A Date with God

I thought it would be a good idea to go on a 5 day retreat in a Tagaytay retreat house or hotel. Just me and God. I would only bring a pocket Bible, clothes, and toiletries. No cellphone, internet, radio, TV, books, or even Study Bibles. Just God and me. God found something much better: Touch of Glory Prayer Mountain, just 2 nights though, in the mountains of Antipolo, and much cheaper. Nicer still, the place was designed for prayer (prayer cells, prayer tents in a forest, nature walks, fish ponds with loads of carp, fresh air, sounds of running water, views, and silence). The rooms and bathrooms were also very clean. God always knows best.

It was not that God rang the place and made the reservation, of course! It was just that all my attempts to find a place in Tagaytay failed. The hotels were too expensive. There was a convent who would not let me in as the Mother Superior preferred I visit with a group. I was uneasy about how commercialized Tagaytay has become, with a casino, luxury hotels, and fine dining. My pastor mentioned to me that there was a prayer mountain in Antipolo but could not tell me where it was. So I used Google to find their website, made a booking, and 2 weeks later I was in another world.

You will not find a place like this anywhere. As you drive up you will see signs counting down the kilometers to the place, and the view on the way up is breathtaking. There are no maps in the facility itself, so you can discover the place on your own and be surprised. There are no mealtimes published, so you just ask when meals are or you just wander in to the cafeteria and check if there is food there. There are some souvenirs without labels and price tags, so just ask what it is and how much. They sell Banana Vinegar! Filipinos can adjust to this ambiguity but people brought up in Western culture may be somewhat disoriented. If you feel disoriented, pray for guidance from God.

Nature was very friendly. A dog was on retreat too (with no collar and leash), and it just sniffed its way around the clearing where I was meditating on the Word (John 15:1) and we pretended to ignore each other. The ants were more forthcoming. One large one was particularly friendly as it climbed rapidly up my sleeve! It may be God’s way of saying: “time for a walk”. It is also best to remember that the ants were probably there first. The mosquitoes seem to be not in the mood to bite. The birds and trees sing. Butterflies land on your leg, rest a while, and move on.  Dragonflies are more cautious.

The prayer cells were 3 feet x 5 feet x 8 feet (I am just guessing, as I did not bring a ruler) with a cushion for your knees, wooden floor, small side table, tiny electric fan, small wall lamp, and something like a small lectern that I assumed is where you put your hands. Once the door is closed it is so peaceful and it is like you are in a place removed from everything else, and only praying is allowed. No eating , sleeping, or socializing is allowed in the prayer cell.

It was my first time in a prayer cell. I noticed that God was very quiet at first. Just waiting. I thought of the temple and how the priests had to purify themselves before approaching God. So I began with confession of sin, and that broke the ice. Believers in the Gospel of Jesus the Christ have access to God who is their Father through adoption, made possible because Jesus, who is God,  died on the cross and rose from the dead, thereby satisfying God’s justice, and allowing reconciliation between God and the believer, who receives the Holy Spirit that teaches and guides the believer about Truth and Holiness. It is written:

1Peter 2:7-10  “Unto you therefore which believe He is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvellous light: which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.”

We are a royal priesthood. A priest is someone who has direct access to God, our Father. It is because we were chosen – called out of darkness – that we have the privilege to bring our cares and concerns to God, our Heavenly Father. If only we took full advantage of this great privilege!

God speaks in a way that is hard to explain. Something will occur to you that gives you peace which is consistent with the Bible, and after some experience, you recognize this as the “silent voice of God”. He brought to my attention that prayer is required for a disciple, among other things, and that our entire lives are to be a living sacrifice.  I should be more disciplined in my walk, and organize my time to be able to read, memorize, meditate, and apply the Bible, as well as pray, give, manage my time and resources (stewardship), worship, serve, evangelize, fast, and set aside times of silence and solitude. He led me to a book before my retreat, called Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, by Donald S. Whitney, to help me in this area of spiritual growth.  He also said that I worry too much, and should trust Him more, and stop being so judgmental. He suggested that I start reading the book Respectable Sins, by Jerry Bridges, which I bought recently.

I wish I brought a camera or video camera along but I really wanted to focus only on meeting God during this trip. I plan another trip where I will ask permission to take a video and post this on my Youtube channel. If you are in Metro-Manila, Philippines, I highly recommend that you visit this place in the mountains of Antipolo. If you cannot afford a room there are dormitories at a fraction of the cost, and you can also visit the place during the day for a nominal fee. If you want to know their rates you can inquire via text message to the cellphone number published on their website.

I really recommend that you disconnect from the world for a few days and spend time alone with God. There is joy and peace to be found, as well as guidance and wisdom. The perfect date with our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ.

God bless,

George Marcelo

Update on Oct 22, 2011:  I was able to take a video on my cellphone (Nokia 6120) of some of the things I did. I ended up going to this place at least once a year. Enjoy!

Journeying On

LORD OF THE CLOUD AND FIRE,

I am a stranger, with a stranger’s indifference;

My hands hold a pilgrim’s staff,

My march is Zionward,

My eyes are toward the coming of the Lord,

My heart is in thy hands without reserve.

Thou has created it,

redeemed it,

renewed it,

captured it,

conquered it.

Keep from it every opposing foe,

crush it in every rebel lust,

mortify every treacherous passion,

annihilate every earthborn desire,

All faculties of my being vibrate to thy touch;

I love thee with soul, mind, body, strength,

might, spirit, affection, will,

desire, intellect, understanding.

Thou art the very perfection of all perfections;

All intellect is derived from thee;

My scanty rivulets flow from they unfathomable

fountain.

Compared with thee the sun is darkness,

all beauty deformity,

all wisdom folly,

the best goodness faulty.

Thou art worthy of an adoration greater than

my dull heart can yield;

Invigorate my love that it may rise worthily

to thee,

tightly entwine itself round thee,

be allured by thee.

Then shall my walk be endless praise.

Note: Excerpted from The Valley of Vision, a collection of Puritan prayers and devotions, compiled by Arthur Bennet.

P.S. I made a YouTube video of this prayer! Enjoy!

Church Revival

I attended a fund-raiser for the Philippine Council of Christian Churches (this will be part of the International Council of Christian Churches). The music was wonderful, and it was a blessing to see so many local Christian churches together in one place, trying to work together for the glory of God. Certainly, the local Christian churches are in need for unity.

However, I am not sure that there is a problem. The Universal Christian Church, that is, the Church of born-again believers, is united. It has only one head: our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is just that this Church is invisible, as only God knows who is really saved. Of course, we can make an educated guess on who is saved or not based on a person’s lifestyle, but that is just a guess at best, as the sanctification of the believer does follow a rather meandering course (two steps forward, one step back, three steps forward, five steps back, … does not look promising, but then… ten steps forward…, then one step back…).

The motto of the conference is “Redeeming the Time; Uniting the Brethren”. This is a very worthwhile goal. We should make the best of the time given to us to spread the Good News: the Gospel of Jesus the Christ. We should fellowship with other Christian churches. We have differences in a few doctrines, but most of our beliefs are the same. Unity of local churches and the fellowship of Christians glorifies God.

I heard the phrase: “United we stand, divided we fall.” a few times during the event. However, do not think that God has a problem. God is always in control, and the Universal Church is united, and will be raptured soon.

As for church growth, this is something that can only be done by God. Can unity among local Christian churches result in revival? What is the key to revival? I will leave you with a lecture from Ian Paisley on this subject. Before I was saved I heard him speak and I thought he was such a wind-bag. Nowadays, I am surprised I never saw what a great orator he was. Definitely one step forward. .

Guide Me O Thou Great Redeemer

I like this hymn a lot, and the Welsh congregation in the video below sing beautifully.There is one line in the song they are singing which does not sound quite right, and I suspect that the song was edited from the original. So I am editing back. It is underlined in the video, and you will notice the congregation singing a different line. Instead of singing “Feed me now and evermore.” they sing “Feed me till I want no more.”.That does not sound right, and in other versions of the lyrics on the web, the former is written. But the voices sound so beautiful that I tolerated the discrepancy and chose to highlight it for you.

I wonder what caused this to happen. Well, it is written: “He said unto them, An enemy hath done this.” (Matthew 13:28a)

Enjoy the music, and praise our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for eternity!

If you want to see the congregation singing, then here is the video. “Guide Me O Thou Great Redeemer”, sung by the Choir of the Morriston Tabernacle Swansea Wales (Public Domain). A great hymn by William and Peter Williams.

Here are the lyrics:

Guide me O Thou great Redeemer
Pilgrim through this barren land.
I am weak but Thou art mighty
Hold me with thy powerful hand.
Bread of heaven
Feed me now and evermore

Open now the crystal fountain
Whence the healing streams do flow,
Let the fiery cloudy pillar
Lead me all my journey though,
Strong Deliverer
Be Thou still my strength and shield.

When I tread the verge of Jordan
Bid my anxious fears subside
Death of death,
And hell’s destruction,
Land me safe on Canaan’s side,
Songs of praises
I will ever give to thee.
Songs of praises
I will ever give to thee.

This One Should Keep Us All Thinking…

Some food for thought. Enjoy!

God bless,

George

War Stories 2008/04/09 – Are there demons in cyberspace?

I viewed a YouTube video of someone reading from the Bible, and that person was reading it in a way that was not pleasant to hear. I think the person was an atheist, or maybe a satanist. I was told by an ex-satanist that atheists who are familiar with the Bible are likely to be satanists. When I viewed the video I felt very tense in my chest. I prayed to God for help, told Him that He is in control, and that whatever happens to me is up to Him. I felt slightly better and then I had an idea of reading from my Bible the same verses that the person on the video was reading. After I read those verses myself, I felt better. Looking back, I suspect that a satanist filmed himself, and used the video as a way of casting a spell on the viewer, and what God guided me to do broke the spell.

Another time I viewed a satanist group profile on Facebook. It was not scary, but I felt scared, which was really odd. Again, I prayed to God to help me through this fear, and I felt better. I joined the group to post a couple of my evangelistic video tracts. The next day, I got a message from the administrator asking me to take my video down. I replied that he can take it down himself. The next day it was taken down, and I left the group.

I think that there are demons in cyberspace.

There are positive feelings in cyberspace too. I like it when people post nice comments on my profile. Some profiles I visit in Facebook and Friendster make me feel happy. There are angels in cyberspace too.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the important thing to remember is that Jesus Christ defeated Satan by paying for our sins on the cross. If we have repented and believed in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, then we have been redeemed, and therefore are now adopted sons of God. For this reason we can boldly pray to our Heavenly Father. It is written:

John 1:12-13 “But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

Our Heavenly Father will always look after us. It is written:

Rom 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.”

God bless,
George