Starting to Kindle

It has arrived!

Last April 2, I became a new Kindle owner. It was a long wait, stretching from last year. But as I was shown the wisdom of not buying it back then, my joy was made complete in waiting and now having it in my hands.

I remember taking out of the box quickly and instantly looked for the USB cable. Before I even had the Kindle I started collecting articles, books and sermons that I would be putting into it. After 4 days of using it, I realize I have too much content than I know what to do with.

What It’s For

If the Internet is good for something, it’s by holding an immense amount of free information that is available for anyone to use. The data and information the Net stores may be used for good or evil, but I am not going to argue about that here. It’s that, I have found a new love for reading and learning now that I am working.

Reading the Classics — Out of print texts easily have their electronic counterparts in eBook or in PDF hanging around the Internet. Having them in my Kindle allows me to be in the presence of learned minds from the past. Currently reading St. Augustine’s Confessions.

Studying the Word–I recently installed an ESV Bible into my Kindle, and may get a KJV for parallel reading/studying. One great thing about the electronic version of a Bible is that I would have no hesitation highlighting texts and taking down notes. Also, my dirty hands would not stain the pages of my Bible. (Those stains, as a friend noted,  indicate the parts the I frequently read. True enough, the Psalms and NT parts have started to having brown edges.)

Prayer Reminders–Kito on his blog gave me this idea. The Kindle would be great at keeping track of people and things to pray for.

Sermons–Not only can I read sermons on the Kindle, I can hear my favorite preachers as well. ALT+Shift. I haven’t tried it yet, but the combination of the ESV (and the feature for easy note-taking) and a sermon playing seems fantastic.

The Kindle has the amazing function of “Text to Speech”. It allows users who have Kindle-compatible eBooks read to them! It comes in a male or female (think GlaDOS to those who are familiar with the game, Portal) voice with varying reading speeds. My sister stared blankly with amazement at my Kindle when she heard it reading the book I asked her to read.

It can also play music files (.mp3) that can be suitably played while reading the book of your choice. However, it cannot jump backwards as it can only play the tracks in the order of upload. It’s a minor setback, since the Kindle is not primarily a music player but it would have been better to have the basic player functions.

Battery life is mind-blowing. I charged it fully the first time I laid hands on it and the second time I charged it was this morning! It took 23 days to make the Kindle tired. One of my relatives didn’t even believe me when I showed it to him yesterday. But as advertised, the Kindle can last up to 3-4 weeks after being charged in full.

All in all, I am happy to be a Kindle owner. My relatives glanced at it and shrugged after I told them it wasn’t an iPad. It may not have the sparkling appearance and media functions of other tablets (who sport  jack-of-all-trades functionality) but it is most excellent (a master) for what it’s made for: reading.

Beach Mission 2011

The first team during the send off by OMF Missionaries

Last week, I became part of the first ever Beach Mission here in the Philippines. The first team, where I was a part of,  journeyed to and ministered in the coast of Pundaquit, Zambales. It is my aim that this post will encourage believers to ponder hard about their witnessing life.

It was introduced to me by one of my mentors in Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship, a retired missionary named Dave Griffiths (also known as lolo Dave to IVCFers). The Beach Mission is patterned after the United Beach Mission that is done in the UK and Australia.

Lolo Dave, in his farewell (due to retirement) in 2009, said that he will come back (ala MacArthur) to do a Beach Mission in the Philippines. And true enough, he spearheaded the program this year. It was a privilege that he appointed me to plan along with Jaylord, one of my peers and mentors way back during my SVCF days. We planned for a few months, meeting once a week to discover where to go and what to do when we arrive there. The venue changed several times but it was a glad experience to know that it was the Lord who guided us through the months of planning.

As a challenge and reminder to the team when we first met, kuya Dave pointed out to us that the Lord Jesus started His public ministry at a beach. He called out Peter and his brother, to be fishers of men.

“While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” – Matt. 4:18-19 (ESV)

The day for the first trip finally came last April 14, and even then, we continued to trust the Lord first rather than our plans. Before heading to Zambales, the team was prayed for and sent off by a few OMF missionaries (who got up early in the morning). It was a rather interesting morning. Typical kuya Dave, grabbed a sponge and a tub of water and commissioned the missionaries to go take the sponge, immerse it in water and squeeze it over the team members.

Most of us were trained, in our churches and IVCF, but have had few instances of concretely applying the lessons (witnessing) that we’ve learned along the years as believers. It may have been unnecessary, but it was a great illustration of what we will be doing in the beach at Pundaquit: squeezing the sponge!

I will try to encapsulate the praises and experiences in the manner of the Beach Team’s aptly acronymed prayer items, BEACH:

Body

First dinner at the beach (kuya Marlon at the rightmost)

Thankfully, no one in the first team was allergic to anything or was suffering from any illness. One of our first GMT (good missionary training) was adapting to the comfort rooms. It went well for some. 🙂

The food… was great! Kuya Marlon was our cook for this year (and hopefully every year). He’s the staple IVCF camp cook and his budgeting skills are beyond anyone I know (and this is not an overstatement). I met him back in 2007, in my first ever Christian camp. I knew very little about him then but the mission allowed me to know more about him and how the Lord is transforming his life.

Also, no one got injured during the mission with the exception of wounds in our feet (as the sands were very course) and the usual sunburn.

Enjoyment

The team was united, not in an emotional, touchy-feely way. This is one of the things I’ve observed and greatly appreciated. It was a joy serving alongside committed brethren. We enjoyed facilitating and playing the games that we prepared for children and adults.

Tug of Warrr!

Now, a few words about preparing for the games: we decided what game to play when we were in there with the kids! We did not plan any activity. We just brought a rope, a couple of balls, tracts and gospel bracelets and we went into the crowd of people in the sea. In the first few trips to the sea, it felt like walking towards a losing war. How can we get people to join the games? I was never a great people person. Amazingly, people started joining our games despite our clear inexperience and hesitation. It was plain to see that it was not by our strength nor by our power. As the days progressed, we grew more confident. That also meant that we grew more excited how the Lord would bring people to the games we prepared.

Break times meant eating and resting, but we found our way into fellowshipping with one another. However tired the team was after the games, we found time to relax, snack, and talk with one another. It was almost always filled with enjoyment as everyone shared about the people they got to talk to. Some of us had “staple” people that we talk to. I got to talk to older men, Jeremy and Justin with teenage boys, Tot with children. What was funny (and amazing) was when Jade, the youngest of the ladies in the team, almost always have a counseling session with the women she talked to.

I tried to talk with the Uy siblings (Justin and Jade) more as it was the first time that I got to work closely with them. Thankfully, it was a happy experience. I got to nitpick Jade’s iPod and her artist selections but no judgments were passed (with the exception for Justin Bieber. I apologize to his fans. I really don’t like his music.)

It was actually to our good that the team was smaller than it was. We had more time to enjoy and be bonded with one another.

Apply the Spirit

The trip started by prayerfully asking the Lord for guidance way, way back when kuya Dave and I were planning for the event. Before leaving for Zambales, the IVCF staff sent us off in prayer then headed to the OMF Philippines office. Some of the missionaries staying there commissioned and encouraged and prayed for the team, mirroring Acts 13-Paul’s first missionary journey then we’re off to Zambales.

There was much squeezing of the sponge during the whole of the trip. Even in the littlest of tasks, everyone was serving and working. Regarding this part, I have scattered my experience in the other points.

Commitment and Confession

I found myself repeating to people that I’ve talked to that it’s not in the number of people working alongside you. It’s in their commitment and focus on the tasks at hand, for it is the Lord who works. The team was 15 on Thursday, down to 12 on Friday and finally, down to 8 on Saturday until Monday. I felt very little burden with laboring for the gospel as I found myself working with committed people. I grew tired every day but at the end of each day, the labor was not burdensome. The other 7 individuals that I were with had very different personalities. It was a happy bunch, to say the least, as we found ways and means to enjoying the company of one another.

Team 1 before leaving Pundaquit with Ray, the cottage manager

A trivia: this was my first mission outreach (that is outside a camp). I’ve always had an apprehension in one-on-one witnessing with strangers. Through the quiet times and the actual witnessing, I found myself confident in going to people and starting a conversation with them. This is not to say that I was not afraid, I still felt being nervous just talking to people. However, I found more confidence that the message that I was sharing was of primary importance. I found it to be true, for myself and for all people. Like Peter and Paul and the other apostles, they considered their lives moot compared to the gospel. Why? For the gospel is true and that it is indeed good news. What is better than the true good news? It’s truthfulness echoes the truthfulness of the One who has given the message in the first place. Believers are called to herald the gospel, not only because it is true in itself, but also because the God Who proclaimed it first to us is true.

Honor the Lord

In everyday, the first thing in the morning we found ourselves searching the Word and being schooled by the Truth. Before we go into the sea, we sang and asked the Lord for desperately needed help. And after every session, we ascribed to Him the glory in praises, songs and exhortations to one another. There was a clear sensibility in the team members that we can do nothing on our own accord and strength. It was also plain that whatever we have done in the ministry to the people was not of us. Isn’t it wonderful that people were called into this purpose? Isn’t it amazing that God, who needs no help, mighty in sovereignty and power, uses people to call on other people into His glorious light?

Morning praise and prayer

To close, the most moving moment in the mission for me came in our last afternoon in Olongapo. After the Sunday service in the afternoon, I suggested to kuya Dave that we had time to witness in the fishing village nearby the church. He originally planned it the next morning, but it would have been better to just rest in the morning before we head home to Manila. It was also fitting as Jade needed to be at her school before 4PM. So we headed to the village by the sea. It was an impoverished village, where there are families residing in just one house. We walked along the coast, and I took the camera to capture images that would help the second team who would be ministering to the village for a longer time than us. There were lots of children, and the adults were somewhat apathetic. However, one of the adults who were having a drinking session, walked towards my direction. At that time I was looking out to the sea when I noticed him towards me. I grew nervous, as it was clear he was drinking. I had no idea what to do as he came closer. Suddenly, he spoke, asking me if I was a foreigner like the rest of my group (Trivia: I was with kuya Dave from Wales, and Jeremy and Justin, who clearly looked like Chinese for they have Chinese blood). I asked him back, trying to joke, if I looked like an Indian, as I was sun burnt and I thought that that was on his mind. He quipped that I looked Chinese, but the ice-breaker stopped there.

Praying with Mang Boy

He quickly went into the tragic disaster that Japan experienced, the earthquake and tsunami. It was evident, as he spoke, that he was fearful for his life and that life could end swiftly. Before moving on with our conversation, he grew interested in the gospel bracelet. I went to ask his name, Mang Boy, and started sharing the gospel to him using the bracelet. He was the most responsive person I’ve ever talked to. It could have been the alcohol, but he was thinking and speaking clearly, answering my questions and also interacting with what the gospel means. I am not certain if he indeed accepted the Lord, for it is only the Lord Who can truly know.

What moved me was his reaction after hearing the gospel. He invited me and my group to his house to hold Bible studies! It was a such beautiful moment. However, I was a bit saddened that I wouldn’t be able to join the second Beach Mission team to go and follow him up. Thankfully, Pastor John was with me when I prayed for him so I hope the church will be committed in following up those who we’ve ministered to.

Team 1 (Top L-R: Jeremy Ramos, me/RG Guillermo, Mark Gicain, Phoebe Guerra, Chela Mequila, Alvin Pacion, Dave Griffiths, Jeremy Rocha, Bryan Ugaddan, Justin and Jade Uy || Bottom L-R: k. Marlon Cama, John Ledesma, Raff Magdaong, Jacky Rosete)

As of this writing, the second Beach Mission team is on their way home. I am all the more excited to hear their stories. But as for me: the labor was hard, sure, as no labor is ever easy; but I attest to the truth and the experience that it was not burdensome. Praise and glory be to God alone!

P.S. We’ll do it again next year (God-willing)!

Post-Valentines

I’ve stumbled upon this excerpt once again, since it was day of romance yesterday and a blog that I followed posted it. The following excerpt is written by a 19 year old Jonathan Edwards, speaking about a young lady (Sarah Pierpont) whom he has fallen in love with (and would later be his wife). I wish I could write as boldly, and as beautifully, as Edwards:

“They say there is a young lady in [New Haven] who is beloved of that great Being who made and rules the world, and that there are certain seasons in which this great Being, in some way or other invisible, comes to her and fills her mind with exceeding sweet delight, and that she hardly cares for anything, except to meditate on him—that she expects after a while to be received up where he is, to be raised up out of the world and caught up into heaven; being assured that he loves her too well to let her remain at a distance from him always. There she is to dwell with him, and to be ravished with his love and delight forever…. She has a strange sweetness in her mind, and singular purity in her affections; is most just and conscientious in all her conduct; and you could not persuade her to do anything wrong or sinful, if you would give her all the world, lest she should offend this great Being. She is of a wonderful sweetness, calmness and universal benevolence of mind; especially after this great God has manifested himself to her mind…. She loves to be alone, walking in the fields and groves, and seems to have someone invisible always conversing with her.”

——

My hope and prayer is that men, who are planning to get married, would search for a woman like Sarah Pierpont. It is easy to be swayed by beauty and charm, as I have also experienced, therefore be resolved not to dwell much on physical appearances. She will not look the same in the future.

And for women, who are planning to get married in the future, would endeavor to imitate the resolve of Sarah. Let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious. (1 Peter 3:4)

Lest We Fool Ourselves

This morning, I got back to checking the blogs I frequent during work days. I seemed to have been careless in not reading them. Though I find it better to be off the computer and be offline and continue on my book reading, I am reminded that there are profitable things on the Internet. I share you this one, as it seems timely this season. Actually, this is timely whenever it seems to be the mind is wandering off to some seemingly delightful deception.

We Are Not So Reasonable by Jon Bloom, of Desiring God.

And they abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers…[and] went after other gods, from among the gods of the peoples who were around them.

(Judges 2:12)

Here are some excerpts:

In fighting idolatry we must remember that we are not so reasonable as we might wish. This battle is often not waged on the field of truth, but rather on the field of cravings and fears. The desires of the flesh and the eyes (1 John 2:16) are battles of appetite not reason.

The Israelites turned from God to idols out of covetousness and fear. We do it for the same reasons. False gods bring false benefits. When temptation comes keep your head.

I used to think that if I lived in the biblical times, I would not be part of the multitude to whom the prophets pronounced God’s judgment. And if I lived during Jesus’ time, I’d probably be one of those who followed Him and heard every public teaching that He did. But thinking soberly, what would I have really done back then? Hearing harsh judgments, hearing hard teachings, I would have probably scoffed at the prophets and their message of repentance. I would probably have a stone in my hand and conspired against Jesus, whenever He spoke boldly of the kingdom of heaven of which I would surely know not of and would not want to be part of, without the illumination of the Spirit.

I would, in most likelihood, be clinging to some religion or a false god and playing the Pharisaical game of self-righteousness. Before coming to Christ, that was my life. And even up to now, I had bouts where I thought myself to be reasonable, when I truly know that I am not. Without grace and the light of the Spirit, I would be serving the god of self, which is both legalistic and hedonist, moral in public and licentious in private. There were spiritual leaders of Israel back then who also served their own selves, morally commendable in the eyes of the people but are spiritually adulterous.

Abandonment of God may come subtly now among those professing to believe. Though idols and carven images are still among us, we do not practice that kind of worship. We practice an invisible worship towards whatever our hearts cling to, be it material, self or another person.

I say this as one who was “once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.” (Titus 3:3)

The following verses are but a fitting end and I pray that we may be refreshed of this truth: “But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:4-7)

Hardest Video Game Ever?

I stumbled over this game from one of the blogs I frequent… and I never stopped laughing. So, for your pleasure and mine:

Game of Champions

It’s a game simulation of the overlooked skill of plain walking and running.The game tries to be realistic by making the player use four buttons, (Q and W for the thighs, and O and P for the calves) to control the athletes leg movements.

I am amazed that, after countless falls into the track face first, QWOP is still alive.

Man Skills

The picture just exudes power, and makes me want to growl.

(Picture not mine. Got from 1x.com)

I take the latter half of my lunch break, where the first half is savoring my lunch, as time for reading. I usually read blogs that I follow and sometimes there are those that I read because they seem interesting at the moment. I got this from one of those blogs that just popped out of nowhere (a randomly flashed blog in WordPress’ main page) : 75 Skills for Men. It seemed interesting, so I followed the link, and is now sharing it.

In the article, Esquire  identified 75 skills that men should (supposedly) be able to do and master. I scored 45 out of the 75 (60% manly). The context, of course, is American but some skills are still applicable. While interesting and witty, it’s not a true standard of manliness.

As manliness is the topic at hand,  I would give anything just to be able to do that karate punch. A karate punch straight into three concrete blocks and causing them to break in half. Seems the epitome of manliness right there, right? But… it’s not even on the list. Nothing on the list was martial arts related, with the exception of being able to break a fight. It’s interesting to note that the karate master doing the awesome manly maneuver is a woman. So much for machismo and physical prowess.

So what constitutes manliness?

To be continued.

The Heart of the Matter is the Matter of the Heart

Wisdom and folly will be evident, no matter how we hide it.

“As in water face reflects face, so the heart of man reflects the man.” – Solomon, Proverbs 27:19

Perseverance

I’ve been reading the epistle to the Hebrews for this month, as part of the Discipleship Journal Bible Reading Plan (Bible Reading Plan). This plan was shared to me by IE back in March of this year, and I find it to be very profitable. It has four columns, indicating there will be four passages per day.

Yup, four. If it’s too daunting here are suggestions (one from the introduction of the plan itself and another from me): DJBRP: You can read the OT or NT passages this year, and then do the other next year, or you can read the first half in the morning and the other half on the evening (which is what I do). Also, to make up for laziness or emergency rest days, there are only 25 readings/month. YAY!

The promotional stuff ends there. I am amazed by the epistle to the Hebrews, as the book is filled with refreshing passages that remind who and where the soul must be anchored to… Jesus. The first four verses of the preliminary chapter is already an overflowing spring of cool water for the thirsty and weary pilgrim.

“And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” [Hebrews 6:11-12]

Warren Wiersbe, in one accompanying study material that I am using (a book that I have not yet returned to my friend Jaylord), entitled his study on the book of Hebrews as “Be Confident”. He noted that the Hebrews author, was reminding the Hebrew Christians of the first generation that God is shaking the foundations of faith and that they should live with full confidence and hope in Jesus, the Son of God. The promises given out to the Jews embedded in the Old Testament were fulfilled in Jesus. The sacrifices, the feasts, the temple-worship were in jeopardy against the Christ who has achieved what the old religion never did: reconciliation and perfect mediation with God. The author of Hebrews expressed Christ’s preeminence over the instruments that God used in the old times (the angels, Moses, prophets, etc.) for He came not just as another voice but as the Voice. His supremacy as the Son, as the King over God’s people and as the eternal High Priest was and is the basis to continue in the hope, to confidently live by faith against going back to the old religion. (I am at Hebrews 7 at the time of posting, so I will share only up to the extent of my reading).

Wiersbe also notes that the author of the book of Hebrews warned his audience against certain temptations and trials that believers will face. One of which was being dull. Dull towards the Word, and being slothful towards maturing in the faith. The Hebrews author likened the immature to babies, always feeding on milk and not yet capable of eating meat. These are believers who continue to dwell in the foundational doctrines of faith (Heb. 6:1-2 — repentance from sin, faith toward God, baptisms/washings, laying on of hands, resurrection and eternal life). But the author makes it plain that maturity is God’s work in a believer (Heb. 6:3). Back to dullness. Dullness is the gradual corruption of our passion. As we discontinue in a profitable discipline, for the sake of another which yields nothing and folly, we become dull. Conflicting passions must be resolved as soon as possible as no one can serve two masters. As I was pondering on this part, I immediately grabbed my journal lying a few inches from my Bible and my pen and noted the following for me to remind myself:

“If we are committed to our career/profession, diligently toiling to attain a goal (promotion, more opportunities) should we not be more committed, more diligent, more persevering over our own soul, that we patiently and faithfully labor day by day to run the race, denying ourselves and carrying our crosses to grow to maturity as the witnesses of the One True God?”

May God permit the proliferation of the passion for His glory, and the perseverance to maturity to you and to me.

A Tragedy

“Many men cling to a false hope and embrace it so closely that they never let it go till the flames of hell cause their arms to unclench and let go their hold.” – Jonathan Edwards

This Edwards’ quote was from his sermon, Hypocrites Deficient in the Duty of Prayer, where he wards his church from the hypocritical nature of professing to be a Christian yet they do not practice the clearly commanded duty of secret prayer.

I will not be interpreting his sermon for while the read will be lengthy, it would surely be profitable.

Hypocrites Deficient in the Duty of Prayer

P.S. There are other classics from believers of old (Augustine, Calvin, etc.) from that repository. They are free to download in PDF form.

Of Romantic Love

First impressions last, or so they say.

I am sure that I do not want to be defined by my first post. Just by looking at the title, anyone who knows me would probably wonder why I would be writing a topic about it. But that does not mean that my mind does not wander into musing about love. No one could refute that, however abused or misused ‘love’ is, it’s a wonderful word and it’s much more magnificent as an idea.

I am reflecting upon the love lives several people (read: friends) have right now, or the lack of such a life. For now, I believe one thing is for certain: they will be laughing so hard or blushing in embarrassment (while laughing) when they are reminded of what they used to announce to everyone thru their Facebook walls. To put it in context, these friends that I mention are Christians.

Which leads me to this tweet I had a while back: If your mindset of “God’s best” isn’t or replaces God Himself, then you are going to be gravely disappointed.

I am wondering whoever produced the idea that each one of us have a special someone, somewhere out there. I am wondering who implanted this idea into many people’s thoughts, Christians notwithstanding.

So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. – 2 Timothy 2:22

By grace and grace alone, this guy has been saved from that lie. And he hopes his friends would have their eyes opened soon.