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Thursday, June 30, 2016

Wisdom to the Simple !


"The decree of the Lord is trustworthy, 
giving wisdom to the simple." Psalm 19:8
One of my favorite saints is Saint Joseph of Cupertino. 
His start in life was highly inauspicious. 
He was mostly a nuisance to his family and other people in his village. 
He was simple minded and slow and he could not understand his lessons. 
His mother tried to get rid of him by apprenticing him to a shoemaker, 
then to the monks, but he was always rejected.

Finally he became the caretaker of the mule in the Franciscan monastery. 
After some years, he was asked to study scripture, 
but there was only one verse in the Bible that he managed to master, 
"Blessed is the womb that bore you!" (Luke 11:27) 
When he was being tested for the deaconate, 
the Bishop opened the Bible to that very passage, 
and Saint Joseph was able to explain it well! 
Eventually he became a priest passing his exam by the same grace. 

Indeed we do not need to be smart or  
articulate to do God's will or become a saint! 
Lord, thank You that You do not choose the wise, 
but You make the simple wise by Your Word! 
 
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Wednesday, June 29, 2016

WOYWW: Running the Race!


Last night I decided to 
arrange my paintings 
according to the books of the Bible.
So I took them out of the box. 


  I have been painting for 
several years now
and it is quite a pile! 

But now I have been painting on my Bible. 


  "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, 
I have kept the faith." 2 Timothy 4:7

When I was young, my whole family 
joined the Milo Marathon training. 
It was fun because there were a lot of people joining in. 
I found it funny because during the first and subsequent sessions 
we walked very sloooowly, that I got so bored. 
I would bring a book with me to read while walking. 
That was how serious I was about the training. 
My sister Peggy was more earnest and followed the instructions of the trainer. 
Eventually she finished the course by completing the whole marathon 
while I watched from the sidelines. 
I think it was because I was not seeing the goal. 
I was just there to be with the family and have fun. 
When the going got tough, I opted out. 

As Christians, we have to set our eyes on the prize- eternal life! 
If we don't, we can lose our way. 
We can just be watching from the sidelines 
while others are running the race seriously. 
Lord, may I set my eyes on You, and seriously follow You! 
Like Paul, may I say, "I have fought the good fight, 
I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."




Joining the lovely Julia Dunnit for a 
peek at desks and projects!

I find a lot of inspiration
visiting my friends here:

Blessings!
Patsy 
at 15 comments:

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

WOYWW: Our Inner Room

 There was really nothing interesting on my desk
when I woke up.
So here is what I did this morning.

 After I read the Bible, I chose a verse to illustrate.
Then I found a picture from a magazine
to trace on to my Bible page.

I like painting pictures on my Bible pages
so that I can remember the verse
during the day.

 After painting, I outlined and shaded using a 
brown Stabilo pencil...

 ...and wrote the Bible verse with a .05 unipin.

 "And when you pray, go into Your inner room..." Mt. 6:6

Sometimes people ask, if Jesus was the incarnate Son of God, 
why did He pray so much? 
Isn't it but natural that He really desired to talk to His Father? 
When Jesus was on earth, 
He was separated from His Father 
by space and time and flesh made from dust. 
But Jesus longed to be with His Father. 
Shouldn't we too should have that same longing?


Jesus would go off,
slip away to have long hours
communing with the Father.
People usually slip away to something they really like doing.
We too should slip away to our "inner room" to pray.
It can be a prayer closet, but it can also be our cubicle at work,
the library in school, beside our bed,
somewhere where no one will bother us for some time.

Lord, may You never tire of listening to me,
waiting for me to "grow up",
and becoming the person You purposed me to be.
Thank You Lord, that in my "inner room",
You come and meet me for our special time together!




Joining the lovely Julia Dunnit for a 
peek at desks and projects!

I find a lot of inspiration
visiting my friends here:

Blessings!
Patsy
at 10 comments:

Wednesday, June 08, 2016

WOYWW: Salt of the Earth

This is what I woke up to this morning.
I was too sleepy last night to pack away.

 Here is what I was working on.
I like long necklaces with lots of thingamabobs,
whatever! I have too many thingys 
and not enough time to put them together!

 "You are the salt of the earth...." Matthew 5:13

During the times of Jesus, they had no refrigerators nor freezers. 
Food like fish and meat would not keep for long 
unless they dried it or salted it. 
Today most salt is cheap and we can easily find it. 
But in ancient times, it was used as a currency, 
and people carried salt cakes around 
to barter with or buy something with. 
Roman soldiers were at some point paid in salt, 
and that's why we have the idiom, "worth his weight in salt". 
Taxes on salt have even inspired revolutions! 
And according to a salt company, 
the compound has more than 14,000 uses! 

When Jesus told the crowd, "You are the salt of the earth," 
He probably meant a lot of things. 
You are of immense value in the world. 
The world is corrupt and headed for destruction, 
and in need of preserving. 
And so that is the value of the Church in the world. 
Many today do not see the need for the Church. 
They think of the church as a building 
where people go to have religious services. 
But the Church is the people, the believers of Christ. 
We have a role to play to preserve what is of value in the world. 

2 Chronicles 7:14 emphasizes how important it is for us, 
the people of God to be salt and light in the world: 
"If MY PEOPLE, which are called by My name, 
shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, 
and turn from their wicked ways: then I will hear from heaven, 
and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." 

Yes, Lord, today more than ever, 
help us to be the salt of the earth!  
Help us to humble ourselves, pray, seek Your face, and repent! 
Forgive us O Lord of our iniquities, and hear us!




Joining the lovely Julia Dunnit for a 
peek at desks and projects!

I find a lot of inspiration
visiting my friends here:

Blessings!
Patsy

at 15 comments:

Wednesday, June 01, 2016

WOYWW: Our Eyes on the Lord!

What's on my workdesk?
Well, I've only gotten around to putting 
my ATCs in envelopes
and addressing them!
I'm using mashi tape my bother Robert designed
and stickers my sister designed!
All filipino themed!

 "As the eyes of the maid are on the hands of her mistress, so are our eyes on the Lord, our God, until He shall be gracious to us." Psalm 123:2

Sometimes we think the opposite, that the eyes of the Lord are on us, much like the eyes of a maid are on the hands of her mistress. The maid waits until her mistress flicks her hand to indicate she needs something done. In Luke 17, Jesus tells the story of a servant who had been busy working in the field the whole day. When the servant comes in from a hard day's work, will the Master say to him, "Come and sit down. I will serve you wine and drink." No, the Master will expect that servant to serve him. "Will he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do?" It is important for us to know God and how He thinks. Of course God's ways and His thoughts are far above us. But the Bible shows us His character in so much as words can express and describe. Yes, Jesus is our friend and brother. He never leaves us nor forsakes us. We can depend on Him. BUT we also need to follow and obey Him. There are many instructions in the Bible. We cannot just pick and choose what we want from the Bible.


Lord, show me the ways I displease You. Teach me to be not only Your friend, but also to follow and obey You! 



Joining the lovely Julia Dunnit for a 
peek at desks and projects!

I find a lot of inspiration
visiting my friends here:

Blessings!
Patsy

at 5 comments: