March 22, 2012

I am glad to say that the Tumblr hiatus has been doing me a lot of good - although I seem to find more time to waste on Youtube and Facebook, I still feel better that I cut a big source of temptation out of my life. I now post on: byhissovereignty.weebly.com !! I usually wouldn’t come back on here, but I just posted something on my weebly site that I have the urge to share with you all, I just need to share this even if you don’t ever read it or think it’s over dramatic, I am amazed by God’s love and always will be.

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.
So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
1 Corinthians 13 ESV

This is one of the most famous, and I really mean one of the most famous as in even the secular world will use this passage frequently, passages from the Bible. And when I used to read and hear of this passage I always immediately thought of a romantic love between man and woman - although completely applicable there, this passage speaks of a love that runs much deeper than any romantic and familial love can run. God’s love is the perfect example of love itself - truly unconditional and ultimately sacrificial. Once Jesus’ clean account is pulled up before God’s eyes, we are under God’s unconditional love for us - no matter how many times we fall back into temptation and sin, no matter how grotesque, ugly, and formidable that sin is, God will always love us (given that our heart still strives for sanctification and forgiveness). God loved us so much that he sent his own son to die (John 3:16) - I don’t know of many people that would send their own children/child to die for undeserving strangers, do you? So in light of this perfect and glorious example, the love that we must live by is one that “does not envy or boast”, is not “arrogant or rude”, never insisting “on its own way”, or being “irritable or resentful” but “rejoices with the truth” (1 Corin. 13 ESV). We must strive to love as close as God does, we must love people we don’t even know that well or people we constantly look down upon, because Jesus came on this Earth to love the prostitutes, tax collectors, and the lepers.
The next part of this chapter is excruciatingly beautiful; I literally get goosebumps when I read “Love never ends”, all earthly possessions, treasures, and emotions will eventually all pass away — that SAT score, that personal high from getting an A, that boy/girl you have your eye on — it will all come to pass one day to give way to God’s ultimate reward and manifestation of LOVE for us, the new Kingdom and new Heavens where all past pains and sufferings will be undone and glorified/repaid an infinite amount, so much so that we will see how small and necessary suffering was in our earthly lives. I never knew how powerful love was until I took a closer look and understood this passage, so with this I want to say that no matter how hard and formidable your final/midterm seems, and no matter how deeply fallen you feel right now in life, it cannot ever hope to match the joy and perfection you will feel once you are home with our Lord - give yourself a 5 minutes break and read 1 Corinthians 13, bask in the love of our Lord Christ and Savior. PTL for his love and being granted the ability to breath!!!
-P 

1:16am  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZRHgWyINk28v
(Notes: 1)
  
February 24, 2012
CLOSED

i am putting this tumblr on a temporary hiatus; it’s way too distracting and it’s sad to think that i actually thought about this for a good 15 minutes, thinking about all the funny things i’ll miss, and the good recipes and pretty backgrounds. but there are also a lot of vulgar things on tumblr that are unavoidable even if you try to follow the right blogs, too many temptations and judgments. but i’m happy to say i’m gna continue my verse of the days on a new blogpost blog - link will be updated on here by my good friend olive (olivia) if you guys have any interest - that blog will probably be dedicated to verse of the days and just some daily thoughts (i know.. much less interesting than all the funny things i can repost/reblog on tumblr, but if it can help me evade a big part of my sin, then so be it) GOODBYE TUMBLR, maybe i’ll reopen you some time in the future.

-P

10:14pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZRHgWyG-0TKS
(Notes: 1)
  
February 24, 2012
V(erse) of the D(ay) 47

9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—

Philippians 3:9 ESV

prior to this verse, Paul lists all the qualities of the flesh that he previously possessed and worshipped… his status as Pharisee, a “Hebrew of Hebrews”, etc - how can so drastic a change happen to such a worldly person like Paul? like he says, his “faith in Christ” and the very real and miraculous work of the Holy Spirit. only God can change someone this drastically. PTL for early morning drives and yogurt with granola bars!!!

-P

9:29am  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZRHgWyGyV8MB
February 23, 2012
V(erse) of the D(ay) 46

4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.

Philippians 2:4-7 ESV

why do we find it hard to do things for others when Jesus did that and so much more for us? PTL for exercise and yummy dinners!!!

-P

11:30pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZRHgWyGxc0jj
February 22, 2012
V(erse) of the D(ay) 45

27 Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel,

Philippians 1:27 ESV

this verse is motivating, really motivating. live your life so its worthy of the gospel of Christ, this doesn’t mean that we must be perfect like Christ/God is but that we live up to our namesake that the gospel makes us - His children, salt of the world, lights. PTL for office hours and another midterm score!!!

-P

5:51pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZRHgWyGt7R2f
February 21, 2012

10:05pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZRHgWyGqQhO2
February 21, 2012
V(erse) of the D(ay) 44

Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

Colossians 4:6 ESV

seasoned with salt? that sounds weird right? haha! actually when i read this, i felt extremely drawn to it - it’s so interesting. i bet you no one would think that a verse this quirky yet full of wisdom would exist in the bible. seasoned with salt means seasoned with God’s wisdom, power, and word. as in, we are the salt of the world. well it’s a lot similar here, let’s take God’s word as a grain of salt and in return season our speech with it, just like we wouldn’t want to eat bad tasting food, i’m sure we wouldn’t want to spew vile words from our mouths either.

-P

7:15pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZRHgWyGpuiCj
February 21, 2012
y you no sell this in california…

y you no sell this in california…

7:11pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZRHgWyGptlr1
(Notes: 4)
  
February 20, 2012
V(erse) of the D(ay) 43

17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Colossians 3:17 ESV

being a witness of Christ is truly “easier said than done” and i want to say 80% of the time, i forget and allow my heart and emotions to guide my actions instead of pulling God’s word to the forefront of my mind. but the other 20% of the time, i catch myself thinking “is this something i would do if i had to give credit to Jesus Christ?”, in other words, “what would jesus do?” i think this is a great mechanism for making our daily lives imitations of Christ’s, ask yourself if you would do what you’re about to do if you had to do it “in the name of the Lord Jesus” - would God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit advocate what you’re doing? PTL for a midterm score and 8 hours of sleep!!!

-P

9:21am  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZRHgWyGk6g91
February 19, 2012
V(erse) of the D(ay) 42

20 If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— 21 “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” 22 (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? 23 These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.

Colossians 2:20-23 ESV

in order to overcome sin, it is crucial to ask God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit for strength. too often i try to overcome sin with my own human willpower, which is ALL TOO weak to overcome sin - i was once enslaved to sin before being saved, how can i overcome it without the strength given to me by the Holy Spirit? just like it says here in colossians, after we are saved why do we still try to overcome sin on the world’s standards? the world says that we can do it all, as long as we set our minds to it, but God’s standard says that we can only do it with prayer and strength from the Holy Spirit. by humbling ourselves and telling not only ourselves but God that we cannot in any way overcome our sins, but we need him to help us, i believe that he will eventually help us conquer our sins (not to say that there won’t be slips and mishaps here and there). the world’s standards make us look good and credit all achievement to us, but all glory is to go to God - only he can stop the indulgence of flesh. PTL for waking up early and fresh starts!!!

-P

3:23pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZRHgWyGhaVCN