HOW SECURE AND SOLID IS YOUR CENTER?

This week, I was joking with my 6-year-old daughter, Angel. After taking only a short vacation, I noticed how she has become bigger and taller. She used to be the "center" of my attention, my little baby. But babies grow up and change. And someday, my time will be up! I can only praise God for the opportunity to be present with and for her during the most important first years of her life.

Most things in life can disappear. It's simply the nature of human existence. Of course, we can enjoy what we have on hand while we can. But still, this earth is not our final home. Everything is temporary. We're all just passing through.

Yet people "center" their lives on things that disappear like ones listed below. Would you like to take a look at these and check where your life really revolves around?

___ Work/Business
___ Money, cars, houses, possessions
___ Husband or wife
___ Children
___ Appearance
___ Health
___ Friends
___ Recreation/Sports
___ Travel

Here's the problem. Money and possessions break, rust, and wear out. Health can deteriorate. Friends die, betray, or leave. A husband or wife can become unfaithful or face death. And so on and so forth.

For most people, when that "center" (any or a combination of the above) is lost, they feel lost too. They lose meaning. They see no hope because their "center" disappears.

In the end, only one thing is permanent. Only one thing is critical to your stability, security, and wholeness. It cannot be taken away. And that is, a living relationship with God your Creator at the "center" of your life.

Once God is at the "center" of your life, you can access His power to help you heal from the losses, aches, or temporary things of this life. He alone can stabilize our life's orbit.

How secure and solid, my friend, is your "center?"

"My sheep listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; no one can snatch out of my Father's hand." (John 10: 27-29)

"Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands." (2 Corinthians 5: 1)

God's Keys to Long, Healthy Life (Part 3)

While I was talking to a group of doctors and nurses last week, this verse came up to us as effective medicine in the context of hospital-based health care. It says in Proverbs 17:22, "A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones." The truth of this biblical verse is borne out by many medical and scientific studies. Positive emotions assist in the speedy recovery of sick, clinical patients. They also assist in the prevention of illness.... The ability to manage emotions and stress is one of the essential elements of physical healing. As Proverbs 18: 14 also tells us, "The spirit of a man will sustain him in sickness, but who can bear a broken spirit?" ... Faith in God and knowledge of His purposes in life can bring positive emotions and strong reasons to live. They spark overall wellness that includes mental, spiritual, and physical health.

God's Keys to Long, Healthy Life (Part 2)

"Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you" (3 John 2 NIV).

Beginning this month, I'd be having a weekly 2-hour hospital-based training/counseling sessions for clinical patients, doctors, nurses, and staff on "Spiritual Healing and Care." The said program is based on the integration of spirituality and psychology with medicine. Today, there is indeed a growing body of solid medical/scientific evidence of the close connection between a person's spiritual/psycho-emotional condition and his or her healing, recovery, and total health. Using my own book, "God's Inner Healing: A Guide in Life Recovery, Healing, and Mission" and other psycho-spiritual resources, I look forward to working with Dr. De Guzman and Dr. Lising as my partners in this hospital to reach out to and help people heal in the holistic sense.

God's Health and Longevity Key # 1
HEALTHY RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD AND OTHERS

The idea that one's spiritual. emotional, and psychological condition could affect bodily health is ancient wisdom. But in the last few decades, the medical community have taken a closer look and revived this ancient wisdom in the practice of medicine.

Medical researchers in the 1950s noted that cardiac patients shared a "type A" personality. They are characterized to be impatient, competitive, and always in a hurry. In the February 1997 issue of Newsweek, it branded "type A" personality as toxic in terms of components as hostility and cynicism. These traits are real risk factors for heart disease.

Remarks Harvard Health Watch: "More than a dozen investigations have asked if stress increases susceptibility to the common cold; all have concluded that it does." Medical and scientific proofs also point to emotional factors influencing vulnerability to cancer as well as the ability to recover from it. Inability to forgive, bitterness, anger, and hopeless outlook toward life all make us vulnerable to disease.

GOD created our bodies with a natural immune system. Unhealthy spiritual and emotional attitudes suppress the body's immune system ability to fight against cancerous and bacterial cells.

God's Keys to Long, Healthy Life (Part 1)

While talking to a pastor-friend of mine, he remarked that I look younger than my age. It's not "noticeable," according to him. Indeed, I praise God for I never had any major medical hospitalization in my whole life and my blood pressure is still 120/80 at the time of this writing. I even dream of running the marathon till age 100 plus! All of us want to enjoy good health. We avoid sickness and injury. But you know what? We have health guidance. Not just from medicine or health sciences. But from our CREATOR who gave His desk reference manual.... Somewhere in 1800s, human life expectancy was just 40 years old. But today, partly because of modern advancements in medicine and health care, our life expectancy has approached an average of 80.... However, what we can all notice is that most of the world's medical and health care systems center on "cure" of diseases. My belief is that God wants us to focus on "prevention" to live longer, healthier lives by following basic, God-given natural health principles.

Trials Reveal Your Character

I read of a brokenhearted author who asked, "What happened to the girl whom I thought is of noble character?"
Then he went on to quote and explain Proverbs 31:30 which says, "Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised."
All of us have crises, trials, and difficulties in life. They range in severity from a noisy neighbor to cancer of someone close to you. When a crisis hits us, how do we respond? I believe that's where the test of character is. One said that trials do not develop character, they reveal character.
It is conceivable that we do religious or spiritual things and still have serious character issues.
One may recite a lot of prayers or do a lot of ministries in the church. On the outside, one may do a lot of good works.
But that is not enough. Anybody can be a "Christian" during good times and plenty.
But when things get tough, dark, and cold, that's where the real test of faith and character is.
There needs to be something absolute and non-negotiable within YOU.
Here it is -- the reality of true spiritual life. How do you know you have that reality within you?
Ask your self these questions: What drives you each day? What do you love thinking and talking about? How do you spend your time and money?
A common trial all of us experience is pain inflicted by others. Ask your self: If someone curses or wounds you, do you respond with blessing or dish out vengeance? Do you pay back insult for insult, evil for evil?
It is not enough that we call ourselves "Christians." We must be truly committed to love and obey Jesus Christ no matter what the price is.