Much Efforts vs. Many Words

[S] Ecclesiastes 5:3 --
3  For the dream comes through much effort and the voice of a fool through many words.

[O] Having dreams to live for is just a beginning because living towards that requires much effort.  It's so easy to just talk about the dreams in life but to walk the talk, is totally a different story all together.  In fact this verse talks about how fools talk but not walk to talk just like someone once said:  When all things are said and done, more things are said than done.  The fruit of a wise person is actions that brings closer to one's own dreams which God placed in their hearts.  The fruit of a fool is being stationary with one's life while simply talking about a lot of things one can do.

[A] Don't be a fool by talking about it, but be the doer of my own words to pursue my dreams for God.

[P] Dear Father, may I be the one putting things into action for the dream You've put in my heart.  May I not be full of words without action.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Tongue is the Pen

[S] Psalm 45:1 --
1 My heart overflows with a good theme;
I address my verses to the King;
My tongue is the pen of a ready writer.
[NLT] Beautiful words stir my heart. 
I will recite a lovely poem about the king,
for my tongue is like the pen of a skillful poet.
[O] What I speak is portrayed as a pen of a skillful poet who can express wonderful and beautiful poems.  The problem is that the same "pen" can also write about ugliest things of this world.  The condition of my heart will dictate how my tongue is used and therefore it is so critical for me to pack into my heart with a good theme (or beautiful words) so beautiful expressions will roll off my tongue.

[A] Think of good things in my life.  Count my blessings, and praise God for planting them into my life.  Don't get sucked into nursing negative or discouraging thoughts.

[P] Dear Father, You are beautiful beyond everything I know and yet my mind still wants to lock You up in a tiny little container as if what I can fit into it all of Your beauty I can retain for myself.  Please forgive my narrow perspective and enlarge my territory so that I would have a God-sized heart to live for You.  In Jesus' name.  Amen

Spiritual Vision Test

[S] Ephesians 1:18 --
18  I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,

[O] Did you know your heart had eyes also?  It allows you to see "hope of His calling" so just like how we correct our vision with glasses, we should frequently take the vision tests of the eyes of our hearts and put on the corrective lenses if the hope of His calling becomes fuzzy.

[A] My vision test should be done every morning to make sure I see my Hope of the day many times in the midst of all sorts of distractions.

[P] Dear Father, open the eyes of my heart so I may always clearly see the hope of Your calling for my life.  I want to stay on course.  In Your name.  Amen.

Greet with a Holy Kiss

[S] Romans 16:16 --
16  Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you.

[O] This is the conclusion Paul shares after listing a whole bunch of people's names who co-labored for God's ministry with him.  Not only he had so many of them to work together but his sentiments are reflected in this statement displaying such an intimacy with them.  Not sure what holy kiss is but such an expression would be used for someone very close.

[A] I seem to be so busy doing God's ministry but I wonder whether I will also be going down the list of all of my close friends in ministry and how I wouldn't think twice about greeting one another with a holy kiss.

[P] Dear Father, may I stop to smell the roses as I'm taking part in Your ministry so that I am not just so busy running.  May I build the right relationships in my life with those sharing the vision You gave us so in the end we can all be so grateful for each other and to give thanks to You for bringing us together to work for Your glory.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Perseverance and Encouragement Brings Unity

[S] Romans 15:5-6 --
5  Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus,6  so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[O] The two operatives perseverance and encouragement are the secret sauce of receiving likemindedness with others in service to God resulting in glorifying God.  Unity among a group of believers first begins by latching our hearts to perseverance and encouragement which come from God.  When two or more people gather there exists differences in opinion and from that can arise divisions.  Perseverance will prevent this because it allows waiting and eventually accepting others as they are moving into the territory of encouragement.  I know that when I coach teenagers soccer, I can see their eyes sparkle when I encourage them on specific thing they did well which results in their deeper interest in the game.

[A] So, as I am constantly asking the question of how to "CONNECT" people at my church, I will take these two operatives to heart and also emphasize to the small group leaders to take on the same heart.

[P] Dear Father, we have a small group seminar in a couple of weeks where we want to build a unity of spirit among the members of our church in order to lay a rock-solid foundation of small groups to carry us further into Your wonderful ministry of reaching out to the people around us so they may know You and Your beautiful plans for their lives.  Would you please send Your Spirit ahead of this event so our members will attend with the hearts of perseverance and encouragement?  In Your name.  Amen.

What is Wrong with a Clean Manger?

[S] Proverbs 14:4 --
4 Where no oxen are, the manger is clean,
But much revenue comes by the strength of the ox.

[O] A clean manger without oxen defeats the purpose of its existence.  It is supposed to house animals like oxen which will work to produce revenue.  That means the manger is supposed to be smelly, dirty, worn out, and messy.  As no one expects the mangers with animals to be clean, no one's Bible who expects to find hidden gems through consistent working of digging into His word should be clean either.  It should bear the signs of being worn out, with constant efforts of wrestling with God.

[A] Ever since I got my new Bible this year, I've not used it much mainly because I've been reading the online Bible and because it's been convenient to turn to today's Life Journal reading and to journal into my blog, I want to start reading using my new Bible (book) to write into it and to use it so it won't stay like a clean manger without oxen.

[P] Dear Father, it is such a blessing to live in a place so full of abundance and convenient tools such as having the Bible right on my smart phone.  There's nothing wrong about reading Your word that way but please protect my heart so it won't become lazy or convenience-seeking when it comes to reading and "chewing" on Your word.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Shepherding My Heart

[S] Proverbs 4:23 --
23 Watch over your heart with all diligence,
For from it flow the springs of life.

[O] This verse summarizes all of today's reading because it covers what's at the core of it all.  What type of heart I foster will define who I am.  Instead of worrying about this area and that area of my life I need to keep my heart saturated in His wisdom such that His wisdom will overflow out of all I do and my decisions also be in sync.  The rest of Proverb chapters touch on how I need to live a morally upright life as well as to be an upright parent to my children.  Then Romans 8 covers how Jesus had to deliver us from the bondage of our own sin leading us into victory that we do not deserve.  It's all about my heart's condition.

[A] Especially applying this to my parenting these days, I believe the following sequence of events much take place in order to have the heart mentioned in this passage: 1) get my heart in order by immersing into God's word daily; 2) get my children's hearts into God's word daily so if their hearts are "squeezed" nothing but His word will spill out; 3) victory in Christ.

[P] Dear Father, please continue to shepherd my heart so it will be molded into the shape of Your love and grace.  May my life be a reflection of who You are for our fallen world.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.