January 2015 – No Ordinary Day

Day 6: Sound off on the quote “Every woman has the exact love life she wants”

“Every woman has the exact love life she wants”

This phrase reminds me of the conversation I had with my friend 2 years ago, when she asked me about what the Bible says about getting married. She asked me if it’s true that each person really has this ‘someone’ God has created just for him/her. It just so happened that we were just finished meditating on the Matthew as the main text for our Day in Prayer and Fasting (DIPF) so I just shared with her my insights and the things I learned from my meditation. Our main text was found in Matthew 19:1-12:

When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went into the region of Judea to the other side of the Jordan. Large crowds followed him, and he healed them there. Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?” “Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’ ? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” “Why then,” they asked, “did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?” Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.” The disciples said to him, “If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it is better not to marry.” Jesus replied, “Not everyone can accept this word, but only those to whom it has been given. For there are eunuchs who were born that way, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others—and there are those who choose to live like eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it.”

I don’t know about you, but based from what I learned from this text, it’s not true that every woman has the exact love life she wants. As what Jesus said, there are really people who are meant to be eunuchs. So what I said to my friend is that marriage is not the only and ultimate purpose of life. God’s purpose for creating us is to have an intimate, loving relationship with Him that will last for eternity. Marriage is just a means to that end. So it is really possible for some people to remain single forever because God has willed it, and because He has other purpose in mind. So even if we have this perfect love story in mind, if God does not will it, it will not happen. But we are assured that whatever it is that God has in mind, it is for our own good. His ways and thoughts are higher than ours so we can rest in the truth that His will for us is PLEASING and PERFECT.

My Heart’s Desire

So this morning, I finally received the usual birthday greeting card from my office mates. I don’t want to sound ungrateful but as I browse through the birthday greetings from the people I consider my friends, I felt a bit…. I don’t know. Maybe, sad? I appreciate their gesture and messages. I really do. I know I should not feel this way because I know that they really mean well when they said that they want me to finally have a ‘love life’ this year and I know they said it out of concern. But reading their messages brought me this feeling of alienation because having a romantic relationship is not really my heart’s desire. And I don’t understand why no one really believes me even if I already told them about it a hundred times.
Well, maybe I can’t blame them because I haven’t shared to anyone from our office my deepest dreams and ambitions. I have assumed that even if tell them, they won’t understand and no one ever cared to ask so I’d rather not talk about it. Not with them, at least.

But what are my heart’s desire really?

Some of my bookish friends actually asked me the same question last year, on the night before my birthday. They asked me what material thing do I really want to receive as birthday gift for myself that year. I wasn’t able to answer it because I can’t think of any material thing that I need during that time. And I know in my heart that what I’m really praying for is anything but material possession.

That prayer is still the prayer of my heart this year and now I’m sharing it so that you can also pray for me. I only want three things actually: salvation for my entire family and friends, growth, and multiplication for myself and our network.

My desire is to really become finally fruitful in my personal ministry this year and I praise God that He’s starting to grant this desire little by little. I want to become more busy both with the King and His Kingdom this year. I am also praying that God will continue to work in my heart so that I will be filled more with passion for Jesus and for the lost.

I’ve already settled it with God 2 years ago that this is what I really want for my life: ‘to fulfill Christ’s Great Commission by making disciples and reproducible disciple-making ministry’.

And I know that God will accomplish it through me.

What about you? What’s your heart’s desire?

Blog Tour: Only a Kiss by Ines Bautista-Yao (Review + Giveaway)

Blog Tour time again! Welcome to my stop of Only a Kiss by Ines Bautista – Yao.

Book Information:

Title: Only A Kiss

Author: Ines Bautista-Yao

Publisher: Chamber Shell Publishing

Date of Publication: November 29, 2014

Genre: contemporary romance

Goodreads

Purchase links: Amazon | Buqo.ph

(The book is on sale for ONLY $0.99 until February 14!)

Summary

When she was nine-years-old, Katie knew she wanted Chris to give her her first kiss. It wasn’t because she was in love with him (no way, he was her best friend! Besides, she was in love with his fourteen-year-old big brother), it was because she could make him do anything she wanted.

Besides, it didn’t really mean anything. It was only a kiss after all.

But then things started to change. They grew up. They parted ways and went to different high schools. And other girls and boys—well, just one particular boy—came into the picture, throwing their lives upside down.

Told from the alternating points of view of Katie and Chris, this love story between two best friends will tug at your heartstrings and leave you thinking how the simplest things can mean so much.

My Thoughts:
For the nth time, I am going to say again that I am truly a fan of best-friends-turned-lovers stories. This is the reason why the blurb of Only A Kiss made me want to read it. However, I know that everyone has a unique love story to tell so I was really interested to know how the friendship of Chris and Katie bloomed into romance.

Only A Kiss was really an enjoyable read for me. I like that every stages of the characters’ life was tackled in the story. I also like that both have experienced love from other people before they found themselves in each other’s arms. The story of Katie and Chris reminds me that if two people are really meant to be, they will always end up together in the end.

What I love most about the story is the alternating point of view of the male and female protagonists. As a woman, I am always curious and excited to hear (or read) from a male perspective. Chris’ POV has somehow gives me an affirmation that men are truly visual in nature. Haha!

If you also have a knack for unfriendzone-stories like me, maybe this one is for you.

My Rating: ★★★

About the Author:

Ines Bautista-Yao is the author of One Crazy Summer, What’s in your Heart, and Only a Kiss. She has also written two short stories, “Flashbacks and Echoes,” which is part of a compilation called All This Wanting and “A Captured Dream,” one of the four short stories in Sola Musica: Love Notes from a Festival.

She is the former editor-in-chief of Candy and K-Zone magazines and a former high school and college English and Literature teacher. She is also a wife and mom and blogs about the many challenges and joys of motherhood at theeverydayprojectblog.com. She has recently launched The Author Project, a section in her current blog devoted to the stories in her head:http://theeverydayprojectblog.com/inesbyao-author-project/.

She posts on Instagram and tweets @inesbyao and her author page is facebook.com/inesbautistayao.

Links:

Blog

Twitter

Instagram

Facebook

Goodreads

Giveaway Time!!!

Ines is giving away lots of things!

For Philippine residents:

One (1) winner will get a signed paperback of ONLY A KISS, a gift card from FILA, and a back issue of CAST comic book

Two (2) winners will each get a signed paperback of ONLY A KISS, light up laces, and back issue of CAST comic book

For everyone:

FIve (5) winners will each get an ebook of ONLY A KISS

Here’s the code for the giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Here’s the link to it.

Birthday Musings

A few hours from now, I will be celebrating my 27th birthday. Yes, I am not ashamed of sharing my age because I tell you, I don’t look my age. People often mistake me for a student and I don’t know why but no matter how hard I try, I still don’t look like a young professional (or maybe a real lady?! haha!). But that’s the way God created me so I just have to embrace the advantage of being small – a youthful look.

Anyway, I don’t usually think about how old I am unless some people will ask me my age or will point out to me that I am already in my late twenties. I don’t also feel that I am running out time because I’m not in a hurry for marriage or even for earning a master’s degree because I’ve surrendered these ambitions to God four years ago when I gave up my life for Christ. Sure I do feel being tempted from time to time to choose my own fleshly desires but God is always gracious to bring me back to where I belong, that is, at the center of His will.

But then last year, while I was meditating on the Book of Ecclesiastes, I realized that time is really of the essence. I really need to learn how to number my days because this world is dying and Jesus is coming very soon. I know what God has called me to do yet I still choose to dillydally and wait passively for His second coming.

Praise the Lord that during the Sunday message this morning, I am reminded of the calling that God has entrusted to me: to follow Jesus and reach the whole world for Him. I know that there is no other way to live a fulfilling life but to live it for Christ.

Based on what I witnessed this morning, there are still a lot of work to be done in this city and in this country and I can’t afford to waste my time.

And for this year, this is what I am really claiming:

But seek FIRST His KINGDOM and His RIGHTEOUSNESS, and all these things will be given to you as well. – Matthew 6:33

Day 5: The biggest misconception you think people have about single life

While I was purging my stuff a few months ago, I found my little green notebook where I used to write the inspirational text messages I received from my friends. I am really a sucker for inspirational quotes so I always make sure that I have back up before I delete any text message from my phone. When I scanned that said green notebook, a certain quote caught my attention and I can’t help but reflect on it. I even took a picture of it and posted it on instagram just so you know, to have a record. The quote goes something like this:

Some people say single persons have a sad life. No, they have friends that make them happy. Some say no one cares for them. That’s also a lie. They have God and a family who loves them. But you know why they are single? It’s because they look forward to long-term relationship at the right time with the right person and not just for experience.

I know I wrote this quote when I was still in my teens and the reason why I wrote it is because I believe it. I know in my heart back then that I don’t want to settle in a relationship just for the sake of experience, and all the more, I don’t want to settle in a relationsip with the wrong person. So when I saw it again, I felt so proud of my younger self for having this kind of conviction. So how is this related to the question today? Well, read again the first two lines. I believe these are two of the BIGGEST misconceptions of being single: that Single people are SAD and UNLOVED. Some people say single persons have a sad life… Most people think that being single and alone always equates to being lonely. It may be true to some, especially when they haven’t experience sincere love in any form, but most of the time, it’s not. Happiness is a choice and one way of choosing happiness is spending time with people who share the same belief, interests and passion with us and accept us for who we are despite our flaws and weaknesses – our friends. Though we really do feel lonely from time to time, it doesn’t last long because we have friends who are always there to make us feel better. And since single people are not committed to anyone, they have more time to explore the world and meet more people. Some say no one cares for them. That’s also a lie… Yes. I definitely agree that it’s a lie that single people are UNLOVED. Most people don’t understand that love has not one but FOUR faces (maybe I should write about this next time :D). Romantic love or Eros is just one of them. The other faces of love is affection (love of family), friendship and agape (love of God). Of all the four faces of love, the highest and most perfect form is agape. It is most commonly known as the unconditional love, and the only person who can give this consistently and deeply is God. God’s love never fails. So whether we ‘feel’ it or not, single people are always loved. 😀

14 Things I Learned in 2014

I used to believe in the saying that experience is the best teacher. But sometime in 2014, I realized that I don’t agree with it anymore. The best lessons in life are not always learned from experience but from evaluated experience. The insights and learnings that we gained from our previous experience are the ones that teach us to become better version of ourselves.

Admittedly, I always fail in this area of evaluating my experience. Truly ironic for someone who is working in the country’s national planning agency. So for the first time in forever, (Frozen, anyone?! :D) I’ll try to write down the things I’ve learned in 2014 and I will do my best to remember and bring these lessons with me in 2015.

1. You will reap what you sow. I haven’t thought about this biblical principle before until I learned about it from one of the best books I’ve read this year: Boundaries. The Bible said in Galatians 6:7-8, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.” In the same way, ‘As I have observed, those who plow evil and those who sow trouble reap it.‘(Job 4:8).

One of the things that I really prayed for in 2014 is to have a group of girls whom I will lead and disciple in a cell group. However, one of my most neglected spiritual discipline in 2014 is evangelism. So how can I expect winning more souls if I haven’t planted any seeds of faith on people?

So for 2015, I commit to do evangelism at least 3 times per week.

2. God hates and detests idolatry. Idolatry is defined in the bible as worship of idols. An idol, on the other hand, is anything that is worshiped instead of TRUE God. In the Bible times, idols were often statues of false gods made of wood, stone, or metal. (See Deut. 4:15-31; 2 Kings 17:7-23; Acts 17:16-34; 1 Thess 1:9-10)
I’ve actually learned this truth when I was meditating on the Books of 1&2 Kings, 1&2 Chronicles and the Book of Isaiah. God is a jealous God so the first command that He gave to the Israelites was to worship Him and Him alone. However the Israelites provoked God to anger when they started to set up Aserah poles and worship idols. As a result, God turned over Israel to their enemies.
I thought, ‘if God wasn’t so serious about idolatry, why does he need to discuss this issue in at least 5 books of the bible?’

Aside from physical idolatry, another form of idolatry that God hates is idolatry of the heart. It is defined as any immoderate attachment or devotion to anything other than God. Anything that makes us shift our eyes away from God can be an idol. It can be our work, our gadgets, our hobbies, and even our families.

As an application to this learning I want to shift my focus, time and energy to the work of the Lord. God wants my best so I will do my best to really honor Him with everything I have.

3. Disobedience to God has always consequences. God is just. He is not a man that He should lie. So when He said ‘don’t do this or else this is what will happen”, expect that He will carry out what He had declared once we disobey.

I’ve experienced it myself so I don’t want to suffer again because of my own disobedience.

4. God disciplines those He loves. This is in relation to #1 and #3. Because God loves us so much, He doesn’t want us to remain disobedient forever. He will make sure that we will learn from the consequences of our bad choices and mistakes.

5. Boundaries are healthy and they are important to develop and maintain in life. I’ll try to discuss this more later.

6. Less is more.

7. Godliness with contentment is great gain.

8. Faith without action is dead. It’s not enough to agree with what God is saying. If I want to experience miracle, I need to exercise my faith and take the necessary step that God is asking me to do.

9. Counting blessings is one of the key to happiness.

10. It takes a very big God and a very big faith in God to be able to absorb so much evil. We live in a broken world, so experiencing evil is already given. Only God can enable us to respond positively to whatever evil thing we have encountered.

11. The opposite of love is not hate but indifference. Love is not a feeling but a commitment to show care and concern for other people. When we stop caring for others, it’s a sure sign that we’re failing to love.

12. Spiritual warfare is real.

13. Goal setting is an important step to success.

14. Everything is by Grace. Everything that I have is all by the grace of God so it is just right to point all the glory to Him.

Day 4: Your Biggest Fear as a Single Person

Honestly, I got stucked in this question because I really don’t know how to answer it. Not that I don’t have any fear. It’s just that, I haven’t thought about it for a long time because like what I always say, I am used to living alone and living independently, to the point that I think it has become my comfort zone. And because I know who holds my future, I can honestly and confidently say that I am not scared of becoming a single woman for life.

However, because I also know that I am not perfect and I’m still a human being, who happens to be living in this broken and imperfect world and body, I admit that I do still experience the feeling of doubts and fear from time to time.

Now that I really have to think about it, I really need to be more honest with myself. I think one of my biggest fear as a single person is losing my job and not being able to provide for my family. As the breadwinner of our family, losing my job can have a very big impact not only on myself but also on my parents. So having a stable job and steady source of income has somewhat become my security. And looking at my current financial assets, I am sure that I really can’t afford to lose my job.

I think that’s all I have to say for now. 🙂

Goal Setting

Oh, hello there book blog! I missed you. So we’re now in 2015 and since it’s the start of the year, here’s a mandatory post on setting my reading goals for the year.
But before that, let me recall what happened to my last year’s reading goals and challenge.

Let me start with the good news. As I’ve mentioned in my previous post, I am really glad that I was able to finish my challenge of reading 40 books. (okay, I also have to admit that I cheated a little because my original goal was to read 50 books in 2014, haha!). Regardless, goodreads says I have completed my reading challenge so it’s still accomplishment, right?!

The bad news is, I wasn’t able to achieve the goals I’ve set during the last quarter of 2014. But I think it’s okay and I don’t regret it at all. Maybe because I’ve already settled in my heart that reading is NOT the MOST essential thing in my life. It’s just the icing on the cake so forget about that unfulfilled goals.

So for this year, I’d like to set a lower goal of reading 30 books because I know can re-adjust once I’ve completed it.

So there, happy new year friends!