A Christian Pastor in New Testament Christian Churches of America, NTCC. Blogging about Christianity and life. Humorous, informative and I hope inspirational.
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Surrender
It reminds me of so many that come every week to church. They have prayed the sinner's prayer, maybe even been baptized, but they are holding on to something that they refuse to give up, and they don't have the joy and peace they are looking for.
The rich young ruler in the bible was in the same situation. He said "I have kept all of the commandments" and I am sure he attended weekly worship, but the very fact he was coming to Jesus showed he was searching for more. Jesus put His finger right on it and said "Sell what you have and give to the poor and come follow me and ye shall have riches in heaven" In other words He said "Surrender!" but we know what happened....the man didn't surrender, and went away sorrowful. Contact with Christ doesn't instantly bring joy and peace, we must do what He tells us and surrender....
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Friday, July 28, 2006
Filipino Excuses
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Changed Lives
She began by telling us what her life was like before. She and her husband would constantly fight. He was the thrower (throwing things around the house) and she was the screamer. Then came Jesus....their family is changed! No more fighting like that! She had indeed accepted Christ and had changed. I asked about her husband and she shared about the third or fourth time that they had come, he had broke down and went to the front to pray. After the service, when they were at home, it was time for dinner, in the Kapampangan culture it is normal for the man to be served by the wife, she would also serve the children, but tonight, he was the one calling the family and serving them!
She shared that since that time when they had accepted Christ, there was a day when their child was very sick, and they did not have the money for the doctor, she prayed and the Lord touched the child and healed them.
Truly, hearing first hand how the Lord had changed their family was more exciting than a huge number in church on Sunday!
God is so good!
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
RSS and ATOM
If you use Internet explorer here is the page to go to. Firefox has a built in RSS/Atom reader you can get here. If you use my.msn.com as your home page, you can use this and it will add the feed to your homepage. After you have a feed reader, or as they are called, an aggregator, you can subscribe to this blog's feed here.
Comments, Comments...
Rainy Weather
Rain gear here can be humorous. Of course the ever present "Payong" or umbrella, rain jacket and waterproof pants, rubber boots, garbage bags with holes for your head and arms, and towels to cover your head. What if you don't have any rain gear you may ask? Then, as many of the kids today did, you just play in it and get totally soaked. Enjoy! Another girl was standing on the side as we walked by and I saw white foam on her and then realized it was soap, she was bathing (clothes on of course) when the natural showers stopped...without providing her needed rinse cycle!
Monday, July 24, 2006
Mang Fher's Results
Well the results are in from his labors! He brought 120 people to the house of God last Sunday! His wife brought out another large group from a different area. Praise God! It was very exciting!
Thursday, July 20, 2006
Edgar A. Guest Quotes
“But here in the struggle for fame and pelf / I want to be able to like myself. / I don't want to look at myself and know / That I'm bluster and buff and empty show.”
“You are the person who has to decide. Whether you'll do it or toss it aside; You are the person who makes up your mind. Whether you'll lead or will linger behind. Whether you'll try for the goal that's afar. Or just be contented to stay where you are.”
“There is an education of the mind / Which all require and parents only start. / But there is training of a nobler kind / And that's the education of the heart. / Lessons that are most difficult to give / Are Faith and Courage and the way to live.”
“The best of all the preachers are the men who live their creeds,/ For to see good put in action is what everybody needs.”
It Couldn't Be Done
Somebody said that it couldn't be done,
But he with a chuckle replied
That "maybe it couldn't," but he would be one
Who wouldn't say so till he'd tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.
Somebody scoffed: "Oh, you'll never do that;
At least no one ever has done it";
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat,
And the first thing we knew he'd begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.
There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
There are thousands to prophesy failure;
There are thousands to point out to you, one by one,
The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,
Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start to sing as you tackle the thing
That "cannot be done," and you'll do it.”
Edgar A. Guest
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Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Kapampangan Soulwinning
Photos of the Itas (Aetas) by Park Cruz Follow @ddevonshire
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
1000 Sunday
1.God will give us over the 1000 people this Sunday morning and that
2.He would allow His presence to convict sinners and that many would come to know Christ as their Saviour.
Do you have any relatives in the Philippines? Tell them about the special day! Maybe that one will be the one that makes 1000!
Thanks
Friday, July 14, 2006
Florita is her name
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
Filipino Weddings - Part 2
When the day came for my brother to return to the family of his fiance and get married, he had only accumulated 8,000 pesos of the 30,000-40,000 they told him he would need to get married. He had made his mind up to go to bible school, and his family, all devout Catholic, didn't support him in his decision. This meant that he could not count on them for the additional financial help he needed to get married. Often, family members will contribute a pig or a sack of rice to help in that situation, but not for him. He got on the boat and went to the other side. His mind was made up. If they allow me to marry her, I will marry her and we will go together to bible college, if they do not allow me to marry her, I will have to wish her goodbye and I will go to bible school anyway. When he got there and spoke to the father he was very nervous. The brothers began to gather also. He carefully explained, “Look, this is all that I have, 8,000 pesos, what do you want me to do? Rob a bank? If you want to kill me now, go ahead, I am right with God.” This was more than just a joke, he really feared for his life. They were in a remote area and they were none too happy. “What!!! Do you think our sister is a chicken? That you can marry her so cheaply?” The father and brothers gathered together away from where our brother was. Our brother was praying. He told me “I didn't know if they were sharpening their bolos (large machete) or what...” A lot of the requirements, were based on pride. The father was a leader in the community and there is a certain standard to keep up. When the father returned, he allowed them to marry, but in the city. (Saving face in the local community.) They were married and arrived here for bible college shortly thereafter.
Monday, July 10, 2006
Filipino construction
Our friend here is building what is commonly known as a rest house. Just a place to get away from the main residence and relax. In a weeks time he seems to have made a little progress. Maybe not fast enough for his liking, which is why it looks like he has recruited his wife to help. Follow @ddevonshire
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Filipino Weddings...Part 1
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Let the living lay it to heart...
I personally work a neighborhood called Taguete. It is one of the nearest neighborhoods to the church. On Sunday evening the first tragedy struck. At around 6pm, a man riding a motorcycle shot and killed the driver of Mr. Nepomuceno. Mr Nepomuceno is a very rich man who owns land and retail space her in the city. For those of you that have been here, that is where the Nepo mall gets it’s name from. People began lining up on the side of the road and gawking at the dead body. For many it brought a seriousness and even a fear to their hearts. One girl who is faithful to all of the services was found crying as she was leaving. She was scared to walk home.
The second tragedy occurred just about 12 hours later and I have earlier referred to it. The granddaughter of a family who always attends died. She was less than a year old. She had a heart problem. We went to the house of the family and the ritual had already begun. The small closed casket with a window near the head lay in the living room. Food preparation was under way. A card game was going on outside. I have wondered about their choice of activities, yet it seems this constantly being surrounded by people may somehow make it easier. In some areas, the card game is used as a way to raise more money for the family. As the people come, they give an offering to the family, a guestbook was by the door that listed the names and the amount given. Later I found out that if your family gives now, they who receive are indebted to give if your family meets the same tragedy. This vigil continued from Monday until today (Wed.) I went there around 2:30pm and we prayed, they hadn’t asked for a service, but I put as much of the gospel as I reasonably could into the prayer. Then the procession began. The small coffin was laid in the hearse, the door closed, and they slowly began the procession to the graveyard. Some would throw coins onto the roof of the hearse which were later collected. It was close to a 45 minute walk with many vehicles following. The mother, father and close family members walk along with the hearse, their hands resting on the rear window, weeping as they go. Behind them, more family and friends walk and then the vehicles follow them all. When we got to the cemetery, they took the body out of the larger “display coffin” and placed her into the tiny burial coffin. Many of the tombs here are above ground. Here, a concrete box had already been prepared, and once the casket was placed inside, they began to seal it with the concrete. One by one they quietly left realizing there was nothing more they could do.
As I watched the people looking at the procession, some oblivious to the pain of the family, laughing and joking, others, serious faces and somber looks, the phrase that has been often used in funerals came to mind….”Let the living lay it to heart.” Follow @ddevonshire
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
That bugs me
As I arrived at the church recently, I found that we had several hundred new visitors, Hurray! You say? Hardly! These are of the flying, wood eating type: Termites! Our church building is open to the outside air, no screens or doors to prevent the entrance of the little critters, so in they came! I quickly loaded a hair spray bottle with bug spray, (mentally reminding myself don’t use this hairspray!) and began spraying the air. Some of the children began arriving for service and they happily helped by swatting away at the airborne invaders. It wasn’t long til humans outnumbered termites and service began. Who needs the Orkin man anyhow??? Follow @ddevonshire
Monday, July 03, 2006
Weekend Work
He was not able to attend but his family and neighbors were there. On the way home, we did find out that one of the grandchildren of a family that regularly attends has died. Please keep them in your prayers. (Fher, Beth and the mother of the child Annalynn) This is a picture of the little girl that died. I had just photographed her about a week before and gave her mom the picture. When I went to see them tonight, they had it on the casket.
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Sunday, July 02, 2006
Saturday, July 01, 2006
Security Guards
In some stores, you get checked going in and coming out and if you are an employee, you get the full body frisk, from the ankles on up.
The pay of the guards runs about 5000 pesos a month in a good establishment and less elsewhere. That runs about $100 US Dollars, usually that is a twelve hour day and maybe a day or two off a month!
So if you don't like being a Digger O'Dell maybe you would like to be a guard??? Follow @ddevonshire