Overcoming Stress - Part2

The New Seventh Day Adventist (member?), said, I don’t only rest on the Sabbath but in the days of my life I rest from media (?). There’s another one, rest from gadget, and, rest from Facebook included. The day I rested from “facebooking” which I did not regret, Shalom came back, peace in my heart came back. Facebook is helpful but to some degree, it is stressful. So Today it’s not good to have Facebook, that’s for myself, because it robs me of my time of prayer. Jesus said deliberately “no” to the crowd. Are there any urgent matters? There are, but what is more than urgent to that matter is communion with God in prayer.

Overcoming Stress - Part1

As God allows Christ to be fully human let’s ask the question, was He ever familiar with the word “stress”? What is stress? Psychologically they define stress as any change that happens to you and causes tension. If I give you the list and if you want to compute it, it says like this if your score reaches 300 plus, it’s time to slow down or you will burst. Added to that is your worry, added to worry is many foolish things I have committed and therefore there is a consequence to it.

What it Means to be an Ambassador for Christ - Part2

All of us can really start with our life. Some of you would say Pastor, I don’t know how to share the Gospel but you can start with your life. You don’t know how to share or you don’t know how to write words? You can start with your attitude! You can start with the word that comes out from your mouth! How they perceived you right now, do they see Jesus Christ in you? If they really see the change in you, that’s evangelism.

What it Means to be an Ambassador for Christ - Part1

What is the meaning if you are a passport holder? It means it allows you the right to travel around the world, it shows where you came from and who you are. I hold a Philippine passport so I am a Filipino. It shows that I am a citizen of the Republic of the Philippines therefore I am also a representative of my country to the rest of the world. The way people abroad view me will have an impact on how they view my country. Spiritually it is also the same, how the people outside view us will have an impact on their view about Christianity for we represent Christ.

Understanding The Lordship of Christ - Part2

You know how many years that Philippians forgot the salary of Paul? 10 years, and on the 10th year surprise, surprise, support came back from the Philippian Church. Paul wrote a thank you letter said, thank you for the support. If your eyes is on Christ you do not obliged people to support you, you’re fine, because if you read a little further he said because my faith is in Christ, my Master, Jesus Christ influenced me to live simply and with contentment.

Understanding The Lordship of Christ - Part1

Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all of these things will be added to you. Would you agree that this verse sometimes is the source of deep disappointment to many? Because we expected that God will give the desires of our heart and He did not. We expected that He will supply our needs on the day that He will rescue us but to no avail. The source of disappointment is not God but misunderstanding of the scripture. But when the scripture is misunderstood of course it will be misapplied. So it is good to understand some basic thoughts, like who wrought it and to whom is it written. Not all promises in the Bible are for us but some for Abraham and some for the Israelites. But by principle we can apply timeless truths.

Lessons From Shattered Expectations - Part2

Remember the movie Hachiko? I almost cried not because of the movie itself but on the part when Richard Gere was barbecuing with his future son-in-law, Michael. Every father should be prepared for this, Richard said to Michael “do you love my daughter?” Michael replied and said “yes sir I love your daughter very much”. The answer was quick and simple Richard said “good because you need to remember that in bad times”. Christians do you love Jesus? “yes” no question He loves us, but there are times that the ways of Jesus is hard to understand. You have to remember that you love Him even in what we call bad times.

Lessons From Shattered Expectations - Part1

The Lord needs to shatter your expectations about Him so that you will know Him. The Lord needs to shatter your expectations about truth so that you’ll really know truth. If you are shock you ask the question what? Or you ask the question why? From what to why give it a little time, I don’t know how long to trust the Lord to touch hearts, to convict people, to change thoughts, from what and why slowly when we begin to see the purpose and perspective of God, our why and what will turn slowly to wow!

STRAIGHT FROM MY HEART

Our week of prayer was a remarkable moment of revival and refreshment from God. I am still overwhelmed with joy as I look back each morning seeing God's people come to God's house to pray. In prayer, we poured out our hearts as well as listened to God. Honestly, that sacred week flew by without even being noticed. Truly, where the Spirit of God is, there is liberty! Let me encourage you all to make prayer your highest calling... and your greatest privilege.


See the wonder of God hearing the prayers of the weak each time we gather for prayers during our prayer meetings. I look forward for more mornings like this in church. I am praying that the fire of prayer will never be quenched in our hearts and in our homes. It is on our knees that we see things clearly. It is with brokenness of hearts that we relinquish our rights and gladly take our responsibilities to serve each other and the community as well.


As for our desire to have a welfare center, the Lord redirected us as we called on His name. We have decided to pray for one more month... this time, prying that God will guide us as decide whether the welfare center will be in the church. Therefore, we are seeking God's guidance as to when we start building it ... plus the attendant renovation of the whole church. This is scary. We call on all to pray and let us cross this Jordan together! What is clear though is that the church agrees not to loan or to pressure people to give via pledges. It is God's conviction in our hearts to simply trust God to bless His people and finish the task. In the years ahead, we look forward to our church being a place where prayer is a priority and service to the community is its expression ... that all may know Jesus loves them.


HALLELUJAH HE IS THE ANSWERING GOD!


Prayerfully,



REV. ARNEL C. TAN

The Lord’s Conviction About Life in the Kingdom of God - Part2b

In the Kingdom of God it is not all about pressuring people, it is recognizing God’s image by recognizing the freedom to choose. It’s not about a contract that you blindly signed, it’s about the calling that you joyfully obey, that’s the Kingdom of God, that’s what Jesus believed. No checking of attendance, and no monitoring of how much you gave. It’s not a Kingdom of God when you fear your pastor sees you wearing pants especially for the ladies. That is a cult. One time our pastor watched a movie and timely a couple is also at the same movie house. While the pastor at the back of their seats is watching, do you think they enjoy the movie? Maybe no, maybe yes. If the Kingdom of God is spying that won’t change you. The Kingdom of God is about people who gladly chose to obey the Lord.

The Lord’s Conviction About Life in the Kingdom of God - Part1b

The Lord Jesus Christ brought issues about the Kingdom of God, one of the issue was who is great in the Kingdom of God? It is shocking that the inside topic of the disciples among themselves was who among them will be great. We are in many ways like that. Who will be the chairman, who wrote this book, who is the bright author of this project. If we are not properly recognized then we react.

The Lord's Conviction About Life in the Kingdom of God - Part2

There’s a big crisis in Baptist church in Negros long time ago because the old pastors have no doctorate degree in theology and they were trained by the old ways in institute. The younger pastors went to Germany, Switzerland and Lutheran, American Baptist Universities and came back to the Philippines with doctorate degrees but they were still assistant pastors. The struggle was, they went to the church and ask, “we have doctorate degrees, why are we paid lower than those who don’t have doctorate degrees? It’s unfair.” Some virus came in. If you ask me, Jesus would have said, you study so you would learn, so you will have burden to those who don’t know and teach them so that they might know. It’s not about doctorate degree but Its about the Kingdom of God.

The Lord's Conviction About Life in the Kingdom of God - Part1

What was the conviction of Jesus regarding the Kingdom of God? How did He transmit those convictions so that it would become a lifestyle? The disciples no doubt were zealous people they were full of energy, full of strength and yet clueless, their understanding of the Kingdom of God is still worldly. Not what Christ wants them to understand, their understanding of the Kingdom of God, is still nebulous. To use the term God’s Kingdom is still very popular today even among Southern Baptists, I have just one concern, I don’t see the King. I only see power and struggles. I talked to one good pastor and said in the Kingdom of God you and I are kings, so you better educate the church to treat pastors as kings. I did not waste time and I said, no we’re not kings we’re servants, see the difference, same text, same word but a lot of misunderstandings.