Indirect Evangelism

I'm always the kid in school, managing to ramble on a conversation about God. It doesn't matter who it's with. I'd always end up talking about Him, even in the school grounds. It's obvious, that whoever's around me will hear the things I say. Lately, I touched the topic about the end of the world. Just in the last week, a friend came to me and asked me if I could explain it a little more, which I happily did. We were sitting in the cafeteria table. I was too ecstatic, that I completely neglected to eat my pizza.

As our conversation went on, she told me, "Oh, I should get a bible," with a smile on her face. "Yeah, you should!" I excitedly exclaimed. I questioned out of curiosity, "Do your parents go to church?" She replied, "No, they're Buddhist." I was shocked in the inside, because I assumed that she was already Christian, just curious with questions. In that very moment, I thanked the Lord inside my head and thought, "Lord, please continue to work in her." She laughed and told me, "My grandma is Buddhist. I wonder what my grandma would think if I changed my religion. She might get mad." I smiled and then said, "You know, a lot of people tend to just follow the traditions and religions that their families have already chosen. What I can say is that what matters is what you believe in. Jesus Christ said that He is the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through him, in John 14:6." Then I quoted the well known John 3:16 verse and explained that to be born again and to see the kingdom [John 3:3], you just have to put faith in the Son. I talked about the whole purpose in becoming a new creation in Christ and letting go of the old, carnal, sinful nature. 

I promised her that once I had the money, I'd buy her a Bible myself. As soon as our lunch period was over, we walked down the hall together. Before walking into her class, she thanked me and I said, "You're welcome." I walked off, in a joyous daze, because I witnessed another miracle before my eyes. God does the most amazing things in the most unexpected times, and He'll use anybody; regular people like you and me. Little did I know that she was raised as a Buddhist. It was practically indirect evangelism. I thought it was a very beautiful moment.

Just earlier this week, she asked me further questions about the end times. I pulled out my Bible and we read from Revelations 20. I accidentally distracted myself when many other people spoke to me in the lunch table. She pulled my Bible and began reading herself. I saw that she was truly inspired. I just kept thanking God in my head, knowing that He is surely molding her. I offered her to borrow my bible (since I still can't buy one) and she accepted to take it. 

Witnessing another life touched by Jesus Christ, is always the most beautiful and exciting thing. God is good. God is so good!

2 Peter 3:8-9 "But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."

I surrendered

I stayed home today. I was too overwhelmed, plus that fever really hindered me. Hopefully, missing school today won't kill me for next week. As far as I know...I got 4 essays to do by the end of this weekend, plus another essay by next Friday. I cannot wait until winter "break." But even then, it's not really much of a break if the teachers will pour an avalanche of homework on me. This is my junior year [yet I know college will be worst]. *sigh* Well, this is the beautiful life. The ironic part is, I'm not saying that with sarcasm. No matter what you face, you still have got to find the beauty in life. And the beauty is the fact that God woke you up to another day and that He is always in control. It's in the hands of God that I find my eternal, endless hope. Thank you Jesus Christ. ♥

God is not a God of disappointments

Many yield the warning, to never put hope in other people, because they'll only let you down. That has always been true in my whole lifetime. So why do I end up putting hope in people? Why do I end up trusting? Why do I make myself vulnerable, only to get hurt? I have no idea.

How many times does this have to be stressed in life? How many times must we face bitter experiences? How many times must we be let down or hurt? How many times do our hearts have to break?

All in all, we realize the pattern placed in our lives. It all ends the same way. People let down people. People are imperfect. People change. People come and go. People don't stay forever.

And this is the reason why we've got to put our hope in something bigger...someone...someone greater than man, someone such as God. You know that God will never leave you nor forsake you. He'll always be there for you. He feels what you feel and so He sympathizes with you.

Don't ever feel like God has let you down. The people and the world can let you down, but God is not a God of disappointments. We all know that not everything goes our way. But that's because not everything we want or believe is best for us...is really the best for us at all. We don't always understand the will of God, but He always wants the best for us. We can only let Him make the way, if we believe and trust in Him.

Through every struggle and storm in this life, through tears, laughter and joy, God will be here for us. He is the best friend, that we don't always acknowledge or give enough appreciation to. He's the One who gives infinitive and undeserved love, love sometimes left unrequited. This is the unconditional love, that humanity doesn't always clearly see. But I guess that's the whole point of grace.

Unconditional love, isn't from man who is naturally prone to hatred and revenge, but from the God who has everlasting mercy and teaches us to love and forgive. And so you see the love that was placed on that cross. A Savior and a King who dies for the people who rejected Him. God continues to shine sunlight upon a world so dark. His mercies renewed every single day. Hope still exists through the time of your life. Unrequited love, kindness, and affection will always hurt. God feels this pain all the time, with His own creations too. However, hurt once, hurt twice, hurt thrice, God will not be the one to hurt you. He's the One to heal you and make you whole and brand new.

During times of disappointment, we shake our heads at humanity. We're all broken in the inside, and little do most of us know that we need fixing. The greatest place we can put our hope is God. Maybe the idea and truth can't be expressed enough in this life; even when the world lets us down, God will never let us down.

The most heart breaking thing, is to see an unbeliever grieve about death and loss.

In the afternoon, my friend had a phone call about her grandfather passing away. Seeing her cry, made me cry. My two other friends and me, did the least we could, hugging her and patting her on the back, saying "We're here for you, be strong." As a Christian, you know what's beyond this temporal life and death. And I wanted to say, "Death isn't the dead end." But the thing is, there are only two ways to go. My friends and I said our goodbyes, giving our last hugs to her. I rode the bus home, feeling shattered in the inside, grieving for my friend's loss. I arrived home and felt deeply compelled, to take a moment in meditation. I took my Bible and turned to 1 John 5. As I started reading the chapter, the tears already started to pour. It talked about Jesus Christ and the faith that overcomes the world. It struck me so hard when I landed on the verse, "And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life." (1 John 5:11-12) I whimpered, cried, and lost control of my sanity. I began feeling the pain that God feels everyday. He sees His creations He loves, disregarding and turning away from Him, living empty lives, living among the world. They might have heard of Him, they might have not. But many don't know Him; know the Creator; know the One who died for them. But faith truly does come from hearing the word of God. So I cried and prayed, kneeling against the floor. I prayed for the Body of Christ, because the action and effort is overdue. There's a reason why we need to spread the good news. There's a reason why there are four gospels in the Bible. There's a reason why Jesus Christ commanded us to make disciples of all nations. God doesn't want us to remain in one spot, lying in our comfort zones, not opening the mouths that He gave us to speak. What are we Christians doing, casually living our lives from day to day? Are we called to eat, sleep, work, and live like everyone else? No! We are called for greater things. So many die, without hearing the truth. But it starts with us, to take the actions and share the truth. Faith without the action is dead. So God impressed one thing in my heart, and it's that: for as long as I live, I will never shut up about God. I will always talk about Him, making sure that people hear of Him. It does not matter if I sound like a broken record, because I know the words and truth I say from God will last for eternity. Everyone deserves a chance. No one should live their whole life on earth, without hearing the name of Jesus Christ.

It's got my heart pumping

Excitement and thrill run through my veins. Circuited all over the news, the 5.8 earthquake stretched from Virginia all the way to Massachusetts. One woman said that it even reached to Toronto, Canada. Isn't it mind blowing, to see the power of God? Within the few minutes of watching the news, they mentioned the recent earthquakes in California and Arizona. Furthermore, they spoke of the upcoming hurricane Irene in Florida, also making its way up east coast this weekend. The return of Jesus Christ is coming closer and closer! The power of God is being revealed. His glory and light will be shown. For the world, it is a very scary and undesired thought, but to us, it's something worth looking forward to. It's more than the excitement of a child on Christmas morning. It's our Savior coming back! And my prayer is that many turn to Him and start repenting before the day comes. The signs and warnings are shown, although the day and hour is not known. We all need to have our hearts prepared and set to God. We can't live in shadows and in comfort, pretending that our days aren't numbered. We are all held accountable and will all be equally judged for our actions. What matters most, is that our hearts are in the right place with God and that we are not far away from Him. As the days grow darker and darker, the more we have to draw closer to Him. Jesus Christ is the only way. There is no exception. God is the light in this darkness.

I'm not saying that these upcoming times will be easy. I must be out of my mind, for being excited. I will expect pain, rejection, persecution—possibly death. These are times of deep trouble. But God's will be done. May His name be highly lifted up. May the people of the world see. May they not wait for disasters or wait until last minute to figure it out. God doesn't play charades. His Word is boldly and clearly spoken out. God doesn't hide His sovereignty. It's completely visible through His creations. May they know that our God is a merciful God—that He always was for thousands of years. He waited for so long for people to repent, because He dearly loved His creations and didn't want anyone to perish. No one can righteously complain about these destructions yet to come. It's not the end of the world, but the beginning of a new earth and a new heaven.

O God! I cry out for these people! I pray for them all. And I pray for the world. I pray that many would know before it's too late. I pray that their eyes can see, that their ears will hear, that their hearts and minds will understand. I pray that the wisdom of Your Spirit will be poured upon them! Your will be done and may the touch of Your hands save many lives. Thank You God, thank You!

Acts 28:26-27 "Go to this people and say, 'You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.' For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them."

2 Peter 3:8-9 "But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. Instead He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."

Matthew 24:4-8 Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Messiah,' and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains."

Matthew 24:30-31 "At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other." 

Hi, Hello, Salutations!

This blog used to be "Stories of My Life" but now, I thought, "Ew, the title is so bland and cliche. So I changed it. I'm sorry I haven't been posting as much as I used to. I'm not that same thirteen year old middle school girl, with all the time to post, post, and post. High school made me so busy. I will be a junior in the fall. For the past two years, high school was kind of a transitional experience for me. But I know, that through my days, I'm thankful that I keep growing even closer and closer to my God. I make sure I hold on tight to Him, because I'm in a world which isn't my permanent home. I remembered right before the start of freshman year, I prayed to God to guide me and give me wisdom. I prayed that He'd help me to choose the right crowd and that I'd adjust just fine with the new classes, new teachers, and practically a new environment. I drew far away from some friends, but I also made new ones and became close with them. I faced some things that might have hurt me, but at least they gave me unforgettable lessons in the end. It's hard to believe that I'm two years away from college. My future is still unclear. Nonetheless, I live day by day, walking by faith and not by sight. I must say, I really am loving Bayside High School. :) I'm sure God put me here for a reason. Anyway, if you're looking for a blog, which I update often, it's on tumblr. Ahaha I hope you don't look at me as a traitor of blogger.com. XD Okay, that's it for now. Bye bye! God bless!

“You may be the only Bible some people will ever read.”

So…I ran into a verse in 2 Corinthians, that totally blew me away. God’s words are just so amazing. It’s living. It truly speaks directly to your heart.

The people around you, are the people you influence. You show something to them, with the life that you live.

“You yourselves are our letter. You are written on our hearts. Everyone knows you and reads you. You make it clear that you are a letter from Christ. You are the result of our work for God. You are a letter written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God. You are a letter written not on tablets made out of stone but on human hearts.” 2 Corinthians 3:2-3

So live day in and day out, making sure your actions glorify God. Every move, every step, every motive, every word you say, and everything you do can be seen by others.

“In the same way, let your light shine in front of others. Then they will see the good things you do. And they will praise your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 5:16
There are thirsty people out there, longing and aching for the truth. The world we walk upon is lost as it is. They don’t know what they’re missing. Our God is there with outstretched open hands, willing to heal and save. May they see the light through us.