Rooted and Rising 2018

This year’s single’s camp is nothing but memorable to me. Enjoying the beauty of nature and meeting new people are just two of the highlights of my camp this year. But what I really want to talk about is what the Lord revealed in my heart and the learnings that I took with me. Below are three things that spoke clearly to me in this theee-day camp 💕 

IMPORTANCE OF IDENTITY Day one, Pastor Gilbert Foliente talked about the importance of identity. In a generation where people obsess over identity, it is important to ask, “Who are we really? And who gets to decide who we are?” After Ptr. Gilbert talked about how we can be deeply rooted in Christ with our identity, later that day, I reflected, pondered on what I learned and asked “Lord, remind me again who I am” First, He said you are Brave. And I know I am, because I’m a risk taker when it comes to decision making, career opportunities and many other things. But at times, I forget that God created me this way when fear creeps in and when the ocean of life is too vast to be crossed. Sometimes, I let fear of the future define me. So I’d rather stay on the shore when in fact the Lord gave me the ability to cross the water and walk on it. You see sometimes, there are a lot of voices telling us who we are and defining who we should be. That night I was reminded to liten to one voice. The voice of my shepherd. Jesus knows me, the deepest parts of me and when He says I am brave. Then I should believe that indeed, I am. Second He said, you are forgiven. Just about two months ago, I had a deep conversation with the Lord about forgiveness. The Lord dealt with me about mistake I did in the past. I couldn’t let go of the thought of why can’t it be undone? Why can’t we erase things we don’t want to be part of our story anymore? Lord just make me forget! But Jesus spoke to me. “Tin, it’s not about forgetting, it’s about forgiveness” As it turns out, I understood God’s forgiveness enough to extend it to others, but not enough to receive it for myself. I have let a part of my past shame and condemn me, when in fact, Jesus already forgave and set me free. That day God reminded me, that my mistakes does not define me. What He did on the cross does. He purposefully did not remove my mistakes from my memory to show me that no matter how dark a person’s past may be, He can restore him/her from it. To show us, that Jesus is bigger than our failures and our God is the kind that specializes in redemption. So dear believer, if you are like me stuck in the mistakes of the past, please never forget to forgive yourself. The cross is a daily reminder that you are not shamed, nor condemned but loved and accepted. Because Jesus died, you are now forgiven and free. Third He said, you are my love. In a world where brokenness is evident and people’s love are expected to fail, It’s so affirming to hear that there’s a kind of love that’s pure, unique and never changes. He said in His word, “I have loved you with an everlasting love”- jeremiah 31:3 I thought, who could promise something like that to me? Only Jesus can. Everlasting means my past, my present, and future is covered by His love. There’s nothing I can do to make Him love me less nor anything I can do to make Him love me more. Knowing this, brings my security in the Lord to a whole new level. Because even if the love of everyone in this world fails, I am assured that there’s a kind of love that never fails. And that’s Jesus’ love for me. IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNITY Day two, we talked about church community. Trying to live an upright life inside a broken world is not an easy task. Everyday, we are persuaded by the world to think and react by the flesh. But that’s not God’s will for us. We are to be in the world, but not of it. That’s why we need a community. Because living a Christian life is an everyday battle. Have you ever seen a warrior going to a battle by himself? No. Because it’s impossible to win a fight alone. Reflect on your own journey. You have not been doing it alone. The Lord specifically and strategically placed people in your life , your mentors and your mirrors, to fight the good fight of faith with you. I remember what I learned about the arctic white wolf. They are fast, smart, can fend for itself but it chooses not to. It chooses to run with a pack. Do you know why? When one of the wolves decides to fend for itself, the other pack kills the loner wolf. Isolation kills. That’s why it runs with a pack. It realizes that it is stronger as part of a group.  It’s the same with our spiritual walk. Our battles are not meant to be fought alone. Like these wolves, no matter how strong we think we are, we are still stronger being part of a group that encourages us and reinforces God’s truth in our lives. But it is our choice, to run with a pack or to run alone. 

Remember that story in Mark 2:1-4? Jesus healed a paralyzed man. This man who couldn’t walk, was literally carried by his friends and brought him to Jesus. Doesn’t this story sound familiar to you? All of us are like this paralyzed man. Sometimes, when our journey in life is overwhelming and at times when we don’t have the stamina to pray and fight, those mighty men and women of God around us are the ones who fights our battles with us and draws us close to Jesus just so we can “walk” again. 

IMPORTANCE OF THIS SEASON Day three, Pastor Cj discussed on how God likens us to an olive tree because it’s the kind of tree that bears fruit straight from the root. However, what spoke to me the most is the mission for this season. First is to impact people. We Christians, are carriers of God’s glory. We are meant to impact people’s lives at a high degree. As carriers of His glory, it is our mission to bring the presence of God to each and every hearts by reflecting Jesus in our lives. Paul says it better in 2 corinthians 3:3 “show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.” Let your life be God’s hands and feet. Let your mouth be His mouthpiece. One of my biggest motivation in writing is to impact people. When I started blogging my journey with Jesus, my prayer was simple. “Lord, even if it’s just one soul that reads this blog, I hope it will impact his/her life greatly.” Ask yourself, what is it in your hand, what is that God blessed you with that you can use to impact people? Second is to share the gospel. Keep this in mind: The next unsaved person you meet, is your mission field. Yes we are called to make disciples of all nations, but truth is we don’t even need to go that far. There are a lot of people living in darkness around us. It could be in our offices, in our neighborhood, even under the roof of our own homes.

I remember that time when I went to Sagada, we went inside the cave and it was so dark inside. I enjoyed my time there, but minus the fun, the darkness is suffocating to me. Four hours of spelunking later, I was glad to see the light of day. Doing that activity that made me realize how oppressive darkness can be. I was there for only a few hours, but to some people, walking in darkness is a real-life daily experience. Just imagine what these people go through everyday. 

Believers, let us use every opportunity to share Jesus. There are a lot of people around us who are desperate to see the light. Many are hopeless, tired, and at the point of giving up. 

You know why Jesus tells us to be the light and salt of this world? Light is easy to understand. But why salt? You see, in in places where there is winter, people use salt to melt ice on the road. That’s exactly what we are. The message that we carry with us is the salt that has the ability to thaw people’s hearts. Some people’s hearts have become hard, and calloused because of the things they have gone through in life. But the message we carry can change that. It can thaw people’s hearts, so they could see Jesus in their situation.  Encourage someone, share Jesus to an officemate, share your testimony to anyone near you today. Married or not married, this is what we are called to do. To bring the message of the gospel to each and every person we will come across in this lifetime. 

So there you have it, those are the things I learned from this camp. I have always believed that God doesn’t do things in random, and in my heart I know that God brought me in this camp for a specific purpose. Even the people that I met and shared life with is aligned to God’s plan. Because there are no coincidences, only divine appointments 💙

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Introducing TEAM JAGUAR!!! Champion team this year!!! 🏆🏆🏆 

What I loved the most about this team are the stories that we shared about each other’s lives and seeing each of us function in the giftings and skills God gave us. Each of us is unique and different but an important part of this group. Couldn’t be more proud of our team sulit lahat ng pagod,puyat,pawis at paos hahaha! Couldn’t thank the Lord enough for adding these valuable people in my life ♥️ Love you guys!!! 

Kami ang Jaguars!!! Mabangis!!! 🏆