Empowering The Youth.

* this has been the longest 8.53 minutes of my life! as in! delivering the sermon in the bicol service was just a step towards "spiritual maturity" (nice earl!) i SUPER like to thank God for giving me the "divine intervention" i was waiting for on the last minute! (friday night lang!) and of course to my mom for being very supportive and being with me through those sleepless nights. (umiiyak na ko pero sya hawak pa yung mga devotional books at nag-eexplain sakin.) and of course thank you my EMC ates, kuyas and gurlfriends, yung mga simpleng "kaya mo yan!" nyo made me believe na kaya ko nga! :)

*while singing the hymn of preparation

poch: huuuu.. lizette malapit na ko.. chorus na!!
lizette: kaya mo yan ate poch! GO!
poch: ayoko na magsalita.. NATATAE NA KO!!!
lizette: mamaya ka nalang tumae ate pagtapos mo magsermon!

NICE ONE! :)

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GOOD MORNING to all the beautiful people in this service!

I hope that you are happy to be in church today as we come together to worship the Lord. Up to this time, I am still wondering why I am the one chosen to be the speaker for this service. But still I am very thankful that I was given this opportunity to stand before you as today’s speaker for the first time.

I know that the Lord has His purpose in giving me this wonderful chance to serve Him and I know that He will empower me with the Holy Spirit as I speak to you today.

LET US PRAY.

Our Heavenly Father,

Thank you for giving us this beautiful day

That we could come together to worship you

And to give you thanks and heartful praise

For all your bountiful blessings to each one of us

Open our hearts and minds as we listen to your Word.

Amen.

Today, we are celebrating “YOUTH SUNDAY” and we will reflect on today’s theme that is “EMPOWERING THE YOUTH”.

What does the word EMPOWERING mean?

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PROVERBS 22:6 SAYS:

“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

I was about 6 years old then when my mom first brought me to attend Sunday School back at our home church. This Bible verse was posted at the bulletin board of the classroom and every Sunday, I never fail to read this verse over and over and came to memorize it by heart without fully understanding what it really means.

As days, soon years passed by, I’ve come to realize that my life journey had been well motivated by the teachings I’ve learned not only from our home but also from attending Sunday School and Sunday Services. Studying in a Christian School is also a plus factor as we are also taught Christian Values Education; we studied about the stories of different Bible Characters and about the teachings of Jesus.

With these meaningful lessons that I’ve learned, the verse on PROVERBS 22:6 has come to a full understanding. And this is where my faith journey begins.

Each phase of our life has unique advantages and problems. And God stays with us through each of those phases. As we get older, things change. We must drop some things, and we must start with others.

In PSALMS 71:18 we read:

“Now that I am old and my hair is gray, do not abandon me O God. Be with me while I proclaim your power and might to all generations to come.”

We could notice that David’s focus is not simply on his needs. He wants to have his needs met so that he can share the Word of God with others. THIS IS EMPOWERMENT TO A HIGH DEGREE. J

In our New Testament text today which can be found on PHILIPPIANS 3:17 says:

“Keep on imitating me, my friends; pay attention to those who follow the right example we have set for you.”

This was Paul’s attempt to encourage the Philippians to do good. Even though he was in jail, this did not become a hindrance for him to deliver God’s message.

But the best example of an EMPOWERED YOUTH is Jesus. In the Bible we’ve read the story about Jesus who was already teaching at the synagogue at the age of 12. Youth of today remember this: AGE is not a HINDRANCE in serving the Lord. We should take Jesus’ example as an inspiration for us to spread the word of God.

Easier said than done right? We may even doubt ourselves on how will we do it. But we should also remember that God will be there to guide us.

I remember when I first volunteered to teach vacation Church School at the age of 14. I didn’t have any idea on how to do it. I just got my lesson guide, some art materials, and then I pray to God to ask for guidance.. and then THAT’S IT!

But I’ve come to realize that it is not on HOW you teach that matters; it is on the manner you’ve reached out to the ones you’ve taught. If they walk away from you’re lesson that day without remembering a single thing about it, then you are not a good teacher, and what you’ve taught them didn’t have an effect on them.

We should put in mind that teaching or spreading the Word of God must come from our hearts and not just with our mouth. And the most important thing is that we should ask God to use us as instruments in delivering His good news especially to the young ones, or in this case, the youth.

If you feel that you are WEAK because you are still young, the Bible says that our weakness can be overcome through prayer. If we are resorting to the Lord continually in prayer, and laying hold in His promises, if we are saying that the best is yet to come and we praise God more and more, THEN WE CAN GROW OLD AND GRAY HEADED WITHOUT FEAR!

By surrendering our weaknesses to the Lord we’ll be able to glorify Him and we’ll be able to share His word with others in the next generation. Even our situation in life should not be a hindrance in rendering our service for our Heavenly Father. The apostle Paul took advantage of his situation while in jail to proclaim the Good news of Salvation.

Let me share with you 4 situations wherein God displays His empowerment on us:

1) GOD EMPOWERS US IN OUR WEAKNESS

- Each one of us was given different gifts and talents that we could use in our service to others. We may think that our weaknesses may pull us down, but these are the things that God use in order for us to come back to Him for comfort. As what Pastor Gane has said to us when we are having our sermon-writing workshop; he stated that “LET THE AFFLICTED BE COMFORTED, AND LET THE COMFORTED BE AFFLICTED.” If we all pray continually to God, we can be assured that God will help us even at the lowest points of our lives.

2) GOD EMPOWERS US WHEN WE ARE CONFUSED

- God said “Don’t worry, just have faith in me and I’ll never allow you to be confused.” There are times when we cannot firmly decide on certain things; but again, we should pray to God and trust in Him that He will lead us to the right decision. It may not be the one we wanted, but God knows what we need and that we should just put our trust on Him that He will provide it for us.

3) GOD EMPOWERS US SO WE WON’T LIVE IN THE PAST

- Too often we say “Back in the Good Old Days…” but perhaps the good old days were not that good. David acknowledges in PSALMS 71:5 “For You are my hope, O Lord God”. He was living in the future. WE DON’T KNOW WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS, BUT WHAT WE DO KNOW IS THAT GOD HOLDS OUR FUTURE.

4) GOD EMPOWERS US EVEN AT TIMES WHEN WE ARE COMPLAINING

- We tend to complain when we face problems, trials and challenges in our lives, but remember that God is always with us. Because His timing is perfect, we must wait, trust, and NOT COMPLAIN. It’s easy to complain, but we need to wait in silence before the Lord. And praise Him, because one day you will look back and UNDERSTAND WHY YOU HAD TO WAIT.

As I close, I’d like to leave you this CHALLENGE:

· FIRST, as Youth of today, let us continue to set a good example of HOW TO LIVE A CHRISTIAN WAY OF LIFE.

· SECOND, let us continue preserving our CHRISTIAN HERITAGE we have inherited from our parents and elders for the future generations.

· LASTLY, let us continue to live a life that would magnify our testimony for God.

Dearly beloved EMC youth of today, let us all join hands in sharing with others the gift of salvation our Lord Jesus offered when he died on the cross, AND TOGETHER LET US ALL EMPOWER THE YOUTH OF TOMORROW!


AMEN.

It Is DONE! :)

YEAH BOI! at last tapos na rin yung sermon. wuhoo! :) para akong nabunutan ng tinik. i'll just have to pray a little bit more for my delivery nalang. haaaay! bigla naman akong na-excite on sunday. :) sayang lang i won't be able to join the other speakers for the practice tom eh. (nice one earl! late announcement! hehehe..) but then ipapasa ko nalang kay SIR EARL PAOLO JACULBE at kay pastora linda for proof reading. :)

can't wait! :)

thank you Lord for the guidance & wisdom. :)

B*Mode Switched On!

sa sobrang galit ko pinigilan ko ang sarili kong i-blog yung mga details ng nangyari this day dahil baka magkaroon ng mga "explicit content" yung blog ko! let this equation sum it all up:

cramps (2nd day's the worst!) + 40++ annoying customers(mostly senior citizen!) + super lakas na ulan na nag-iwan ng mataas na baha! + 200++ frap drinks + walang pagkain pag uwi ko + my "user" "friend" is BACK! = SEPTEMBER 09,2008 OF MELAI'S LIFE!

saksi si mama sa pagkabadtrip ko this day! dumaan kasi sya sa store eh. saktong maraming tao, at hindi ko napansin na matagal na pala syang nakatayo sa hand-off pane. nung humupa na yung tao chaka ko sya nakita.

M: toxic ka anak?
P: yeah! daming tao. dami-daming gusto. antayin nyo na ko mag-out.
M: eh matagal ka pa eh! 8pm palang.
P: gusto ko na umuwi eh.
M: eh anong gagawin ko? sige na uuwi na ko manonood pa ko T.V. eh, ingat ka pauwi ha? lab u! :)

haaaay! wala talaga kong panama sa TV! :)

and about my "user" "friend" being back? isa lang masasabi ko: "I'M MAD NA YAYA! YOU WON'T LIKE ME WHEN I' M MAD YAYA!"

*aloi, jai, ate jojie.... this calls for a NAKED JUICE BAR date! (alam nyo na siguro yun!)

update: hindi parin gumagalaw sermon ko! salamat sa mga taong nagtitiwala; sana yung tiwala nyo samahan nyo narin ng prayers! :) *huuuug*

Divine Intervention.

REMINDER TO SELF: SEPTEMBER 21, 2008 YOUTH SUNDAY!

OMG! wala pa kong nasisimulan na kahit ano for my sermon on youth sunday. :( super worried ako kasi aside from the fact na first time kong gagawin to ever, wala pa kong nafifeel na divine intervention. yung parang "Holy-Spirit-working-in-you" kind of thing to help you deliver God's message. HINDI ITO BIRO! and i am really taking this seriously. kaya nga ako somewhat natotoxic eh, iba kasing responsibility yung nafifeel ko. :( one wrong move at baka may malihis ng landas dahil sa content ng sermon ko diba? huuuuu.

actually my mom was very supportive of these and giving me ideas and some books to help me compose my sermon (hindi ba obvious na wala pa kong nagagawang kahit ano kasi i keep calling it "my sermon!" ni topic wala pa!) kaya lang hindi ko pa ma-gather yung thoughts ko eh. sabog pa sya as in! dami kasi iniisip eh. haaaay.

"LORD grant me thy wisdom."

To Watch Or Not To Watch?

syempre ano pa ba naman ang tinutukoy ko? eh di yung "FOR THE FIRST TIME" ni KC Concepcion at Richard Gutierrez. ano ba? papanoorin ko ba 'to o hindi?

kahapon magkausap kami ni ate jojie..

J: ano poch papanoorin ba naten 'to?
P: ewan ko! hindi ko kasi talaga sila gusto eh.
J: oo nga! *kc tone* "i get it.. i'm not perfect"
P: pati yung *kc tone* "sandali nauutot ako"
J: parang HELOOOO! yung ibang tao ba hindi umuutot?

at natpos ang pag-uusap namin ng hindi nasasagot kung manonood kami o hindi.. :)

tapos later that night si mama naman..

P: ma, nonood ba tayo nung kay KC?
M: parang tanga naman yung ginawa ng GMA dun, sinabay yung birthday celebration nila marian at dingdong sa premier night nung pelikula nila richard, diba? sabi nila support pero sinabayan nila ng event. at araneta pa ha? libre sa lahat!
P: eh wala tayong magagawa dun, sikat sila marian at dingdong eh, patok ang chemistry. pati mas marami ang ma-a-accomodate ng araneta kesa ng SM Megamall noh?
M: wag ka na maingay PDA na..

at for the second time around once more.. hindi nasagot ang tanong ko.. :)

reasons for me to watch that movie:

*para yung magiging judgements ko will be based on MY OWN experience
*para may bragging rights ako since i spent/ will spend php130 for watching that movie
*para makapag-blog ng BONGGANG-BONGGA! :)
* it is directed by Bb. Joyce Bernal (yuck! nakiki-binibini?) isa sa mga magagaling sa mga love stories yan!
*syempre STAR CINEMA yan, hindi ko palalagpasin yan! :) (sana lang hindi ulit ako ma-dissapoint!)

reasons for me not to watch that movie:

*wala akong kasama.. :( (ALOOOOOY! nasaan ka pag kailangan kitaaaa?)
*hindi rin yata pwede si ate jojie ngayon..
*wala na kong kilala pang ibang pwedeng manood nito na hindi makokornihan (except for mom!)
*3pm pasok ko ngayon, 11:30am na nagyon at nag-bo-blog pa ko.. baka ma-late nanaman ako sa shift ko katulad nung nangyari nung nanood ako ng "a very special love"
*sakto nalang pera ko till payday.. :s (eh bukas na yun! so pwede?)

ayan! na-exag nanaman yata ang reaction ko sa mga bagay-bagay. mamaya pag nabasa ni kuya mako sasabihin nya lang.. "ttsss.. hay nakoooo!" hahaha! (peace kuya mako!) don't worry, kung sakaling panoorin ko yun mamaya, mag-bo-blog agad ako para magbigay ng warning at hidni na maaksaya yung pera nyo! hehehe. :) oh sya dito nalang, i think i've decided (hehehe..) MANONOOD AKO! weee.. till here.. ligo na ko.. :)

OOOOPS!! wait a minute kapeng mainit!! dahil sa reply ni ate jojie (below) ay pinuntahan ko ang site ng peyups at binasa ang mga review nila about the movie, and here is my top 2 favorites:
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BASURA!!!

screenplay:
kahit sinong matinong tao, masasabing walang cohesion, progression and logic ang script!
kung napanuod niyo ang a very special love, alam nyo na ang kwento ng for the first time.

cinematography:
OUT OF FOCUS!!! anak ng ***! simula dun sa greek wedding party hanggang mga 30 minutes after, defocused ang camera at masakit sa mata na blur ang mga imahe!!! nakakalokaaa!

acting:
nag-sit in si candy pangilinan for eugene domingo. siya na nga lang yung magandang bagay sa pelikulang ito (aside from closeups ni richard), bigla na lang siyang nawala sa pelikula sa kalagitnaan!

at utang na loob kay kc concepcion!!! mag-acting workship nga siya ng bonggangbongga!!!
pashootshoot pa sila sa greece, sana ginawa naman nila ng maayos! nakakaloka talaga. NI WALA PANG KAKILIGKILIG ANG PELIKULANG ITO. puro pekeng laplapan lang, landian at sosyalan! parang when love begins level!!!
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napanood ko na rin, langya, first day pa talaga. di ko maatim, nayaya kasi ako, e mukhang wala na magyayaya next time kaya pinatos ko na.

ang masasabi ko lang:

1) walang sinabi ito sa AVSL.

2) kami lang ang tumatawa sa sinehan, hindi dahil nakakatuwa sya, kundi dahil olats sya. ang pangit ng mga linya, napapailing na lang kami. TH to the highest levelest.

3) utang na loob, bakit si philip salvador ang tatay ni kc. hndi bagay sa kanya ang business tycoon role. nahihirapan ako sa kanya pag nag-eenglish sya, at lalong-lalo na pag dumadrama sya.

4) kamusta naman at andito si bruce. at jowa nya dito si bea saw. ano kaya reaction ni wendy dun. thank God pipi yata ang ganap nya at hindi nya kinailangan magsalita. at thank God din na hindi si wendy ang jowa nya dito.

5) si kc parang may diarrhea...hndi lang sa scene na napautot sya, kundi sa lahat ng scenes na umiiyak sya (if iyak nga ang tawag dun, wala akong nakitang luha e). para kasi syang matatae lagi pag umiiyak.

6) launching movie din nga pala ito ni kc as a sexy star. hahaha. boobs kung boobs ang labanan.

7) hindi ko ma-gets ang istorya...parang wala kasi. ang hirap ipagtagpi-tagpi ng mga pangyayari. at parang imposible na wala pa silang 1 week sa greece e nagka-inlove-an kagad. e parang one day nga lang kung tutuusin na magkasundo sila.

candy pangilinan is funny. sana sya na lang ung bida, sila nung penpal nya dun (kung sino man sya..di ko alam saan sya napulot kasi). kaso feeling ko naiwan sya sa greece...nawala kasi sya bigla sa kalagitnaan. sa kanya pa naman ako nag-enjoy.

9) madami pa ako comment pero simply stated, overall ay pangit ang movie. maganda lang ang greece. wag nyo na panoorin...hehehe. sa sama ng loob ko gusto ko dumiretso kagabi sa araneta...hahaha.


TRULY.. Peyups is Where Bright Minds Meet! :)