Dangerous desires!

Tweet

Dangerous Desires

You might wonder what I’m talking about. That’s a strong phrase… dangerous desires.

In my devotion today, I read this verse:

“Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of the eyes, and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father, but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.”
— 1 John 2:15–17

At first, I paused. Something didn’t quite sit right. So I asked God, “Wait… didn’t You love the world? Don’t You still love it? You even gave Your Son for this world. What about John 3:16?”

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
— John 3:16

So how can You tell us not to love the world when You Yourself do?

Now I was confused.
So I asked Him, sincerely:
"Can You please explain it to me, Lord?"

Have you ever had one of those moments where God answers you—not in thunder or lightning, but in a quiet whisper that speaks directly to your soul?

Well… this time, I did.

And this is what He said to me:

---

There are two different kinds of love.

1. God’s love is self-sacrificing.

It’s the love that led Jesus to the cross.
It’s a love that seeks to save, redeem, heal, and restore. That’s the kind of love we’re called to show to the world—to people. A love that lays itself down for the good of others.

2. The other kind of love is self-uplifting.

It’s the kind of love that feeds on:

• the cravings of sinful man

• the lust of the eyes

• the boasting of what one has and does

It’s a love that says, “What can I get?” instead of “How can I give?”

And then I understood.
The love God warns us about is the kind that pulls us away from Him and toward ourselves.

---

But this revelation didn’t end there.

It turned inward. It hit close to home.

Because I had to look at myself and admit:
I am a woman with many desires.
(Or to soften it a little: many wishes.)

• I wish to be better than I am today.

• I wish to serve God better than I’m doing now.

• I wish to create more, to be more creative.

• I wish to know more people.

• I wish to be the one helping, not the one needing help.

• I wish to be successful in every area of my life.

And you might say, “But those aren’t bad desires.”

And you’d be right.
They aren’t—unless my focus shifts.
Unless I begin doing it all for me, instead of for Him.

Because all these things take time, attention, energy—and it’s easy to be sidetracked.
To chase the dream more than the Giver.
To want the blessing more than the One who blesses.

And that’s what God was reminding me today.
Be careful with your desires.
Even good desires can become dangerous if they lead your heart away from God.

---

Reflection

So I ask you:
What are your desires?
What is it that keeps your mind busy, your heart longing, your calendar full?

Do your desires draw you closer to God—or do they quietly compete for His place in your heart?

Let’s not be afraid to examine ourselves honestly.
Let’s bring our desires to the light—and let God purify them.

---

Prayer

Lord,
You know my heart—every wish, every longing, every hidden desire.
Thank You for loving me enough to correct me gently and speak truth to my soul.

Help me to love the world the way You do—with a love that gives, not takes.
Guard me from desires that draw me away from You, even if they look good on the outside.
Teach me to want what You want, to pursue what brings You glory.
And when I get sidetracked (because I know I will), bring me back again.

Keep me close, Lord.
And let the deepest desire of my heart always be You.

Amen.

JOY

Liebers award!

Tweet

What a surprise! I am honored to be one of them who recieve this award from " Spanish pinay". I  am an avid reader of her blog, coz I really  admired her personality and what she shared  were really  inspiring.

There are different awards like:

The Sunshine Award

This award is given to bloggers who positively and creatively inspire other bloggers in the blogosphere.

If I am going to give this award whom I think deserves the title, I probably give them to all the blogs I followed. Coz each everyone has been an inspiration to me. 

The Kreativ Blogger Award

Given to bloggers who are kreativ in their endeavors to be the best bloggers in the world of blogging

 Well, this title belongs to those blogs that I follow who have  a  lot of followers because they are doing something that are worth following. They know how to write interesting articles, touched hearts, and care for other bloggers. 

The Liebster Blog

This award is given to bloggers who has less than 200 followers so that others can help spread the word about blogs that they enjoy and help gain more followers.

And I am one of those who was lucky to get this award. First time ever in my blog history:)

But, the big but is  there is a rule to recieve  this award !

The rules that comes with recieving this award is to  talk something about yourself  ( now myself)  - usually around 7 - 10 things about you. Pass it on to other well deserving bloggers and then let them know that you have an award for them.  

 Well, if there is someone out there like me who is under Liebster Blog who read this post, you can  at least share something about yourself to us who read blogs and at least we can get to know more of each other.

Difficult for me to choose which category I will put those blogs I follow and followed me back. I believe that each and everyone deserve  an award for being there and for  just writing comments on my blogs. I am so easy to please. Just reading comments makes my heart leaps :)

Anyway, I will still tell something about myself.

So now  I have to dig deeper in my innermost being to find something to share  about myself, and it can take some time:)

1. Maybe I can tell about what makes me happy in my everyday life.

* It makes me happy:

               -getting to know people who can inspires me and whom I can learn  a lot.

              

                - when I can make people laugh.

              

               -  when I can show God's love to others.

             

                - being with my family.

              

                -  lighten the burdens of others that God sends into my life.

              

                - creating something with my hands.

             

                - seeing  the work of God in my life and others too.

             

                - that I can see, hear, move and be alive.

            

                - to be loved and have someone to love.

                - seeing others climbing from rags to riches.

                 - when the poor gets help, especially streets children and older people.

My, oh my, it is a very long list and you probaly  get bored reading all the thing that makes me happy.....so I stopped now, although  there are still thousand things  that makes me happy.

2. What makes me sad, irritated or angry!

* It  grieves my heart, when children are abused and molested

* Selfish  people and  people who complains all the time irritates me.

* It makes me sad when people lie to me.

* I hate waiting. Don't like the behavior of people who can't come on time. 

* Greedy people makes me sad.

* Uncleanliness or mess around me irritates me.

3. What I am afraid of!

* darkness

* people that are drunk

* being lost

* apart from God

4. What do I like doing?

* reading and writing

* watching romantic films

* doing crafts

* serving God

* being with my loved ones

Well, I have to stop now, or maybe you fall asleep reading this blog:)

So now I pass it on to you. Hope you too will tell something about yourself too and share it with us:)

JOY

Scrapbooking night!

Tweet

When a co-worker who imbroided this cushion pillow told me that she is going to attend a scrapbooking course, I just could't help it but to ask her if can join the course. And there was to problem, coz they were still needing more participants.
And off we went. We have one thing in common. We are interested in crafts:)

The course leader runs a scrapbooking store and she is really good at it. She started a small shop  in 2006 and now the business is expanding. So, she is on the right track. I asked her if she went to school to learn this craft, but she told me that she just learned everything by herself and through blogging.  So I thought there is hope for me too:)

Here, she is showing to us what she made ....

...and different technics. She told us that we can use everything at hand. There is no limit in arts.

And finally, after a more than 2 hours... the result. I used a picture of my youngest daughter showing her as a " Russ 2012". It is their definition when one is graduating from a three years college study. I was not satisfied with what I made, but I could decorate it more later!

And the other one! I like this one, simple but beautiful. It will be a gift for my mom, from her grand-daughter. 

I admired the work of the other ladies and asked if I can take pictures of them. And here they are:

The title " blomsterpiken" means flower girl...

"Ballong glede" means fun with ballons.

" Brudesvenn"  I believe it is like a flower boy in a wedding.

"Mix kos" means having fun with mixed candies !

"Saft susen" means  juice trick. The baby is so sweet:)

"Vinter glede" means winter fun..

And the last one: Star

It was a memorable night for everybody and we ended up buying more materials for our next picture. 

If you want to visit the owners shop,  here is the link:

http://www.scraphaugen.no

Until next scrapbooking time:)

"Thought for the day"

Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, 

the man who gains understanding,

for she is more profitable than silver 

and yields better return than gold.

( proverbs 3: 13-14)

JOY

Luneta Park: Philippines

Tweet

This place is very memorable for me. Back in the eighties, it was the only park, as far as I know that was located  in the middle of Manila city. It was a place where a family can have their picnics, where lovers meets and where friends strolled and have fun. And after so many years, nothing has changed. It is still a place where one can spend week ends or weekdays  for free. Open 24 hours a day.

And because it is a popular place to visit, especially for foreigners, I took my husband, youngest daughter and mother -in-law to this place. We were accompanied by my eldest daughter. It feels safe to have her around, especially when I have foreigners with me. :)

Bonding day for my eldest daughter and my youngest daughter. Here in front of Rizal monument. The older brother and the other sister were at work.

Located along Manila Bay, Luneta has been the site of some of the most significant moments in Philippine history. The execution of pacifist Dr. José Rizal on December 30, 1896, sparked the fire of the Philippine Revolution against the Spanish colonizers, elevating the martyr as the national hero of the country

With smiles on their faces!

It was a happy and precious moment for these two, who didn't had the chance to grow up together.

My mother -in-law does not like to be published. He he

My husband was busy video taking. He had a very nice experience with a beggar who sat in a wheelchair. Felt sorry for the fellow. But later ,we saw the same beggar walking . My husband was shocked. I told him that they do everything to earn money and that is life in the Philippines. Lessoned learned! Do not judge the book by it's cover! he he

Ended the day by talking almost whole the night. They had so much to talk about! Childhood days and their mother.