Wordsmith for God

If the Master comes in the midst of this pandemic, will you be found obeying or complaining? The Enhanced Community Quarantine observed in various cities and municipalities might be extended together with the ongoing lockdown of Luzon to curb the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. There are 3,660 confirmed cases, 73 recorded recoveries and 163 documented deaths in our country as of April 6, 2020 according to Worldometer. President Rodrigo Roa Duterte said on his National Address last April 5, 2020 that the 100 billion for one month or the 270 billion for two months is not enough. He himself does not know until when we will have to stay inside our homes. It’s easy for us to get discouraged about the unpleasant circumstance we are facing today. We might find ourselves complaining due to the discomfort we are experiencing – draining savings, running out food supplies, boring quarantine days and tiring quarantine routine. We all want our normal li...

“Maayo pa ang among panghugas sa plato kay may JOY. Ako kay wala na gyud. Kasamok aning quarantine oy!” The Enhanced Community Quarantine due to COVID-19 might be extended up to April 30 as stated by the president on his national address last night, April 6, 2020. But what if instead of being quarantined, we are imprisoned? “Ada oy, mura naman gihapon ta ug piniriso ani atong kahimtang,” you might say. But let’s differentiate quarantine and imprisonment. If you are quarantined, looking at the experience we are having right now, we still have the privilege to go out the street to at least give our eyes a quick refreshing view. We have the privilege to go and buy some essential items we need at home. We are able to communicate freely through various means of communication being offered by today’s technology. We spend each passing day with our family in the comfort of our homes. But if you are imprisoned, you can’t do all of those you could do if you are quarantined. Yo...

How can you be happy when your source of happiness has been quarantined? Everyone wants to be happy; we make this elusive ideal a lifelong pursuit: succeeding in our careers, marrying our “ideal” partner, traveling around the globe, obtaining material possessions, spending money, and making memories with family and friends. But if our happiness depends on circumstances, what will happen if we do not get the promotion we’ve been working on for years, face a love that will not  be able to walk down the aisle, become financially incapable of traveling or spending, lose our material possessions, loved one dies, and the party is over? Often happiness flees and despair sets in. Joy stands in contrast to happiness. Joy is the quiet, confident assurance of God’s love and work in our lives – that he will be there no matter what! It runs deeper and stronger. Happiness depends on happenings, but joy depends on Christ. Joy is a dominant theme in the letter sent by Paul...

I never knew I could hate this much until she came. How would you feel when the man you love sets His eye on another woman? How will you respond to the people who teased them towards each other? What will you do with the pain that they have caused you? These questions haunted me for months. I’ve been speaking and teaching about forgiveness for years. I thought I knew what forgiveness is after wrestling with it for years after the devastating havoc I faced when my parents parted ways. But no, I haven’t learned that much about forgiveness until my own relationship started to fall apart. The man whom I loved fell on a blinding trap placed by an enemy as we went through the renovation of our hearts. Yes, he got himself involved with another woman. I prayed for him in those days I was chasing God because I was hungry and thirsty for Him. In the midst of my obedience was his battle towards obedience. The woman whom he got himself involved with was teased to him by people ...