What it Means to Commit to the Lord

This life revolves around goals we have whether they be short term or long term. The point is that if you have no goals, it’s very clear that you’re not moving toward anything of great significance. By the way, your life isn’t that meaningful due to the fact that you don’t really have something that you’re working on in order to improve the overall quality of it in the long run.

The Word of God boldly declares that where there’s no vision, the people perish (Proverbs 29:18). Therefore the same thing also applies equally to your personal life. The reason is that if you don’t have any visions at all, you’re compromising your whole life for a miserable future.

Having goals is undoubtedly very important; however, not every goal people have will actually succeed. It’s quite unfortunate that in many cases people have dedicated their entire times and efforts working on goals that will eventually fail miserably. Even though some of them may succeed, but the problem is that they don’t really bring forth the type of lasting peace, joy, and fulfillment that God would like them to experience. To put it differently, their goals don’t take them to the place that God would want them to be.

The question is how can we ensure that our goals revolve around God? How do we also ensure that our goals don’t become an impediment to God’s plans and purposes for our lives? How do we make sure that God’s will for our lives is put ahead of own ambition and agenda? Well, it’s worthwhile that we consider these Scripture verses below in order for us to get a clear understanding regarding that issue.

Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and He will establish your plans (Proverbs 16:3).

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;  in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6).

The first Scripture verse sounds very vague and broad due to the fact that it doesn’t specify any conditions whatsoever. Nevertheless, the ideal way of trying to understand this verse is to hook it up to the second verse which is found in (Proverbs 3:5-6). First, our knowledge and understanding are very limited while God has perfect and absolute knowledge and understanding. The very things that we’re striving for may not be the things that God would want us to have.

Practical Application

Since God is asking us to trust Him wholeheartedly and not lean on our own human understanding, this will make sure that we seek His will first by acknowledging our own human limitations. When we trust God in such manner, we allow Him to have His ways in us. We also allow Him to control the circumstances. So it’s no longer about what we want done in accordance with what we believe is the right thing to do. Instead, it becomes all about us allowing the all-knowing God to guide us wherever fits His perfect will for our lives.

We can strongly rely on the fact that an all-knowing God will never lead His beloved children to failure. In that case, the best way of pursuing our goals is to let God determine what should be done and when it should be done. The good news is that when we consult Him before we start working on any plans we have in a patient and obedient fashion, He’ll make His will plain to us. That’s exactly what it means to have our plans established by Him.

Today's Prayer

Heavenly Father, we genuinely acknowledge the fact that we only know and understand partially while You know and understand everything perfectly. Lot of time we ignore that as a result of being pressed by time, curiosity, worry, impatience, and so forth. What a bad idea for us to live our lives going after things that won’t do us any good in the long run since they are outside of Your will for our lives.

We pray that You give us what it takes, so that we can strive to make sure that we find ourselves at the center of Your will. Whatever goals and visions that we have, it’s guaranteed that they will all come to pass if they are consistent with Your perfect will. We pray that You empower us to live a life marked by complete reliance on You along with that You’re able to do for us within Your perfect will and timing for Your own glory. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Reference: Living for Jesus Alone

Choose to Be Happy

Madalas nating nariring and mga katagang, "Happiness is a choice."

Isa ako sa mga naniniwala nito. Maraming beses ko na itong ginagamit, minsan ay nagiging mantra pa o motivation ko ang mga katagang ito sa mga panahong ako ay labis na nag-iisa, nalulungkot, o hindi kaya ay nagagalit. Masasabi kong, epektebo naman ito sa akin.

Sa mga panahong malungkot ka, you have the freedom to be happy. All you have to do is to change paradigm, shift your perception of the circumstances into something better. Wika nga nila, be optimistic, kahit na gulung-gulo na ang sitwasyon. When faced with certain negative thoughts or experiences, I think all we have to do is to think outside the box, explore whatever possibilities therein, do not be discouraged. 

Even at times when you are feeling blue and things seems to be too hard or difficult, just remember that there are two sides of the coin. You may not face the bright side at a particular time, but remember, there's a rainbow after the rain. 

On top of these, malimit ko ding naiisip yung nabasa kong quote noong bata pa lamang ako, at ito'y nabasa ko sa isa sa mga kalendaryo namin sa bahay. The quote says, "If you think there's an uphill struggle, just think of the view from the top." Tama nga naman; maaring mahirap ang pinagdadaanan mo ngayon sa iyong paglalakbay sa buhay pero isipin mo na lang ang ganda ng buhay kung lahat ng paghihirap mo ngayon ay iyo nang malalampasan. Hindi ba't tagumpay ang nais makamit? 

Higit sa lahat, huwag kakalimutan na ang Diyos ay naririyan. Siya'y lubos na makapangyarihan na handang tumulong at gumabay sayo. Ang Kanyang pagmamahal ay labis na makakapagtatag sa atin. Trust me. I've experienced all the troubles in life that you can never imagine. In spite of these, His amazing grace captured me when I was lost. Now that I'm found, I cannot just help but to thank Him because He has been carrying me all along and I know, He can make you feel assured too. 

Trust in God, shake all the worries, and choose to be happy!