On Righteousness

Another wonderful truth I have come to learn about Jesus and what He did on the cross:

2 Corinthians 5:21
God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

The Lord Jesus Christ, who live a sinless life, was tortured, rejected and put to an agonizing death on the cross, because of His love for us! And what happened on the cross was, God put all our sins on Him, he actually became sin, and He took Jesus Christ's righteousness and put it in all of us.  So that whenever we confess our sins, God do not see our sins in us, but the righteousness of Christ.

1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 

As I am pondering on this truth, I realized how God loves us.  I deserve to be on the cross for all my sins and yet, God sent His Son to become the perfect sacrifice so that I will become free from the slavery of sin and be reconciled to Him.  Imagine the impact of this truth:  Jesus Christ's righteousness is in me!  I may lived a whole life doing good works but I will never deserve such a privilege.  And yet God gave it to us, Jesus Christ shed His blood so that His righteousness will live in us.  God's grace is truly amazing! The sinless took all the sins!

I pray for the Holy Spirit to prompt me on this truth everyday.  I want to always remember this truth the next time I feel rejected or mistreated or criticized.  Because if our Lord, who lived righteous, sacrificed Himself on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins-  what reason do I have, a sinner, not to forgive others for the petty wrongs others may do to me? And also, since the righteousness of Jesus is in me, then this should motivate me to live on that righteousness.  And I know that God will give me the power and strength to do it.  I will stumble for sure... I still live in my sinful nature.  But that should not give me the excuse not to get back up and head to the way God wants me to take- to live righteous just as He has given us!

To God be all the glory!

Treasures

Matthew 6:19
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

My life before Christ had always been about pursuing treasures on earth rather than treasures in heaven.  Well, it had to be that way before because I really never give a thought about heaven  or eternal life.  And as the bible said, it was where the whole of my heart was- pursuing financial freedom and gaining all the material things I wanted for me and my family.  For someone who also never understood about investment in eternal life, it was a noble and reasonable goal and pursuit.  To work hard and leave a legacy of financial freedom to your family is what most of us see as SUCCESS.  My heart and my soul and my strength was into it.  I never cared much already about other things like time with God, with my family and my friends.  Well, I can have all the time in the world once I get the goal.

And then I met Christ, accepted Him as my Savior and surrendered my life to Him... He became my Lord, my King.  He showed me about eternal life and how foolish it was for me to be investing my whole life over my short time here on earth and neglecting eternity.  He made me realize that the right legacy I can leave to my children was not financial security but security in the knowledge and grace and salvation of God.  

Was it easy to just let go and change the whole of my direction 365 degrees?  

It was a struggle!  But you see, He made me see what is like to be a follower of Him and how faithful He is to His promises.  It was always me who is not faithful of surrendering everything to Him and trusting Him of His will and promises.  I am a work in progress...  I have surrendered many areas of my life to Him and still surrendering... 

For me, pursuing treasure in Heaven is understanding the will of the Father in my life and DOING HIS WILL.  And understanding His will is first seeking him and knowing Him.  Just as we are here on earth, you can never understand or trust someone if you don't know him/her.  Same with God, you will never trust your whole life to Him and seek and understand His will if you don't know Him- close and intimate.  Slowly, as I grew closer to Him, He is revealing His will in my life.  And I pray for strength, courage and wisdom to follow.

I pray that I may be able to store up for myself treasures in Heaven and have the courage to always give up pursuing treasures here on earth.  I pray that my heart will always be in the right place.

Merry Christmas!

This christmas will be the best so far! With the Lord in our hearts and the transformation we are going through everyday, I am pretty sure whatever happens, we are going to celebrate and be joyful and grateful!

Tree is up!

Maxene's 2nd Birthday

Activities:

Sunday worship at CCF Alabang

Sumptuous lunch at home, cake blowing

Play at Kids Universe, MOA

Pizza and pasta at Uncle Cheffy, Two E-com Center, MOA

We were dead tired but we had fun!  Thank you Lord for the blessing, for sending Tita Gheng. :-)

My Mission In Life

It took me 33 years to finally realize what my real purpose in life is... it was a painful journey along the way.  But right now, I am joyful to have found it and finally move my decisions, my goals and aspirations around it.

My mission in life:

1.  To love God with all my heart, with all my soul, mind and strength.

2.  To be a Godly wife and mother.

3.  To disciple other married women and mother like me who will later on do the same to others.

As I have established them, I am praying to God that He give me wisdom on my goals and actions and strength to be faithful.

Slowly, I will move on to making a vision and then breaking them to small goals.  I am excited and positive that He will be there as I go along.  And I am more excited to be with Him at the end of this temporary life.

To God be all the glory now and forever.

Healed

I so love this song.  It keeps on reminding me of how the Lord keeps on healing and transforming me everyday.  

Thank you Lord for everything.  For calling me, for forgiving my sins and for loving me.