Happiness Comes From Humility

Humility is one of the characteristics that we tend to neglect a lot. We have this unconscious attitude of putting too much recognition on ourselves especially when faced with someone we think inferior to us. However, in order for us to be genuinely happy in life, we must remove that cloak of pride and self-righteousness, and start being humble before every individual.

How are we going to do that?

1.) DO NOT DEMAND

“Though He was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to”

-Philippians 2:6

• In this passage, God clearly stated that He did not demand equality although He knew He deserved the outmost respect from everyone. He was treated in manner far from what He deserved but never did He complained about it.
• In our life, we tend to put so much big of a deal with our education and wealth that we often forget “equality”. We think that since we are well educated or possess so much wealth, respect should follow. However, that is not what is God is teaching us. We must keep in mind that we are all equal in the eyes of the Lord. No race, education and wealth can lift ourselves in front God. Therefore we do not have any right to demand anything from people around us most especially from God.

 

2.) FIND WAYS TO SERVE

“Instead He gave up His divine privilege; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being”

-Philippians 2:7

• In order for us to be humble, we should always think of how to be of service to others. Like God, who took the life of slavery to be able to reach out to people and serve. We should always extend our ways to help one another because using our life as a blessing to those around us is the greatest way of living your life.

3.) DO WHAT IS RIGHT

“He humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross”

-Philippians 2:8

• Not everything that is right can be easy, there is a certain point of pain when we try to do something that is right. However, doing the right thing always promise happiness and contentment most especially if it is done in the context of the Lord’s teaching.

 

In whatever circumstances in our life, the easiest way to practice humility is by always reminding ourselves of “What will Jesus do?”. If we are faced with struggles or decisions, we should always think and act in such way that how Jesus will be if He is in our position. Not to demand, Serving others and Doing what is right will always be as complex as it sounds but when you have Jesus in your heart and believe that you are doing what you are doing to glorify His name then you will receive happiness and contentment.

Pay Less Attention To Yourself

It is our human nature to have the tendency to place all the attention to ourselves, we want everything to work in our advantage. More often than not, we do things with certainty of personal gain and neglect the needs of others. How many times have you been placed in a group where people seems to focus more on themselves and their personal interests than the ones beside them. Have you been in a gathering lately where people are actually talking to each other and not their virtual friends in facebook or mobile? Sad but true, we don’t notice it much but the real essence of good conversation and finding interests with those near us are lost due to this constant preoccupation with technology.

I personally believe in the importance of face to face conversation rather than the virtual ones. If you learn to speak to every people around you, pay attention to them and less on yourself; you will realize that there are a lot to learn from others. Their stories may inspire you in ways you don’t imagine. God is using every situation and every people in our life to build our character, don’t miss the chance of hearing stories from them because God sent them to you as a blessing in disguise.

When God Says No (Day 2)

“Then Job answered the Lord and said: I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge? Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. Hear and I will speak; I will question you and you make it known to me. I heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you”

Job 42:1-5

Title: Rest your heart, God has your back!

Have you ever felt overwhelmed with all the stress and uncertainties of life? Things not going the way you planned it? You believe that life is such a mess and you don’t know where to pick yourself up?

The best thing to do is get a cup, pour a hot water in it then place your favourite tea bag or coffee. Then go to a quiet place overlooking the city under a sky full of stars. Close your eyes, open your heart and REST your mind. Breathe 3x then slowly open your eyes. You will realize that there is a big world and how small you are compared to it, but as a child of God, you are part of a much bigger plan.

When everything seems to be uncontrollable, God is calling you and hear Him say: REST my child, I got your back. This is not a mess, I have a plan. TRUST me. Let me SHOW you what I’ve got.

There are 3 things that God asked you to do.. REST, TRUST, LOOK

1.) REST

• I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose can be thwarted
• When you were born, God already know how your life is going to be. Every situation in your life is part of His plan for you and no matter how hard you try to do things your way, God will always bring you to the life He has planned for you. He is an all knowing God and whatever it is He prepared for you can never be thwarted.
• If you will sit and think about all the circumstances in your life, you will be amazed how God faithfully worked in your life even during the times when you don’t recognize Him. Your life is like a piece of puzzle that perfectly fits to one another. Like every situation in your life is a piece that completes the other bringing you closer and closer to His kingdom.
• Rest your case to the Lord because He knows what He is doing. Even disappointments, heartaches and challenges in our life has a purpose

2.) TRUST

• Therefore I have uttered things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know
• When you intend to submit every situation in your life to God, you must put in your heart that no matter how odd things maybe, God is creating something beautiful for you. Let him hold the pen of your life and trust that he is creating a wonderful story even better than what we always asked for. Things may not be clear at the moment, you may not understand where this path God has placed you but if you trust Him, you will soon realize the sense of every situation you were placed into.
• It is like riding a roller coaster ride, there will be ups and downs, a dark tunnel too; You may not know how the ride is going to be but in your heart you know that this will be an awesome experience and you will get off the ride with big smiles even thinking of going to it again and again. That’s how our journey with God should be like. Everything Is not crystal clear but we know that God is giving us an awesome experience. Learn to go through that ride with a joyful heart. God will never harm us, He is in fact building our character! Preparing us to fit in the plan He has stored for us.

3.) LOOK

• I heard of you by hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you
• We often hear story after story about how good God is. How he works in other person’s life. Wouldn’t it be great if you were the one witnessing regarding God? That others will be inspired by how He worked in your life? How will that happen? Just rest, trust and look.
• If you have chosen to rest and trust God, now is the time that you will not only be hearing about Him, you will see Him before your very eyes. He will move and work in your life in ways you never thought could be possible. God is asking you to let Him show you the plan He has for your life.
• There is one picture I saw that stuck in my mind, A little girl holding a small teddy bear and God kneeling in front of her asking for her teddy bear, the caption says the girl was “but this is my favourite toy” and God was “Trust me, I got something better” and behind God, is a huge teddy bear which He wanted to trade for. I always think of that picture every time things don’t go the way I planned it.
• I am quite OC. I cannot work without planning, when I was in High school I planned how my life will be for the next 10years. And if things won’t go my way, I get devastated. But as I grow old, I realize that God’s plan is always better than what I have for myself. Looking at how He works at my life is just so wonderful. I was placed in situations that broke me even near depression state; I admit, I tried to work things out my way as I usually do but I got tired. Then I decided that I can’t let that situation consume me rather I used that to seek for Him. I can’t seem to see the sense of everything but I rested, open my heart, trusted God and watched Him moved everything in my life and now, I am drawn more to God and my heart found peace.

Prayer:

“God can do all things and no purpose of Him can be thwarted”

• Ask for open heart and clarity of mind that you have the courage to surrender everything
• Ask God to help you fully trust Him and leave all your plans behind
• Is there anyone you would like to talk to and help you through this journey of faith with God

“You might be walking at a dark tunnel of your life at the moment and do not understand where this road is taking you but keep in mind that everything is known to God. Just continue walking, this might be a place you won’t go through alone but while you are there, use your faith in God as a torch and you will reach the end when God knows you are emotionally and spiritually prepared enough to live the wonderful place He has prepared for you.”

When God Says No (Day 1)

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient and endurance of the same suffering we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.”

2 Corinthians 1:3-7

Title: CLICHES OF LIFE

We often hear the phrase, “everything happens for a reason”. It’s a cliché but definitely TRUE. Yes, everything in our life happens because God allows it to be that way. Even the sufferings, trials, difficulties, burden, despair, depression, hurt, challenges or whatever you call the unfavourable situation you are in at the moment is known to God. And He allows those to happen because He wants us to despair for life with His presence. He wants us to cling to Him even in our most difficult moment and believe that even suffering has purpose. As said in 2 Corinthians 1 “He comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God”. Therefore, it is not true that during your downfall, God abandons you. As a matter of fact, you can actually be a blessing to others who are in the same situation as yours by the reflection of Jesus in your life despite every trouble you are in. You can be an inspiration to others not only during the best times of your life but also in your low points.

Another cliché? “God will never give you more that you can handle”. And this one is FALSE. If that’s true, then we are superhuman! Imagine easily juggling every challenges in your life all at the same time, that would have been beautiful and absolutely comforting. If that is the case, then we won’t know despair, weakness, trials or we will not even see something as a challenge at all and we will be so comforted that we will not seek the Lord. Sad but true, most people seek Christ when they are placed in situation they can no longer bear. God pushes us even beyond our limit because He wants us to embrace life and despair for more. To understand that walking with God entails trust including favourable, unfavourable, happiness, despair , good and bad circumstances of our life. And we must keep in mind that despite pushing us beyond our borders, He promises life and peace. We must extend that peace, comfort and love we experienced from God to others and be a blessing. Remember, you can never share something you never possess in the first place. Find hope, peace and love in every aspect of your life so you may be able to bring that to the table.

Prayer:

“God of all mercy and God of all comforts, He comforts us so we may be able comfort others”

• Ask for comfort and peace in your heart
• Is there someone in your life that you can share your story and speak of comfort
• Ask God to be able to give you courage to approach that person and speak peace to them

**Whatever situation you are in at the moment, keep in mind that even in our disappointments have purpose. Ask God to use your story and be a blessing to others. Ask for bravery and peace that others may be inspired by your grace and faith despite all the seemingly unfavourable circumstances in your life.

Read. Be inspired. Share your story.

First, This is not a usual blog post that you usually see online. It is more of an open diary of my daily walk with God as I try to restore my faith. I have been through a lot lately and I find it amazing how God turned my life and made sense every single disappointments in it hence, I would like to share that experience to everyone.

Second, bear with me as this is my first blog EVER! I am not even a real writer but I find the urge to share and inspire people with my story. And as you read my notes, may you find your way towards Jesus because this is what this blog is really about, bringing people into God’s kingdom.

Let me share a bit of myself…

I grew up in a christian family, I was part of the sunday school, choir, summer bible class and all the other programs in church. I believe that time that going to church is enough to make me a better person or christian maybe, but as I grow old, I started to walk away from the christian little girl I used to be. I still go to church every sunday but that is more of an obligation than a personal choice.

Then when I was 18 years old, I attended a youth camp after nights and nights of arguing with my mom because I really refused to attend the said event. Being in that camp is really difficult for me, I was the oldest in our group most of them are 13-15years old, but what struck me the most is the manner they worship God. I cant seem to understand the need to raise their hands during praise and worship, even crying during worship doesn’t make sense to me. but seeing those children younger than me, praising God with so much emotions; I was ashamed of myself.

I tried to close my eyes and I saw myself raising my hand before the Lord, I immediately went to one of the private prayer room and started weeping, I realized how far my life have been from God. It is then i felt that I don’t have the right to call myself a christian as I don’t have a distinct relationship with the Lord. Then, we had an activity in that camp asking us to make an epitaph and I wrote:

“A faithful servant of the Lord, bringing good workers into His harvest”.

After the camp, we had a gathering in church asking for volunteers to share their experience. Knowing myself, I will NEVER speak in front of everyone most especially in the presence of my mom but then I heard a voice reminding me of my epitaph and I was surprised that I actually spoke in front and it was an amazing experience,  I must say. So, I was active in church for a while but started to walk away again when the church I used to attend to move in a different location and I get into med school which took up all the time I have in the world. I actually didn’t realize that I’m drifting apart from God. I still go to church though, Pray everyday but daily devotion and church activities are off my list.

I was pretty fine with my life until I reached the bottom…and when I say bottom,  I mean the greatest downfall of my life…

I was heart broken, humiliated, cyber bullied, rumors spread here and there. I never realized that you can literally cry for an entire month. I was shattered! I talk to friends everyday, asking for advice, strength and crying my heart out but No matter how long conversations went, I still felt broken.

After few months of living that way, I decided to open my bible and find strength in Jesus, I tell you.. that was the best decision of my life as I was able to find peace in the midst of everything. I battle with those trying to put me down with Jesus; then suddenly, piece by piece everything went back to normal.

I moved to a different place for a while and the bullying and rumours stopped but I faced another great battle; That was an encounter with my own self. I felt depress, thinking my life has no purpose,  I have no career, no definite plan and the control freak in me is starting to panic, I never like the feeling of not being able to control everything, my heart became ungrateful and I question God’s purpose in my life;

And just when I was at the point of almost giving up and let the depression, frustration and disappointments consume me, I began to hear Jesus and realize how amazing He has been all this time; that He has been faithful all along, It was just I who is ungrateful and impatient.

I started to volunteer in church, participate in choir and do my devotions. I admit, I’m still on the process of seeing God’s purpose in my life.

I know by surrendering the pen to Him, A beautiful story of my life will be created and it is way better than the OC plans i always have for myself.

As you read my blog, I’m praying that God will start to speak to you and feel free to write down some testimonials about how God change your life..I would like to hear inspiring stories as well 🙂