We cannot merely pray

We cannot merely pray to You, O God, to end war;
For we know that You have made the world in a way
That man must find his own path to peace
Within himself and with his neighbor.

We cannot merely pray to You, O God, to end starvation;
For you have already given us the resources
With which to feed the entire world
If we would only use them wisely.

We cannot merely pray to You, O God, to root out prejudice,
For you have already given us eyes
With which to see good in all men.

We cannot merely pray to You, O God, to end despair,
For you have already given us the power
To clear away slums and to give hope
If we would only use our power justly.

We cannot merely pray to You, O God, to end disease,
For you have already given us great minds with which
To search out cures and healing,
If we would only use them constructively.


Therefore we pray to You instead, O God,
For strength, determination, and willpower,
To do instead of just to pray,
To become instead of merely to wish.

JACK RIEMER,
Likrat Shabbat



This is an eye opener for most of  us who keep on praying which is within our power so as to spare us the obligation of doing it.

Sometimes we pray too much and take actions less.

We cannot merely pray. We need to take actions and start it within ourselves even though we are surrounded by the world filled with pain, suffering and discouragement.

Waiting in God's Time

One fine day in my class, before I started my lesson, I gave my students the bird's eye view of what they are going to learn and do in the class. All of them sat on the edge of their seats when I told them they would be seeing a funny video clip which I downloaded from the internet. Of course, I told them that they would see it at the end of our lesson (to take hold of their attention throughout the lesson proper). They eagerly begged me to show it immediately but I explained in a calm voice, "No. All of you must pay attention to our lesson first and after that, I will show you the video."

The lesson ran smoothly and they eagerly participated in the discussion. They managed to behave well in the class especially those having highly electrically charged batteries.hehe

Finally, the moment they had been waiting for came. They laughed off their heads while watching the video and they even asked me to play it for them for the second time and so I did.


Waiting is one of the difficult things to do, whether we're waiting for our turn, a phone call or an unanswered prayer. Most of the times, we become impatient and question why we have to wait for a long time to get what we want. We even dare to question God's abilities and intentions.


The way I see it is: God has a different time device which determines as to when He will give us something that we asked for. His ways are different. He looks at the whole bigger picture rather us paying attention to every details of our lives.

Therefore, we just have to keep calm and wait patiently until the right time comes. Besides, the feeling is inexplicable when you receive something you asked for a long time just like when you wait for the flowers to bloom or for the caterpillar to turn into a beautiful butterfly.

So, in times of waiting for something you asked for, you should never give up. You only need to think that God is still designing your request in such a special way that it would be perfectly fit just for you.

Four tips to prevent from losing your things

Have you ever lost your brand new shoes which you preserved for quite a while because you treasure them so much that you won't even wear them because you think they're fragile?

These are my Adidas shoes I recently lost at the residence apartment where I am currently staying.I just realized that I had lost them last Sunday when I was unpacking my stuffs from the huge carton box which I placed by the corridor.

http://www.famousfootwear.com/en-US/Product/32253-1030758/adidas/Grey_Indigo_Blue/Mens+Neo+Daily+Vulc+Low+Top+Sneaker.aspx

I was infuriated because of the fact that I'm in love with them. I talked to one of the security guards to go and and check the recorded footage from the surveillance camera. He simply gave me the nod approval that he would look into it. After that, I felt like something has changed from the way I look at the local employees in the apartment. I didn't smile back at them which I usually do whenever I meet them along the corridor. Totally pissed off I was until my view around me went murky.

After a couple of days, I eventually woke up from the unlikely resentment which I felt.

 There have been no news about my shoes so I just decided to let go of them. I was told to report the case to the head owner of the apartment, but then I replied, "I'm almost over with it. Maybe,someone really needed those shoes of mine."


Based from this experience, I came up with four tips on how to prevent from losing your things:
 

1. Follow your instincts.
According to Lillian Glass, Ph.D., we should not ignore the inner voice that screams at you when you feel something is not right. I already had the voice telling me that someone would be tempted to take my shoes if I left them outside but then, I ignored it.

2. Be proactive.
Think and act right away. I could have prevented my shoes from being stolen if I only had placed them into my room.

3.Trust no one.
This  especially applies if you are a new face from the place where you stay no matter how holy you think it is.

4.Do not put so much thought and heart to your property.
Nothing is permanent on earth. Earthly things can easily perish. Besides, we can't even take them to heaven when we leave the world.

By following these tips, you can minimize losing your things. If you lose any, the impact would be less disastrous. hehe!

How to read a person like a book

Tonight, another book was tested for its credibility and worth. I have just finished reading the book entitled: "How to read a person like a book."

www.goodreads.com

I couldn't ask for a better book cause it taught me so much things on how the human body reacts and respond to a given particular setting with a number of different people. This book sparked my interest to watch people around me especially in my line of work.hehehe!

 I definitely like the illustration shown for certain number of gestures that would make you say "Aha! Voila! No wonder why" etc. -thus, making every page very interesting and comprehensive.

Why don't you take a look at the illustration below and try to guess what each is trying to tell you.

http://cathymorrison.blogspot.com

This book is very helpful for everyone especially those people in business, teaching, marketing, and others, On a less serious note, it can also help those people who are dating, in a relationship, and even married couples.

Reading the body language is not an easy skill and yet it can be learned in due time with practice and focus. There are so many clues and signals that people transmit to us that we often don't care about which leads to misunderstanding and conflict. Conflict and other things as such can be avoided by paying attention to the  cluster gestures, voice tone and facial expressions.

I can only imagine how better our societies could be if everyone pays attention to the body signals that unveil what we really want to say which will then promote understanding and peace.

Pacquiao vs Mayweather: Lessons Learned

May 2, 2015

All the eyes of the boxing world were on these two well-renowned icons in the ring for it was considered as the fight of the century. Boxing fans all over the world have waited for so long just to make this fight happen.

History was made as the final scores were made public right after the fight. Random claims and allegations spread throughout the internet as to who really won the fight.

Well, it was a tough fight for both boxers. Each of them possesses unique offensive and defensive styles and tactics. 

Manny Pacquiao, a southpaw boxer, has a very quick and responsive footwork which allows him to move quickly in and out of the fighting radius.He also has the power jabs and straight combinations which can stun and leave his opponent off guard. Pacquiao is an aggressive fighter who goes in frenzy mode especially at the first round. He throws his punches really fast.He would take his chances to knock down his opponent as soon as he can. 

www.popfeeder.com

On the other hand, Floyd Mayweather's style is different. Unlike Pacquiao, Mayweather is an accurate puncher. He is very careful with every single punch he throws. He makes sure that his throws will land on his opponent. Also, he is a very good counter puncher which also makes him a good defensive boxer.

Mayweather won the contest with the unanimous decision 116-112 and 118-110.

Manny as well as the netizens are claiming that Manny should have won the fight for they believe that the fight was rigged.

Whatever the claims and theories are, for me, the question as to who really won the match is not important anymore.

In my book, both of them are winners. Mayweather on one point was crowned as the undefeated boxer in WBC.  On the other hand, Pacquiao may have lost in the match, but he was able to win the hearts of the boxing fans across the globe. 

Their fight didn't happen for no reason.

I believe that both fighters have learned their own lessons. Mayweather should realise that boxing is not only about the glory and the money, but it's about humility,honor,dignity and respect to all the opponents he had fought. Pacquiao's lesson could be looking at a bigger picture or reason for his defeat. It might be an acid test to his faith whether he will keep on wearing his necklace of faith or not.

Mary Jane Veloso's case: truly a miracle?

Filipinos across the globe are rejoicing for letting Mary Jane Veloso live for her death penalty case was reprieved. 

Mary Jane Veloso, a 30 year old single mother was arrested and sentenced to death for smuggling heroin into Indonesia in 2010. Her case sparked international commotion because she was spared from the nearly death penalty in the last minute.

She was reprieved because the alleged human trafficker, Maria Kristina Sergio surrendered to the police and Veloso will be the witness in court to prove her innocence on the said case.(Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Her mother couldn't believe that her daughter was still alive and she said that it was indeed a miracle.

What would you feel if you were in the shoe of Veloso, sitting in the room  and waiting that you're going to be executed through a firing squad. Then, all of a sudden a phone call from your country comes informing you that the human trafficker surrendered to the police authority admitting the crime which he kept for five years and you were suddenly pulled out from the place where you must be executed.

This is truly a

MIRACLE!

I was left stunned and  speechless when I read the news that my fellow OFW was spared as I thought that she was going to be executed because Jokowi rejected her clemency.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/68114615/firing-squad-8-killed-including-bali-nine-pair

This is another testimony that prayers are so powerful and can truly work miracles. Filipinos all over the world showed their public support through mass prayers. The government exhausted their effort in order to save her. As a result, Mary  Jane is still alive trying to prove her innocence.

I declare my firm support on her innocence not only by the fact that she is my fellow citizen but I also believe that justice must prevail and truth will set her free.

 I pray that she will be given a fair trial and let the world know about her story and her struggles. I also pray that she will never break and believe that for as long as there's a gleam of hope, she must never fail to hold on to God's promises.

AMEN.

The Blogger's Wish

Yes!

It's my birthday today!

How old am I?

That's not important. What you should know about is it's really my birthday today!

 

If you're asking me whether I had a blast on my birthday or not....Well, congratulations! It was a super happy birthday! Though I am feeling under the weather, the people around me made me forget about it and just made me focus and enjoy my birthday.

Thanks to my girlfriend who has always been creative,passionate and hardworking to give me a pleasant surprise. She made a video clip which I came to watch the people so close to me deliver their speeches of greetings and blessings for me here and abroad. My heartbeat stops for a few seconds while watching with amazement thinking how she did piece everything together. It was a very intricate task which takes a whole lot of patience in order to make such a moving video clip. 

Well, that doesn't end there. I had to go to the hospital for a medical check up because of the severe flu I am bearing. Then, it was immediately followed by a dental check up. After that,  I, together with my girlfriend, my brother and his family and a close friend, had our lunch at a steak restaurant.  Then, we went to another place to have my hair cut and had our tea time. We chatted and laughed together cherishing the old times and wondering how are we going to be like a few years from now. Finally, we headed home to have our dinner. It was a long worthwhile day. I wished that I could have more time to spend my birthday to the other people close to me, but unfortunately, I was really unwell so I had  to reach home and have a night rest.

 

I am so glad and thankful for the countless blessings that I received for this year. I can't even remember all of them one by one. My highest thanks to Lord Jesus Christ who never cease to amaze me every single day of my life with his wonderful touch and unparalleled grace that overflows upon my hands. I thank Him for using the people around me who continually inspire me and show how beautiful things are in all of my endeavors.

If I could have only one wish, it would be that the people I care and love so much about would receive the bountiful blessings and genuine happiness so I could see the priceless smiles on their faces which will in return bless me as well.

=)