well! Thanks so much! We’re in this race together with the Lord–see you at the finish line!

Oh and BTW, you can read my devotions over here.

It was amazing! There were some problems with the transportation but we still got there. When we arrived, the rain was still pouring hard but we could hear Sister Edith singing and Brother Eddie Villanueva praying, and we saw that the sun was breaking through the rain clouds! Truly our God is an awesome God.

Anyway, here are some of the pictures. The other ones (the one with the rain and the sun) are in Kuya Philip’s phone.  So until we get to transfer those pictures, these shall do.

Josanne, Me and Roman

With the KKBs

Markers. Whether physical or spiritual, this word has meant a lot to me these days. I reckon they will continue to be a large part of my life from now on, otherwise, life may turn out dull and boring. I bet you’re wondering what I’m babbling about. Heh.

Ever since I came here to Angeles, I have been captivated by the wonders of markers. They highlight many aspects of my walk with the Lord in such colorful ways that everytime I remember see them, I can’t help but smile. Yes, I do mean those colorful markers you buy at National Bookstore and no, it’s not limited to those fancy pens.

As a Christian, I have found the importance of spiritual markers. These are memorable dates or occassions in your spiritual life. For example, January 1, 2004 is a spiritual marker for me because that is when I received Jesus Christ as my Personal Lord and Saviour; June 28, 2007 is another spiritual marker because it was when I first spoke in tongues; relatively, September 2, 2007 was my Baptism of the Holy Spirit–it was when I kept on speaking on tongues that it felt so…. wonderfully different. Hehe

As for the physical markers, I adore them so much because I love how they fill my Bible! Heee. I highlight verses which strike me most or those which I want to remember for encourgement (memory verses). If you could see my Bible (especially in the later part of the New Testament) you’d say they’re too colorful Sadly, the place where we used to buy the markers we really like aren’t selling them anymore. But that doesn’t stop us from marking important verses!

Also, I’ve found out how alive the words of the Bible are to me now. They mean something, it’s not longer some text you read every now and then anymore–it’s something more, it actually seems tangible. And I love how my view of the Bible and its contents have changed–it’s more personalized now, and if I dare say it, more real. *_*

Anyway, that’s all I have to post for now. I just took a short break after doing my laundry. Now we have to make pastillas de leche (milk candy) for our fund raising, and then later at 3pm we will be heading off to the prayer tower and after that, directly to our prayer meeting at church. Wee! Every day of the week is full! Just last Monday we were at church from 10am to 1am the next morning because we had so much stuff to do. But it was so much fun! The bonding was stronger and the fellowship was heartwarming. Our Pastor even treated us all to lunch! Yum2x!

It’s amazing ‘coz I’ve never really stayed up working for something aside from school stuff. And that was a first (well, more like a second but this one was longer. hehe) for me to actually stay overnight at church! And I was estatic. Praise God!

—

Shoutouts:

Ate Chette: Hehe Uo nga. ‘Di ko pa alam kung ano magandang pangalan eh. ‘Te Chette, veggies!!!

Ate Ems: Hello po! ‘Di ko pa kasi alam kung bibili na ako ng domain or freebie muna. Pinagpripray ko pa po. GBU po!

Kuya boy, ‘Te Cang2x: Ayan na naman ang dalawa kong nakakatakot na magulang. Haaaayyy.  REPEENNNTT!!! Hehe

I have a few in mind right now but I’d appreciate any suggestions. ^_^ God Bless you, all!

I believe in You. I believe in the Power of Your word that is true. I believe in You. So I lay down my cause that my cross may be found in You.

I’m not satisfied doing it my own way. I’m not satisfied to do Church and walk away. 
I’m not satisfied–there’s no love in my life but You. I’m not satisfied living in yesterday’s hour.
I’m not satisfied to have the form but not the Power. I’m not satisfied–Lord I am crucified in You. 

- Hillsong, ”Believe”

It pretty much says all I have to say.

Mark 14:13

 If you read the entire paragraph, you would see that the two disciples were given very detailed instructions to go to a certain town and look for a prticular man performing a specific task. He would have a large room, furnished and ready to observe the Passover. These instructions might have seemed unusual had it not been their Lord speaking, but the two disciples obeyed and found everything just as Jesus had said. Jesus knew exactly what they would find, and so He guided them specifically. One of the most memorable and precious times the disciples would spend with their Teacher hinged on the obedience of these two.

Obedience to Christ’s command akways brings fulfillment. Don’t wait until you have figured it all out and everything makes perfect sense to you. Sometimes God will lead you to do things that you will not fully understand until you have done them. He does not usually revela the details of His will when he first speaks to you. Instead, He tells you enough so you can implement what He has said, but He withholds enough information so that you must continue to rely upon His guidance. Your response will affect what God does next in your life. Your obedience may affect how others around you experience Christ as well. If there is any directive God has given you that you have not obeyed, obey that word immediately and watch God’s perfect plan unfold in your life.

Do not put out the Spirit’s fire.

-Experience God Day-by-day Personal Devotional Journal

It’s been a while since I last posted. To be honest, I’ve wanted to blog for a while now but I got side-tracked. So many things to do! So little time! hehe. Oh btw, by the grace of God through ate ems, I got a new domain: http://tamarav.luv.ph it’s still not up (somehow the server seems to be down), but I’ve made the layout and the codes already. So go visit it when you can!

Well, gotta run. ‘te Leslie is here already. Teehee. GBU!!

- Hillsong, “Always”

I admit, everytime I hear from my friends in Cebu or even check their friendster pages and see how much they’ve done together for the past month(s), I feel sad. I tend to think, “I should be in that picture too.” And then this loneliness and longing engulfs me and I think about missing school and wanting to be in school–especially now that I should be a senior. I know, God knows, and I’m sure my friends and family know how important my education is to me; how much I want to graduate and become and OT. I mean, I’ve waited so long to finally be a senior and have anticipated and worked hard to finally be one…and yet, right now, I’m not in school.

So the yearning strengthens, and the sadness deepens.

But then God reminds me of His love for me. “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalms 46:10) And slowly that sadness melts away into an overwhelming joy. And He reminds me that right now I am basking under His awesome presence. That even at this moment, He is standing close to me and is moving in my life. And then He says, “Wait. Wait and see my wonders. Wait and persevere in your faith. Wait. Great things are on the way.” And you end up crying.

Who am I that He should love me? Who am I that He should give His only Son? Who am I that He should prioritize me? Of all the great things He has done for me, of all the amazing blessings He has given me, how can my life be enough to repay it? But He doesn’t even expect me to repay Him. How little is His call to prioritize Him, compared to every great thing He has done in my life. And I am thankful.

“Lord I give You my heart, I give You my soul. I live for You alone. Every breath that I take, every moment I’m awake–Lord have Your way in me.”

We rode into town the other day,
Just me and my daddy.
He said I’d finally reached that age,
And I could ride next to him on a horse,
That, of course, was not quite as wild.

We heard a crowd of people shouting,
And so we stopped to find out why,
And there was that man,
That my dad said he loved,
But today there was fear in his eyes.

So I said, “Daddy, why are they screaming?
Why are the faces of some of them beaming?
Why is He dressed in that bright purple robe?
I’ll bet that crown hurts Him more than He shows.
Daddy, please can’t you do something?
He looks as though He’s gonna cry.
You said He was stronger than all of those guys.
Daddy, please tell me why.
Why does everyone want Him to die?”

Later that day the sky grew cloudy,
And Daddy said I should go inside.
Somehow he knew things would get stormy.
Boy, was he right.
But I could not keep from wondering,
If there was something he had to hide.

So after he left I had to find out.
I was not afraid of getting lost,
So I followed the crowds,
To a hill where I knew men had been killed,
Then I heard a voice come from the cross.

And it said, “Father, why are they screaming?
Why are the faces of some of them beaming?
Why are they casting their lots for My robe?
This crown of thorns hurts Me more than it shows.
Father, please can’t You do something?
I know that You must hear My cry.
I thought I could handle a cross of this size.
Father, remind me why.
Why does everyone want Me to die?
When will I understand why?”
“My precious Son, I hear them screaming.
I’m watching the face of the enemy beaming.
But soon I will clothe You in robes of My own.
Jesus, this hurts Me much more than You know.
But this dark hour, I must do nothing,
Though I’ve heard Your unbearable cry.
The power in Your blood destroys all of the lies.
Soon You’ll see past their unmerciful lies.
Look there below, see the child,
Trembling by her father’s side,
Now I can tell You why.
She is why You must die.”

Courage fueled by Faith

What is courage? Courage is the ability to face dangers and difficulties without being overcome by fear.

How do you find the courage to overcome difficult situations?

1. Believe.  Believe that God is omnipotent. He can do all things (Job 42:2), all things are possible with Him (Mark 10:27, Matthew 19:26), He is the Rock eternal (Isaiah 26:4).
2. Find love in God. Perfect love drives out fear (1 John 4:18) And God is love. (1 John 4:16b) Without fear, you will find the courage to step up to the plate.
3. Trust. Trust in the Lord (Proverbs 3:5). Once you believe, put your wholehearted trust on Him. And He will deliver you (Psalms 50:15)

A perfect example for courage fueled by faith is the story of three young lads named Shadrach, Meshach and Abednago in Daniel 3:16-18. With no hesitation and without any sugarcoating they spoke up to the king and refused to renounce their faith in God. “17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

Such courage can only come from a strong faith, a sturdy belief in God. When you keep yourself rooted on your faith in Christ who saved you, you can overcome all obstacles with a happy heart. You can do all things through the strength of Christ. (Philippians 4:13) And you know what, more often than not He will deliver us from any problems, He will save us from any dangers, He will let us overcome all difficulties.

So believe. And keep the faith.

Ever since I got here, ang dami nang mga calls ni God. Hindi kasi Siya nauubusan ng load. Hehe jowk jowk. Unang-una, yung Annointed Image work (Praise be to God!), which is okay kasi I like it din naman eh. But the most recent call was to be a life group leader. “Hwaaaahhh???”. Yah, ganun ung reaction ko inwardly. One month pa lang ako dito, hindi pa nakapag-ER, hindi pa nagSOL1 (School of Leaders–pero minsan nagsisit in hehe), tapos pinapalead na ako ng lifegroup. Sabi ko naman na gusto ko talagang mag LG, *but* after the ER na, after the SOL, and everything else. Hindi kaagad! (Pero  hindi ko sinabi na gusto ko kay ate Leslie ha, siya na lang bigla2x nagsabi sa akin.)

And today was my first day of leading a lifegroup. Thank you Lord for Your presence! Thank you for flowing through the LG, hindi ‘yun ako, Siya na ang nagsasalita. Hehe. Ang ganda talaga. It was also so cool ‘coz there were 2 new comers, tapos sumali sila sa group namin, and it was so much fun! Kasi diba, it’s a *live* group? Hehe so sobrang alive kami, tawa dito, iyak doon. Ay. Wala palang umiyak. Hehe. Pero salamat at andun si Lord. Tanging Siya lang ang source ng lahat. Praise be to God! Pero siyempre, when you grow, expect persecutions to come. First time ko pa meron na. Pero praise you Lord! Kahit na may persecutions, okay lang. For God’s glory ‘din naman ‘toh. Tapos si Lord din naman yung pumipili. Diba?

So yun. Ayokong maging isang Jonah. Wherever He leads me, I will follow. And I will not quench the Spirit’s fire (1 Thesolonians 5:19-21) so I wil persevere, discern, and follow.

- Hillsong, “To You”

Last Saturday I attended the Provincial Corporate Prayer and Fasting which was held at JIL San Fernando. First of all, ang astig ni Lord! Sobra yung pagpapala Niya sa church na yun. The hall we were in was HUGE. May chandelier pa. And the stage and setting was really nice. ALL GLORY TO GOD! Basta, ang ganda talaga. (In Jesus’ name lilipat na tayo sa Cathedral Church!!!)

But what was more amazing was the fact that just as you step through the gate (or even a couple of steps before you enter the gate) you can feel God’s presence! No joke. Try ‘nyo. I’m sure you’ll be amazed. Grabeehhhh. Even until now I get goosebumps thinking about it. But these are good goosebumps. hehe Truly, truly, GOD IS GREAT! Amen?

Ang lakas din nina Ptr. Jun and Ptr. A.O.G. Astiiiggggg!! I don’t think I’ve ever prayed that way before. All the words just started flowing from my mouth (este, my heart ata ‘yun. hehe) non-stop. And after the praying, you feel so relieved! So… high. No joke. And if you do a little sneaking and look around you, you can see that everyone around is in their own conversation with God. You’d feel ashamed that while they’re all praising and praying and not minding everyone else around, you’re looking at them. But then again you’d feel so happy in your heart. Seeing so many people praise and pray and not care how they looked like really lifts my spirits. Seeing people praise and worship God is an amazing sight.

Kahit na hindi kami kumain, busog pa rin! Amazing the wonders that the Holy Spirit can do. Speaking of. Alam mo ba last Sunday muntik na akong ma-slain. Whoa. As in. I didn’t want to go during the altar calling pero kinonvict pa ba naman ako. Pambihira. So I went. Tapos bigla-bigla tinawag ni Sis. Helen ang mga leaders to minister to each one of us. Alam ‘nyo ba, na even by just hearing Ate Wilma ministering to the person next to me I already felt goosebumps. Naks! Ang grabeh. I kept on telling myself I wouldn’t cry. When she asked me if I had a prayer request, a lot came to mind. But there was one that stood out from them all. Ooops. I’m not telling what it is. Hehe Sekreto para bibo. Heee.

Honestly, I can’t explain the way my heart started to beat so fast. It wasn’t like the normal beating, or like how it beats so fast when you’ve been running for a mile or when you see your crush (ahem!). Iba talaga. As innnnn. Then you feel your knees start to weaken, and then it’s like a current of electricity surges from the soles of your feet. And after Ate Wi prayed for me, and I went back to my seat, kahit na gusto ko sanang tumayo at kumanta, I had to sit down and was crying so hard. Wah. Buti na lang I had my face towel with me, so I covered my face. Grabehh. And when I finally looked around me, nakatayo na lahat ng tao, tapos na yung ministering, so I stood up and started to sing (pupurihin ka o Diyos.. naks ito na palagi kinakanta natin sa bahay, ‘no ching rina? hehe).

Basta peeps. Astig talaga! Yun lang. Gusto ko lang i-share. Oh, by the way. Before ‘nyo makalimutan…

Cute Ako!

All the pastors of JIL Pampanga praying for the different zone coordinators.

Mga cute! Kasama sina Sister Beth and Sister Weng.

Comics daw. Hehe

You gave it all for me
My soul desire, my everything
And all I am is devoted to You
How could I fail to see
You are the love that rescued me
And all I am is devoted to You
And oh, how could I not be moved
Lord here with You
So have Your way in me
Cause Lord, there is just one thing
That I will seek
This is my cry
My one desire
Is to be where You are, Lord
Now and forever
Its more than a song
My one desire
Is to be with You
Is to be with You, Jesus

- Hillsong, “One Desire”