PRAY BECAUSE GOD C-A-R-E-S

I wrote a post titled "WHY WE DON’T PRAY?" last Oct 15 as part of the #PrayerSeries. Today, I want to level up by discussing MAKING PRAYER A HABIT.

Prayer is hard work. It can be daunting.

It's like climbing a high mountain.

Making prayer a habit is like climbing a high mountain every day!
But no relationship will flourish if you don't invest time regularly.

Allow me to offer these 5 points on how you can make PRAYER a HABIT. Remember to make PRAYER A HABIT coz God C-A-R-E-S.

* C-HOOSE TO DO IT. Forming any habit requires both DECISION & ACTION. Making a DECISION to PRAY. Then ACT on it by finding a good location & time that works for you. God is ready to listen to us 24/7. It takes 21 days to make an action a habit so put it in your calendar. You fill your calendar with work meetings, your child's school events, reunions & other important stuff. Why should God not be in your calendar? Choose to pray to make it a habit.

* A-PPOINT A PRAYER PARTNER. Accountability makes us more responsible. If you want to make prayer a habit then ask a trusted friend to check on you regularly. Allow your friend to ask you, “How was your prayer time this week? How can it further improve next week?” It would be good if you can make it mutual where you can also make your friend accountable too. Check on each other because Christianity is designed for team play not individual effort.

* R-EAD THE BIBLE. We can hear God when we read our Bible each day. This almighty, holy, perfect God speaks to un-worthy, sinful creatures like us. Isn't that a blessing? Reading the bible makes our prayers more focused & clear. Reading the bible allows us to follow Him. As Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me" (John 10:27)

* E-STABLISH A PATTERN. Choosing a pattern for prayer helps you pray more consistently. If you can play a musical instrument why not always start with a worship song? Then follow it up with bible reading & personal reflection. You can also use daily devotionals like Didache or follow Pathways of Hope to help you reflect on the daily Gospel. Establish a pattern to make prayer a habit.

* S-EEK GOD'S HELP. Praying regularly may look impossible but Jesus says in Matthew 19:26 that, “...for God all things are possible." So ask for God's help to make your prayer time regular. We need to change our hearts so we can appreciate why we need to pray regularly. We need God's help to redirect our fickle, selfish & distracted hearts to God's will. Ask for God's help today. He delights to help you in your prayer time.

Prayer is a gift & with God's grace it can become a habit for you. Do yourself a favor by getting into the prayer habit.

You need it. I need it. We all need it.

Praying that you have a super blessed weekend! - alvinfabella@yahoo.com

#shareaboutJesus #PrayerSeries 

DO U WANT TO BE FREE?

We have been crying out to God for the past few months for the healing of Covid-19 patients.

We have been praying hard for a vaccine.

Yet, our pleas seemed to fall on deaf ears.

Is God listening?

The woman in today's Gospel (Luke 13:10-17) simply stood there quietly. She was suffering, not for months, but for 18 years. But at the presence of The Mighty Healer she didn't say a single word.

Jesus sees her & says, “Woman, you are set free of your infirmity.” (Luke 13:12). He lays his hands on her & instantly she was healed!

God sees & He heals.

How about our situation? Does that mean God doesn't see us?

God sees everything. Psalms 33:13 says that "From heaven the LORD looks down & observes the children of Adam".

You may not hear it but Jesus is also telling us, "you are set free of your infirmity.”

We only see Covid-19 but God sees beyond what we can see.

God is doing something bigger.

* God is freeing us from materialism. Be content with what you have. You can live a good life even with only the essentials.

* God is freeing us from busyness. Live simpler. Live with less clutter in your calendar.

* God is freeing us from fake or toxic relationships. Enjoy your time with your family. Appreciate your Zoom sessions with your true friends.

* God is freeing us from our un-healthy lifestyle. Take time to sleep more. Eat well. Take your vitamins. Exercise.

* God is freeing up our time for Him. Pray more.

God is freeing us from other things that have been crippling us for several years. God is healing us from things that are more deadly than Covid.

What do we need to do to be free? STAY WITH JESUS.

That's what the crippled woman did.

Look beyond the pandemic.

Look at the complete healing that God is doing in your life now.

May God bless your week! - alvinfabella@yahoo.com

#shareaboutJesus

idol, HOW TO BE YOU PO?

NBA players, K-Pop, Hollywood celebrities, famous vloggers, bestselling authors, etc.

Do you have “idols” from the categories that I mentioned?

You adore them. You copy their look, talk or walk.

You spend a lot of time watching them.

You want to be as good as them.

Ang pangarap mo ay magka-selfie kasama si idol.

Then all your friends will say, “You two look a like!” That would be awesome, right?

But there's one idol that we all should look up. That’s Jesus!

AIM to LOOK LIKE JESUS.

Make that your ultimate life goal.

Ang hirap yata noon? Tama ka.

But everything starts with a single step.

If you want to look like Jesus then you have to start now, as in NOW NA!

Why the rush?

First, because you are meant to be like Jesus. You were made in his image (Genesis 1:27). This is your destiny so pursue it now!

Secondly, it takes a loooooooong process to be like Him. So start early. Start now before it’s too late.

Lastly, some people don’t go to Church & don’t have a bible. But they have a friend & that’s you!

Their only chance to “see” Jesus is when they look at your life. You need to be Jesus like to that friend.

That’s why you have to start now. Take the first step now!

The first step to look like Jesus is to SIT & STAY with the Saviour.

That's what Mary did. She "sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak” (Luke 10:39).

She just sat there. No words spoken. Completely focused on Jesus. Parang silang dalawa ni Lord andun.

That’s what PRAYER is all about. You allot a SHORT time to SPEAK but LOTS of time to LISTEN.

FB Friend, be like Mary every time you PRAY.

Sit beside Jesus & listen. Fix your gaze on Him.

That’s how transformation happens.

You also need to invest time in PRAYER.

To LOOK LIKE JESUS, you NEED TO LOOK AT JESUS all the time.

PRAY all the time.

The more time you spend time with Him, the more you become like Him.

Learn from Him & find ways to be with Him in PRAYER.

So that one day, by God’s grace, you can take that selfie with Him in heaven.

FB Friend, make a decision to be like JESUS starting today.

I will be PRAYING for transformation future saint.

May God bless your weekend! - alvinfabella@yahoo.com

#shareaboutJesus #PrayerSeries #AimtobeaSaint

WHY WE DON’T PRAY?

Prayer is the foundation of our relationship with God. But we don’t pray as much as we need to. The average Christian spends less than ten minutes each day in prayer. There are lots of reasons why we don’t spend more time in prayer or why don't pray at all.

Personally, I think we don’t pray because we are "B-A-D".

"B"-USY. Are you too busy?

In the Old Testament, Daniel was appointed by King Darius to a very high position. He had tons of responsibilities but he took time to pray 3 times a day. He prayed even if a law prohibiting the worship of God was passed. Sometimes we get too busy that we don’t want God to mess up our schedule. Think about this, isn’t God the busiest among us? He’s been maintaining the whole universe for a thousand of years already. I could not even keep my work area organized for a week! God is very “busy" but He took time to save us because He loves us. Read the first part of John 3:16, “For GOD so LOVED THE WORLD ...”. The term “world” refers to everyone, both the righteous & the wicked. If God took time for us why can’t we find time for Him?

"A"-BUNDANCE. Do you pray only when you need a blessing?

Have you or a friend of yours posted something in socmed using #blessed ? It’s good to be thankful for all our blessings. The downside of too much blessings is when we forget its source. We forget to pray when we live a very comfortable life & we have everything that we need. The abundance of things can also be addicting. Our possessions can possess us if we are not careful. Jesus told the rich young man to sell what he had, give to the poor & follow Him. The young man "went away sad, for he had many possessions” (Matthew 19:22). God “….GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON” (John 3:16) to save us. Jesus was His only Son but God freely gave Him up for all of us. Let us express our gratitude to God by praying more often.

"D"-OUBT. What will it take for you to believe?

We don’t believe so we don’t pray. St. Paul says that "anyone who approaches God must BELIEVE that he exists & that he rewards those who seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). We cannot truly appreciate prayer if we don’t fully believe who God is. Who is God for us? Maybe we believe in God but we don’t believe that He will hear & answer our prayers. That He is too distant to care for our petty requests. God is our Father who will provide our daily needs. God answers our simple requests & those that needs a miracle. There is nothing impossible for Him. All you have to do is believe. John 3:16 ends with “..whoever BELIEVES in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” If you truly believe then you will find time to pray.

Prayer should always be a priority. Read John 3:16 whenever you are tempted to skip prayer.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life"

Appreciate every word in that verse.

Don’t be B-A-D. Find time to pray because God is always looking forward to talk to you.

I’ll be praying for you FB friends, have a blessed weekend! - alvinfabella@yahoo.com

#shareaboutJesus

#PrayerSeries

SATISFY YOUR HUNGER

Do you love junk food?

A lot of us do. Isn’t Netflix better with potato chips?

Most junk food looks good. Their manufacturers spend a lot of money to make them look awesome.

They are easily available. You won’t missed them when you enter to any store. Their prices are usually lower compared to healthier options.

They taste great. They contain lots of salt, sugar & artificial flavors which makes them delicious.

We crave for them. We become addicted to them.

However, their effects don't last.

They fill us up but after a short while our hunger is back.

Their ingredients give us that "feel good” mood. But these feelings also don’t last.

Our lives can be like that too.

We feel “hungry" so we try to fill it up.

Sadly, we fill it up with earthly “junk".

We think that earthly junk makes us look great. Think expensive cars, houses, clothing & others.

We think that it’s easily available. Does bank loans or buy-now-pay-later schemes sound familiar?

We think that these will make us "happy & feel good". Maybe for a couple of weeks, at most a few months.

But like junk food, earthly junk also don’t lasts.

What can we do to fill up our hunger? Try PRAYER.

Prayer SATISFIES OUR HUNGER the right way.

We must SATISFY OUR HUNGER with God.

God fills up the emptiness of our lives.

As St. Augustine said, "Our heart is restless until it rests in You.”

We must REST IN GOD.

Pray often. Saint Paul encourages us to “pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

We may be very tired. Maybe we don’t feel like talking to Him.

God is always ready to spend time with us.

Jesus is ready to listen even to our silence.

Let’s not waste our time with earthly junk.

Let’s waste time with Jesus.

Have a great weekend & enjoy eating your potato chips….but have it in moderation

God bless FB friends! - alvinfabella@yahoo.com

#shareaboutJesus

#simplicity

#prayerSeries