Didn't Christ Dined with Sinners?

Just recently, I met my Dad who just arrived from Davao in Holiday Inn in Ortigas. After our small talk I decided to bring my Dad to church in a certain church inside Robinson's Galleria which is just a few steps away.

When we arrived there, we were met by a swarm of churchgoers who can't find seats. I was impressed. The sound was great, they have worship leaders and pastors who looked like celebrities. What a great motivation indeed to go to church if you see girls and guys who are good to look at every Sunday. When the sermon came, all was quite going well. It was about Faith and the account was about when Isaiah gave his blessing to Jacob instead of Esau. The pastor was funny, an eloquent speaker himself. But for one thing, it was his behavior as he shared this side joke before the crowd. We all know that Jacob was quite the opposite of Esau. Esau was hairy, a very physical man who enjoyed hunting and the outdoors while Jacob was smooth and fair-skinned, who tended the sheep and stayed near home.

So this pastor made this stupid joke about men who were fair-skinned and he was relating to men nowadays who were effeminate, quite vain about themselves, in short men who are "gay". People were laughing but in one corner I saw this guy. He was wearing pink and by the looks of him it's obvious that he is gay. His face was a picture of hurt. He was angry and I saw him clenching his fist. I stopped myself from my urge to laugh and felt Christ speaking to me. I saw him and felt his agony, as people in the audience laugh in their ignorance. If I were that man, I wouldn't be going to this church.

I'm not judging or anything about a church like this or churches in general these days. As I have observed, churches nowadays don't attend to the brokenness of its members. Most churches nowadays are more focused on evangelism on making thousands and thousands of members eventually making them mega churches. It's not bad actually but sadly most churches are concerned maintaining their status quo. They wanted to be the church of the "elite". They wanted to project an image of a happy church, with all of its members happy and smiling and faithfully appear to obey God's word. It's either they want to hide the reality that its members are broken - they ingore it, they shy away from it or just laugh their way to it just as this pastor is making this sickening joke? They don't offer help, they condemn. What a hypocrisy!

Didn't Christ dined with the sinners? Didn't he associate himself with the tax collectors? Didin't he saved Mary Magdalene, the prostitute? Didn't he gave the living water the adulteress woman of Samaria badly need? Didn't he choose Peter who was fickle-hearted? or Judas whom He know would betray him? Our churches become the modern-day synagogues; with their pastors, the modern day Pharisees. Is that what Christ want his church his to be? With people who claim to be clean and spotless? Think again, the church should exist to welcome sinners. To provide help to those who are needy, to be a safe place to anyone who needs refuge and most of all to transform the lives of the people to be Christ-like, not tolerating the sin but lovingly care for the sinner.

The Calling of Matthew (Matthew 9:9-17)

9 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. "Follow me," he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.

10 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew's house, many tax collectors and "sinners" came and ate with him and his disciples. 11When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"

12 On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.'[a] For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Spending All Soul's Day

I was in the middle of the stage and I felt I was Michael W. Smith. The band echoed making a crescendo of the first song of Michael's "Worship" album. I felt my mouth which I know would be saying, "Hello Louisville, Kentucky!" instead, "Hello, Oranbo, Pasig!"

What!?

Where the hell was I? Oh, yes, on my bed? Dreaming or maybe daydreaming perhaps. I woke up and felt my whole body ache from doing boxing the night before. That was good though! Anyway, I did my usual thing: have my quiet time, have breakfast while watching Hillsong, check my e-mail and browse my bookmarked sites. By 1 o' clock I'm going to meet my friend Josh, to watch "The Prestige".

When I finished my errands, I answered my GT assignment and continued my reading on "Angels and Demons"... that writer, Dan Brown is really great. Only those who believe what he says are the ,fools. I got at SM Mega by 1. Just in time, Josh texted me and we met and have lunch before watching the movie. By quarter to 2, we were inside the cinema.

The movie was really good... all these pointless quest for power just brings you death and your destruction - that was all the movie wants to convey in a nutshell. After that Josh asked me to hang out in his "crib" but I declined feeling quite tired and wanted to go home. So we decided to go to Starbucks and drink coffee and talked about stuff like life, career, women, etc... I was supposed to go home but I was tempted to shop so I bought myself a set of my corporate attire... yes. I still waited for an hour to have my slacks altered so I went to Powerbooks and listened to "Bossa" and have dinner. After that I, got my slacks, went home and wrote this.

Life can be quite ordinary sometimes and it's good to appreciate the ordinary.

Late Night Moonshell

LRT

It was like 9:15 PM when I left the gym today. My whole body was still alert preparing for some iron action so I treated myself with a handful of nuts and gatorade to feed these hungry muscles. I was on my way to LRT trudging along Quirino Avenue. I saw some guys playing basketball and somehow I wish I could play but I was kind of tired and I still have work tomorrow at 8.

I hurried myself climbing up the stairs of LRT, quite anxious that I might miss the last train but I was glad I'm just on time. By the time I was by the platform, the last train came. I entered and tried to settle down (or up) and relaxed my mind, feeling the tiredness of the day. In front of me was a girl sleeping. Her hands were clinging around her mother's arms and her mouth was half-open. Her hair was blown slightly by the weak air-conditioned breeze issued from the LRT vents. Her face was a picture of calm, of rest and comfort. I strongly felt God's presence in that child and I thank God that even in the midst of our busyness, when we turn to God we can be rested, still and quiet. He said in Psalm 46:10, "Be still and know I am God"... What a truth to behold!

I arrived home here at CH by 10:30 and feeling so tired physically. I brushed my teeth and I heard my friends at BP coming downstairs. We shared small talks until they go home. Tomorrow, I will be facing a new day - I might to the same thing but each day will be a day of rest when you are before God's presence. The world tires you but in God, you will be refreshed.

Whatever Happened to Andy

I have not written my own posts for the past 3 months, I think. I've been very busy, will tell you more about the details in the next paragraph.

Last July, I started my training as an AITS (Associate IT Specialist) in BPI-Computer Systems Corporation. It was 2 months and a half blood-drenching training of logic formulation, learning the COBOL program, and the mainframe operating system tools and utilities. It has been a wonderful and exhausting (I was sick twice because of stress) time, learning critical and analytical skills, but most of all the value of teamwork and hard-work along with my fellow trainees. I think most of all those are the most important things.

I will truly miss the times, when we just sit all day coding our programs in the "aquarium", chatting, teasing and joking, listening to Von's MP3s, and eating, eating. I would miss the "belgian" days where after lunch we would go to Ministop for a belgian ice cream. The training has just ended and some of us were "eliminated", those who didn't pass. It's quite sad that module after module were decreeasing in number.

We are now distrubuted to different areas of assignment and it's time to say goodbye. It's sad but life has to go on... We will be going to a new office, meet new people and experience a different culture. There's gonna be a period of adjustment.

Well, whatever happened to Andy... Things have been difficult for him, internally and externally. Many things have come and gone and he's quite unsure what he has become now. God knows and sees his every step... in this busy and fast-paced corporate life, God will surely made His name in his place.

At The Cross

God loves you no matter what... so just come before Him.