Yes, I'm in love with an athlete. Not because of his abs nor because of his huge muscles. It's because of these 3 reasons:
1. He competes.
I love a man in action. He is in the game and not a mere spectator. He trained really hard and takes risks.
2. He competes to receive the victor's crown.
He plays to win the game, not to avoid losing. He perseveres no matter how hard the game is. He has a goal and sets out to get it.
3. He competes according to the rules.
He is attractive to me because he is a man who does not cheat just to win. He knows what's right from wrong because he has read and listened to the rules before playing. He knows his game better because of it.
Who is this athlete? What is his game?
2 Timothy 2:5
Similarly, anyone who competes as an
athlete does not receive the victor’s
crown except by competing according
to the rules.
It is anyone. His game is the game of life.
And I'm in love with this athlete. :)
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Friday, March 16, 2012
GENEROSITY
Proverbs 11:25 (NIV)
A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.
This bible verse is so common to me that I sometimes take it for granted. But today, it somehow compelled me to write this blog.
We all know that being generous is not just about giving away money or material things. It's beyond that.
I want to focus on the word "refresh". When does a person need refreshment? When he is tired? When he is thirsty? I say yes to both, literally and figuratively.
A lot of people are tired. I also get tired, not just physically, but also emotionally and spiritually. And sometimes I need to refresh myself by doing things I enjoy. Going on a vacation is one. But when that vacation is over, I get tired again. Now I know why. I only refreshed myself and not let others be involved. Whether you are in the receiving or giving end of a generous act, you will be refreshed.
I do not see money as a refresher. Maybe because I got 0 points in the gifts area of my love language test. It means I do not really enjoy receiving material gifts. I'm more of a "spend time with me rather than give me gifts" kind of person.
Why did I go to the topic of love languages (time, touch, service, words of affirmation, and gifts)? I say that to be able to refresh others, it's really helpful if you know their love language. Some people appreciate gifts, some don't appreciate them that much.
When it comes to being thirsty, I think this is where money comes in more obviously. Being thirsty means you lack something you need or want. It could be material needs, emotional needs or spiritual needs. You can give food to someone. You can hug someone. You can share the Word to someone. But if it is something they don't need or want, I don't think it'll be appreciated. And when you sense that, you won't be refreshed yourself.
If I were to replace the word "refresh" with the word "appreciate", I think the verse still makes sense.
A generous man will prosper; he who appreciates others will himself be appreciated.
Generosity...it's not really about something you give because of an overflow. It's simply just about giving with whatever you have or would want to have more. That's where prosperity comes in. ;)
A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.
This bible verse is so common to me that I sometimes take it for granted. But today, it somehow compelled me to write this blog.
We all know that being generous is not just about giving away money or material things. It's beyond that.
I want to focus on the word "refresh". When does a person need refreshment? When he is tired? When he is thirsty? I say yes to both, literally and figuratively.
A lot of people are tired. I also get tired, not just physically, but also emotionally and spiritually. And sometimes I need to refresh myself by doing things I enjoy. Going on a vacation is one. But when that vacation is over, I get tired again. Now I know why. I only refreshed myself and not let others be involved. Whether you are in the receiving or giving end of a generous act, you will be refreshed.
I do not see money as a refresher. Maybe because I got 0 points in the gifts area of my love language test. It means I do not really enjoy receiving material gifts. I'm more of a "spend time with me rather than give me gifts" kind of person.
Why did I go to the topic of love languages (time, touch, service, words of affirmation, and gifts)? I say that to be able to refresh others, it's really helpful if you know their love language. Some people appreciate gifts, some don't appreciate them that much.
When it comes to being thirsty, I think this is where money comes in more obviously. Being thirsty means you lack something you need or want. It could be material needs, emotional needs or spiritual needs. You can give food to someone. You can hug someone. You can share the Word to someone. But if it is something they don't need or want, I don't think it'll be appreciated. And when you sense that, you won't be refreshed yourself.
If I were to replace the word "refresh" with the word "appreciate", I think the verse still makes sense.
A generous man will prosper; he who appreciates others will himself be appreciated.
Generosity...it's not really about something you give because of an overflow. It's simply just about giving with whatever you have or would want to have more. That's where prosperity comes in. ;)
Sunday, February 26, 2012
What Do I Really Want?
I always ask this question: "What do I really want?"
A lot of times I get to hear words like: dream big! Know what you really want! Aim high! Set your goals! Etc. But they are all clichés to me; familiar words with no substance, no concrete meaning. Hence, no explanation why I should take action.
What is a dream?
For me, a dream is something you want to achieve in the future. "In the future." I think there's something wrong there. If you want something, wouldn't you want to have it NOW? In the moment. That should replace "in the future"
Ironically, there's another meaning for the word dream. It's an illustration, a story, an event we experience while we are sleeping. I don't believe a daydream is really a dream. Just like how I believe that a blackboard is not really black. Or a bookworm not really a worm. A daydream is just a mental escape from what's really happening at the moment. No, I don't define it as imagination. Let's stick to daydream is a mental escape, okay? I believe that a dream that happens while we sleep involves every aspect of a human: body, soul and spirit.
Is a dream equal to a vision? Is it equal to a goal? They say it's different. I still don't get the difference. It's just wordplay. I say they all give direction for us to be guided where we are heading.
There's a time for everything. At the age of 65, I don't really KNOW WHAT I WANT because I'm not yet 65! Ever heard of the term "living in the moment"? I think that's my principle in life. Live for today.
Can we really plan our future? To make a blueprint of the specific things we will have? Yes! But will we achieve them exactly as planned? Maybe.
Faith.
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
Assurance, certainty, confidence. That's faith! Where do we get our faith? From God. It's a gift. Can you ask for a gift?
Imagine it's your birthday today. Are you expecting a gift from someone? May it be material or not, we do expect, right? Or is it just me? Well, I expect people to be nice to me when they know it's my birthday. Whenever I ask a gift, the people I asked from never fails to give it to me upon agreement. Of course, there are adjustments because even if they are willing, they are not able most of the time. But God is both willing and able so whatever we ask of Him, He will give it as a gift.
There are gifts given to us that we do not appreciate that much, right? Or sometimes, we ask and say: "why this gift? I don't need this! It does not go with my personality!" But I believe there is a time for that gift to be used.
To be honest, I received a lot of gifts from friends and family that I have not used until today. Once, I even saw a gift to me from more than 3 years ago that I hardly even opened. And I still cant understand how I can use it. I might give it away to someone who needs it more. Is that wrong? If you give me a gift and I gave it away, will you be offended? Some will, some won't. Personally, if I gave a gift I really thought of and gave it to someone and he/she gave it away, I won't be offended. Why? Because it's a gift. I don't ask payment for it. I usually give gifts to people I appreciate. It comes at a different level depending on my situation at that particular moment. I don't expect anything in return (most of the time.. Hehehe).
God gives gifts to those who ask of Him. He gives it generously without looking at how faithful that person is. What you do with your gifts from God depends on you. Will he take it away when you don't use it? Maybe. I need to check on the bible for that. Parable of the talents? Are gifts=talents? Not yet sure.
I think there are default gifts within us and there are those we ask from God. I need to research about them.
So what do I really want?
I want to live my life to the full for God because my life is a gift from Him.
A lot of times I get to hear words like: dream big! Know what you really want! Aim high! Set your goals! Etc. But they are all clichés to me; familiar words with no substance, no concrete meaning. Hence, no explanation why I should take action.
What is a dream?
For me, a dream is something you want to achieve in the future. "In the future." I think there's something wrong there. If you want something, wouldn't you want to have it NOW? In the moment. That should replace "in the future"
Ironically, there's another meaning for the word dream. It's an illustration, a story, an event we experience while we are sleeping. I don't believe a daydream is really a dream. Just like how I believe that a blackboard is not really black. Or a bookworm not really a worm. A daydream is just a mental escape from what's really happening at the moment. No, I don't define it as imagination. Let's stick to daydream is a mental escape, okay? I believe that a dream that happens while we sleep involves every aspect of a human: body, soul and spirit.
Is a dream equal to a vision? Is it equal to a goal? They say it's different. I still don't get the difference. It's just wordplay. I say they all give direction for us to be guided where we are heading.
There's a time for everything. At the age of 65, I don't really KNOW WHAT I WANT because I'm not yet 65! Ever heard of the term "living in the moment"? I think that's my principle in life. Live for today.
Can we really plan our future? To make a blueprint of the specific things we will have? Yes! But will we achieve them exactly as planned? Maybe.
Faith.
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
Assurance, certainty, confidence. That's faith! Where do we get our faith? From God. It's a gift. Can you ask for a gift?
Imagine it's your birthday today. Are you expecting a gift from someone? May it be material or not, we do expect, right? Or is it just me? Well, I expect people to be nice to me when they know it's my birthday. Whenever I ask a gift, the people I asked from never fails to give it to me upon agreement. Of course, there are adjustments because even if they are willing, they are not able most of the time. But God is both willing and able so whatever we ask of Him, He will give it as a gift.
There are gifts given to us that we do not appreciate that much, right? Or sometimes, we ask and say: "why this gift? I don't need this! It does not go with my personality!" But I believe there is a time for that gift to be used.
To be honest, I received a lot of gifts from friends and family that I have not used until today. Once, I even saw a gift to me from more than 3 years ago that I hardly even opened. And I still cant understand how I can use it. I might give it away to someone who needs it more. Is that wrong? If you give me a gift and I gave it away, will you be offended? Some will, some won't. Personally, if I gave a gift I really thought of and gave it to someone and he/she gave it away, I won't be offended. Why? Because it's a gift. I don't ask payment for it. I usually give gifts to people I appreciate. It comes at a different level depending on my situation at that particular moment. I don't expect anything in return (most of the time.. Hehehe).
God gives gifts to those who ask of Him. He gives it generously without looking at how faithful that person is. What you do with your gifts from God depends on you. Will he take it away when you don't use it? Maybe. I need to check on the bible for that. Parable of the talents? Are gifts=talents? Not yet sure.
I think there are default gifts within us and there are those we ask from God. I need to research about them.
So what do I really want?
I want to live my life to the full for God because my life is a gift from Him.
Monday, January 16, 2012
TIP or TOP
It's either you're on the tip or at the top.
Every person is part of an organization or a group of people. And in every organization, there is someone at the top or at the tip/bottom. One example would be a family who has the father on top and the children at the tip. This is synonymous to the head and the tail.
We all started at the tip of something before we reach the top. And we all somehow want to be on top and not at the tip. But what we don't see is that the top is also a tip, just on a higher level. Imagine the top of a mountain. Isn't it also a tip on top? How can we relate this illustration in our lives? Like what I said earlier, we all want to be on top. Even though we're at the tip right now and we feel we're at the bottom, we just need to think differently about ourselves. It's not about how others see us but how we see ourselves.
It's all about: PERSPECTIVE
So, are you the TIP on TOP?
Every person is part of an organization or a group of people. And in every organization, there is someone at the top or at the tip/bottom. One example would be a family who has the father on top and the children at the tip. This is synonymous to the head and the tail.
We all started at the tip of something before we reach the top. And we all somehow want to be on top and not at the tip. But what we don't see is that the top is also a tip, just on a higher level. Imagine the top of a mountain. Isn't it also a tip on top? How can we relate this illustration in our lives? Like what I said earlier, we all want to be on top. Even though we're at the tip right now and we feel we're at the bottom, we just need to think differently about ourselves. It's not about how others see us but how we see ourselves.
It's all about: PERSPECTIVE
So, are you the TIP on TOP?
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