Love Came Down...Unwrapping Our Hearts for the Saviour

Love came down at Christmas,
Love all lovely, Love Divine,
Love was born at Christmas,
Star and Angels gave the sign.

Worship we the Godhead,
Love Incarnate, Love Divine,
Worship we our Jesus,
But wherewith for sacred sign?

Love shall be our token,
Love shall be yours and love be mine,
Love to God and all men,
Love for plea and gift and sign.

Christina Rosetti was an English poet who wrote “Love Came Down at Christmas”, as an expression of how she viewed  the Christmas story.

As what a popular Christmas song says, “(Christmas) It’s the most wonderful time of the year!”. And who does not agree to that? With all the festivities, dinners and get-togethers to go to, decorations to put up, gifts to give and gifts to receive, there really is no single Christmas activity that does not get everyone excited.

For a Christian, however, Christmas isn’t just about all those things, it is about the condescension of God when, out of His abundant loving-kindness, He chose to give us His Son so that we, a bunch of miserable sinners, will have that eternal hope of having a life in Christ. The Scripture says in Psalm 113:5-6, “Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high, who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth?”(NIV), that the Lord is overall the earth. He is above all things. He is far out of our reach, physically speaking. But when man needed “saving”, John 3:16 spells out beautifully how He humbled Himself by giving us His Only Son. Thus, the Christmas story tells us of love coming down to reach us, to save us.

The days leading to Christmas can easily swallow us with errands to run, dinners to host, and gifts to wrap. But we can all have a different Christmas this year. We’ve got several days more before that joyous day of December 25. How about instead of spending most of your time wrapping presents, take some time to UNWRAP YOUR HEART for the Saviour. Dig deep into the Bible narrating Christ’s birth, ask God to open the eyes of your heart to receive the message of Christmas in a whole new level this year, and have a heart of gratitude towards God’s grand gesture of humility. Preparing ourselves to celebrate Christmas may take time away from all the tasks that we still need to do. But those are just tangible things. God can give us something that is not tangible – a renewed heart that only has room for the Infinite God who first came to us as an Infant.

As author Ann Voskamp wrote,"We’re ready for Christmas, not when we have all the gifts, but when we are ready for Christ — when we’re ready to give all of ourselves to Christ."

The book of John in its first chapter says, “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.”(KJV). Might you be willing to turn it around by readying your heart to receive love that is CHRIST? This Christmas, let us unwrap our hearts because LOVE CAME DOWN.

*Artwork inspired by the "Love Came Down" collection of dayspring.com

Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

What do you do when you come across a situation where there is a strong desire inside your heart and mind for that situation to work in your favor but your eyes and ears betray you? Judging from my first sentence in this entry, I am guessing that this will not be the most eloquent post I will ever publish. If reading that first line already causes you confusion, I apologize. I masked the "situation" I am talking about in words because I sincerely want "it" to be between me and the Lord. Yes, it is that big of a deal. When it means so much to me, I know that the only One to Whom I can run and talk about it really is my Father. 

And you may be wondering that if I really want this to be between me and the Lord, why am I writing an entry about it. Well, much as I would like to talk about "it", I would rather focus on sharing what this journey is teaching me. 

Ever since I started praying about "it" the Lord has taken me into an interesting journey of ups and downs. And for all those times, He leads me back to the truth that He is in control. His sovereignty is upon "it". There are times when my  heart is overflowing with FAITH that my mind believes of the possibility of "it". But then, something happens that my eyes and ears seem to dampen my spirits. I guess that's just how it is. Walang favoritism ang Lord. He gives what He deems good for us; and He never makes mistakes. So, for all those awful times that my eyes and ears come across, I have learnt to shrug them off and believe that the Lord knows what He is doing. For the times that He lifts my spirits, I thank Him that He allows these things to come my way.

This journey also has led me to a very powerful statement, which, to my surprise was actually in His Word. Why am I surprised? Because for the past months, I have been hounded by this statement. "HELP MY UNBELIEF." For those kind enough to follow me on my Twitter account, occasionally, you would come across a tweet like this: "In my mind and heart I believe the possibility of it, but my eyes and ears betray me." This talks about my somewhat struggle on this area of my life. 

So there, I always ask God to "help my unbelief". Because Lord knows how, in so many instances, my heart would "bleed" because I do not "like" what I see or hear. In several occasions, it has brought me to my hands and knees, literally crying to my Father, out of that overwhelming desire for Him to make "it" happen for me. But my Father has always been faithful to comfort me and restore peace and quiet in my heart. Once I have let out all the tears, I feel His everlasting arms wrapped around me, making me feel that everything is just going to be fine.

With this "help my unbelief" journey, the Lord has surprised me in more ways than one with this line. But the best thing about it is that this statement was always followed by an assurance that my Father is there to help me overcome my unbelief. So let me share with you these special instances where the Lord confronted me with His truth:

From a song currently in my playlist...

They Just Believe 

Written by Josh Wilson and Phillip Larue

You say with a mustard seed of faith

That I can make a mountain move

But sometimes I am so afraid

Even though I know it’s true

Because my faith feels just like doubt

I don't know what to pray right now

Oh I believe, please help my unbelief

Jesus, give me grace to trust what I cant see

Your ways are not my own

Some things I'll never know

But You say blessed are the ones who never see

They just believe

So now, with a heart full of questions

I come to You just as I am

All my weakness all my fears

All I've run from all these years

In the middle of my doubt

Somehow still I'm finding out

I believe, please help my unbelief

Jesus, give me grace to trust what I cant see

Your ways are not my own

Some things I'll never know

But You say blessed are the ones who never see

They just believe,   

They just believe

(Help my unbelief)

When my faith feels just like doubt

I believe, yeah, oh I believe

Oh I believe, please help my unbelief

Jesus, give me grace to trust what I cant see

Your ways are not my own

Some things Ill never know

But You say blessed are the ones who never see

Oh , You say blessed are the ones who never see

They just believe  (Jesus, I believe),

They just believe  (Help my unbelief) 

They just believe  (Jesus, I believe),

Help me believe    (Help my unbelief)

From an old hymn I got re-acquainted recently...

Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior

Words: Fanny Crosby

Music: W. Howard Doane

Pass me not, O gentle Savior,

Hear my humble cry;

While on others Thou art calling,

Do not pass me by.

Savior, Savior,

Hear my humble cry;

While on others Thou art calling,

Do not pass me by.

Let me at Thy throne of mercy

Find a sweet relief,

Kneeling there in deep contrition;

Help my unbelief.

Trusting only in Thy merit,

Would I seek Thy face;

Heal my wounded, broken spirit,

Save me by Thy grace.

Thou the Spring of all my comfort,

More than life to me,

Whom have I on earth beside Thee?

Whom in Heav’n but Thee?

And from the Book that has never failed to let God's promises shine...

Mark 9:24

And straightway the father of the child cried out, 

and said with tears, 

Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

With all of these special moments with God confronting me and assuring me that He's got me in His hands, what's a daughter got to do but to hold on to the hands Who holds everything in its place. The Lord gave it to me in a song, in a hymn, and in a Bible verse. I seem to have everything I need to go through this "help my unbelief" journey.

I will not lie, I would really like to have the Lord's favor be on my side on this particular prayer. My control freak and impatient self would sometimes lead me to pains and tears because I would ask Him to make it happen now. There have been days where my faith is weak and this tears my heart to pieces. But these not-so-pleasant times also come as blessings in disguise. Since I started praying for "this", I have been taught to wait patiently for Him, to trust Him, and to believe that He alone knows what's best for me. I am slowly being shaped into a mindset that "IF THE LORD SEES THAT IT IS GOING TO BE GOOD FOR ME, HE IS GOING TO GIVE IT TO ME. IF IT IS NOT GOING TO BRING ME ANY GOOD, MY FATHER IS GOING TO SPARE ME FROM IT."

Last Christmas, my mom and dad gave me something to put up in my room. I was looking for something like that but with the word "GRACE". Here it is:

I've always wondered why they weren't able to find "Grace". But I know now why these were give to me, I am going to need it to my "help my unbelief" journey. The Lord really knows what He is doing! Praise Him!

Whenever I think about how my eyes and ears betray me with the things I see and hear and doubt seems to be lurking in the corner, the Lord is quick to remind me what His Word and my favorite author, Elisabeth Elliot, kept on saying:

For we walk by faith, not by sight. - 2 Corinthians 5:7

"We walk by FAITH, not by sight."

I honestly do not know how the Lord will work, especially in the days to come. I am scared. I am anxious. But maybe, I have to rely on what the Lord impresses in my heart and mind, trusting that they are from Him. I know there will be days and nights when I will cry out to Him out of overwhelming fear and anxiety over this. But I also know that like a Father to His child, He will be there to wrap His arms around me and tell me that He knows what is best for me. I will not deny that I really want "it" to happen. Seriously. And I will also admit that I am currently struggling to come to terms with the possibility that "it" might not. Whatever happens, whether it goes "my" way or not, if it is going to be painful, I know that that pain is not going to stay forever. Everything will come to pass.

I know that everything seems to be a blur right now since I really cannot go into specifics. But pray with me for the Lord's favor. I really hope that one day, I will have an entry and share with you a story, carefully written by my Father. A story of...

But in the meantime, while I deal with "this" with my Father, I am just thankful that "this" has brought me to my hands and knees, ever-desiring to be in my Father's arms. So for now, this is where I am...this is where my Father has taken me...

This is where my Father has brought me and I know that even if in my  prayer times I only pray about "it", the bigger lesson He is teaching me is He should be my first resort, He should be the One I should cling on to for anything and everything that my troubled heart is going through. And I know that this truth applies to you too. So whatever you are going through, wherever you are in your journey with Him, trust that He is with us, He sees what is going on, He desires to give nothing but the best for us.

If you're experiencing unbelief like I am, ask God to help you overcome your unbelief. Because He can. And He will.

His GRACE is Forever and Always sufficient for you and me.

Never turn God's facts into hopes, or prayers, but simply use them as realities, and you will find them powerful as you believe them.

He giveth more grace when the burdens grow greater, 

He sendeth more strength when the labors increase; 

To added affliction He addeth His mercies, 

To multiplied trials His multiplied peace. 

When we have exhausted our store of endurance, 

When our strength has failed ere the day is half done, 

When we reach the end of our hoarded resources 

Our Father's full giving is only begun. 

His love has no limit,

His grace has no measure, 

His power no boundary known unto men; 

For out of His infinite riches in Jesus 

He giveth and giveth and giveth again. 

--Annie Johnson Flint 

One Leap At A Time.

When I turned 29, I honestly welcomed it with arms wide open; forgetting that people are about to throw at me that big 'ol snide "Malapit ka nang mawala sa kalendaryo", which never fails to rain on a young woman's parade.  And so, my initial reaction at the thought of being confronted with this very famous line was to rush to the 2012 calendar and hope against hope that it would be a leap year.  And yes, God's favor was on my side, so to speak, February has 29 days and that age old comment is not YET  applicable to me.  Needless to say, I was a bit daunted by that inevitable fact.

And just like what any writer would do, what cannot be expressed with spoken words can always be communicated in the written form; thus, I decided to make a blog post out of it.  My initial thinking was what is the leap year all about?  Why, every four years, February suddenly gets an extra day.  Apparently, a leap year is actually a "corrective measure" to make sure that the calendar year is synchronized with the seasonal year; for whatever that means, I honestly do not want to know.  But yeah, it happens in order to correct what seems to be out of sync.  

Which leads me into thinking, I am going to be 29 once in my life and maybe, just maybe, this would be a good time to do some corrective measures too, don't you think?  Well, nobody has to wait until they're 29 to correct whatever seems to be messed up; but hey, since we are on that subject, maybe, I would actually call my 29th year, MY LEAP YEAR, my year to correct whatever needs to be corrected.  Does that make sense?

To be perfectly honest, for the past several years (those who know what I went through a couple of years back would actually get to piece this puzzle), I have been saying to myself and to the people I am constantly with that I am in my redemption years.  Yes, there were years that I am certainly not very proud of, but those same years were, ironically, instrumental to get me to where I am now.  I call it redemption years primarily because I would love to make up for "lost" time; first and foremost, all the lost time which I should have invested in growing my relationship with the LORD.  The past couple of years, I would have to say, by God's grace, have been very fruitful and I am praying to GOD that it would get better everyday.  I keep encouraging "kids" who are relatively younger than I am to start investing their time nurturing a really deep and intimate relationship with the LORD.  If I would have it my way, I would have loved to experience the nearness of the LORD at a much younger age, maybe in my early twenties?  But then, those are years gone by for me now, and what I have is the last year of my 20s.  Am I supposed to wallow on the fact that I lost so much time?  I think not. 

This is my time, my time is now.  And oh, how I am constantly amazed at how GOD is moving in my life.  There are days when I seriously don't get it; but then, there are days that everything just makes perfect sense!  And believe me, those "perfect days", not to mention beautiful days, are way more than the other! This is, indeed, MY LEAP YEAR, and I am owning it!

And then, there's that other kind of leap that I think about from time to time.  These past few days, I have been noticing myself getting sudden surges of excitement and "kilig" for whatever reason I still have not identified.  I kid you not, but I really get that very nice elated feeling that I would always hope would stay.  But then again, they are just sudden surges, so they wear off after some time.  

And then I think to myself, the past few years found me really guarded.  Guarded in a good way, though. I think that I have finally learned to get a hold of myself and find control over my mind, my emotions, my words, and my actions.   And past experiences, to be honest, have gotten the best of me that I am quite hesitant to "test the waters".  Which water I am talking about, I still do not have an idea.  But yeah, with how things turned out before, I am finding myself more and more careful at the risk of purposefully restraining myself sometimes to let loose and enjoy whatever that sudden surge of excitement and "kilig" is all about.  Sadly, I have lost touch of how it is to just enjoy and bask in my emotions, however great they are.  I am now finding myself, seriously, stopping myself to get all consumed by my feelings and emotions, no matter how harmless they can be.  I guess that is my attempt to protect and preserve myself from getting "burned" (I know, kind of a harsh description).  

And so, with my last hurrah of my twenties underway and this being MY LEAP YEAR, remember today because today, I am embarking on a pursuit to make the most of my year.  I am going to make the most out of this year because I know that the future is mine for the taking.  GOD'S thumbprints are all over it and all HE asks is for me to lift up both hands and say, "YES, LORD. I'LL TAKE IT!". 

This year, I am going take a two-pronged kind of LEAP!  A LEAP to correct and sync myself with everything else happening in my life; and another LEAP to who knows what! Whatever that is that requires me to take that LEAP, I am ready for it, I am going to take it! 

And already, I am claiming beautiful days ahead! 

A Very MaLIGAYAng Bati, LIGAYA!

As I have always said everytime I share this photo, either on Facebook (if it's active) or Twitter (@CzarinaKristine), this was probably the last photo of us with Ligaya as a single lady.  Taken after the Christmas At Home cantata, I remember her pulling me to the stage so we can take this picture.  

And today marks her 31st birthday.  I have no idea if she is dreading these two numbers but what I do know is that she is celebrating this with a hyphen on her surname, Baradi-Rulloda.  Yes, that single lady on the left when the photo was taken is now a MARRIED woman! 

From the perspective of her single lady friend, I have to be honest that I felt mixed emotions when she broke the news that she has begun planning her wedding.  My initial thought was, "Lord, pag kinasal na si Ligaya, anu nang pag-uusapan namin? E syempre, puro marital kwentos na maririnig ko sa kanya.  Di na ako makaka-relate." Yes, may slight selfishness involved.

But the Lord, He is really full of surprises for me this year.  What I thought would create a distance between Ligaya and Kristine (as she calls me), even became an even stronger "glue" to bind us as friends. 

True, we are at different seasons in our lives.  I think we are at Season M; Ligaya treading the waters of being a MARRIED woman, while Kristine still trying to reconcile the idea that she is called a MISSIONARY in the ministry God gave her now.  And this season really brought us closer, at a higher and deeper level of our friendship.  There are more instances now that we are able to talk about more serious matters.  Recently, we have been talking about life changes - my decision to invest a bulk of my time in the ministry and her contemplations on leaving her corporate job to pursue an involvement in a Christian organization.  


By God's grace, we have really come a long way; Ligaya has come a long way and I would like to believe, just as any friend would, that she is passing the Lord's "tests" with flying colors.  Yes, ako ang president ng fans club ni Ligaya, whether sa kanyang singing career or whatever, I will always be her cheerleader, because I know that she will also be mine.  


And so, this is a friend dedicating an entire blog entry to one of God's brilliant gifts to me.  I will be forever and always grateful to the LORD Who brought us together.  Like what I always say...

Si Ligaya ang kulot sa unat kong buhok, 
Si Ligaya ang stricto sa kunsintidor tendencies ko,
Si Ligaya ang iyakin sa tapang-tapangan mood ko.

...and the list goes on.   These statements might seem as if I am "glorifying" a friend, but really, this is about the mystery (and humor) of God's mighty hand working in the lives of two of His daughters.  We may be two quite different individuals but somehow, the Lord found beauty in our differences by bringing us together; and for that, I believe neither of two of us would question the wisdom of God there.


I would not know if Ligaya would get to read what I have written, but let this be my expression of thanks to the Lord for bringing this blessing in my life.  Our "WHY LIKE THAT?" episodes are silenced by God's promise of "THIS TOO SHALL PASS".  Two lines that you might probably hear us say a million times over; and there's probably no way that anyone would get the actual context of this super inside joke. But these are exactly the very things that make this gift of friendship a real blessing.  


For Ligaya, on your 31st year, I am grateful to the Lord for you.  For being the shock absorber of my seemingly endless crying moments, the boarding house I can always got to whenever I feel like not coming home, and for being the Accountant/Auditor of the different aspects of my life (translation: tagasaway).


I look forward to more years of enjoying the gift of friendship our Father has bestowed upon us.  Thank God that He is not finished with us yet and our best days are still to come.  May you come into a full circle as you fulfill His calling as a wife, giving glory to our Father alone.  May He find us faithful as friends, as sisters in Christ, as He transforms us each day from grace to grace to GRACE.






Eternally HIS,

Czaringring

Sneak peak...

http://www.black-gifts.com/product/home-decor/mugs/

Until I Get My Pinterest Account...

...let me share with you my thoughts on maintaining this blog.

Since I would like to develop a new way of expressing myself, I decided to at least try to write, if not a devotional, at least a blog just to let some of the people dear to me have an idea of my thoughts, which, in the past several months or even years, I have kept to myself.  While my initial intention was to really practice myself writing devotionals, having gone through Bible Interpretation and Teaching classes, I thought to myself that maybe, I can possibly write devotionals.  Just like my favorite author and speaker, Elisabeth Elliot.  But then, I took a step back and thought, "Maybe a devotional is a little too high of a goal at this point. I should probably start elsewhere." Thus, blog entries are coming your way in the next months, as long as my schedule permits me. I hope it does.

So, from this day forward, expect several of my random thoughts translated into words, photos, and countless musings.  Make way for this new kind of girl...

           photo credits: http://www.itgawker.com/2011/12/31/a-new-era-for-social-interest-sites-twitter-tumblr-and-pinterest-go-big-in-2011/ 

Like a Father.

Like a Father to His child, 

HE holds my hand. 

He holds me between His shoulders, 

He holds me in His heart. ♥

Madison Grace.