saaavi the dancing dork ♥

[10 Jan 2012] Day 102!

Been a while since I posted like this!

Tuesday was an amazing day. The “night” before, I got to bed at around 3:40 AM. I couldn’t get myself into work mode earlier, so that was the consequence. Thank God, though, I was able to finish the things that were due the following day.

I went to UP for my 7 AM PE class. Since my dad waited for me, I actually had the option to go home since my next class would be at 1 PM. I decided to go home, thinking that I’d be able to get some work done.

I got home at around 9 AM. I took a much needed nap, woke up, and ate my second breakfast (eggs for energy!). Before I do any schoolwork, I make sure that I spend time with God first. And that’s what I did.

Can I just say? I am very grateful for how my devos have been so far. I am quite enjoying the materials I’m using now (Her: Becoming a Proverbs 31 Girl, GCF Youth L.I.V.E.’s BIBLE IN 2 YRS Campaign, and Solo). 

BACKSTORY: For the past week or so, I’ve felt real down about my performance in school, which led me to worry about my future career and whatnot. For the longest time, I hadn’t allowed those things to bother me since I firmly believe that God’s got a great plan for me. It was a struggle to get back into that mindset, until God reminded me of three things yesterday. 

The first thing that He reminded me of yesterday was that He is trustworthy. Psalm 40:1-5 came up in Her.

I have nothing to worry about because God hears me and He will lift me up from the slimy pit and out of the mud and mire and He already has set my feet on a firm place to stand. And when things crumble, well, they’ll crumble. But I know I’ll still be standing firmly in His hands. He’s done too many great things for me to even begin to doubt His goodness and greatness in my life. 

The second thing He reminded me of yesterday was that He is faithful. This came up in GCF Youth L.I.V.E.’s Bible in 2 Yrs campaign. The passage was from Genesis 17, where God reminded Abraham of His covenant with him and gave him a new covenant to follow.

What hit me first was that God reminded Abraham of His promise to him, that his descendants would be as innumerable as the stars, that he would be the father of many nations. Now, if I were Abraham, who had no child and was a year away from being a century old, I’d kinda get worried. But I suppose that could be one reason why God reminded Abraham of that promise. Abraham only needed to wait upon the Lord, and even more so when things seem more impossible. 

I only need to wait upon the Lord. I guess I’ve kinda been feeling incompetent in my course with all the talks about putting together a portfolio of our best plates and making our resumes. I was thinking, Do I have anything good enough to offer? 

Last semester, God already affirmed to me that Interior Design is definitely where I’m supposed to be. So, regardless of what grades I make now, I know that I’m where God wants me to be, and all I have to do is obey Him and do my best. This leads me to the third reminder God had for me yesterday.

The third thing that He reminded of yesterday was that He is holy. This came up Solo. The passage was from Leviticus 22:1-8, which spoke of how Aaron and his sons had to be ceremonially clean before offering anything up to God. Why? Simply because He is the Lord and He is holy.

God deserves excellence, nothing less. I, mean c’mon. Can we really tell God, “God, you only deserve this much from me. And that’s all I’ll give you.”? 

This made me realize that I have not been doing my best in my studies for God. I know I haven’t. And for me to say that I’m doing all this for God without doing them excellently? Tsk. Parang may mali, no?   

His holiness isn’t something to be taken lightly. We have to take the extra effort to make sure that our hearts are right before Him and that we are giving Him all we can give Him. That’s what I’ve been lacking. 

After my devos, I looked at the time and, whaddya know, I had to leave for school already. I had no more time to do my schoolwork, which meant that I’d have to stay up late so I get some work done. Haha. But, hey! Didn’t God just remind me that He is trustworthy, faithful, and holy? I found it kind of funny actually. Haha. 

When I got home from school (I didn’t go to training cuz my parents wanted me to rest, which I actually didn’t get to do either, but it’s all good haha), I was surprisingly not sleepy. I got to work right away. I was slow, but at least I started. I stayed up til around 3 or 4 AM again, but I saw how God really works when you just trust Him, remember His faithfulness, and just do your best for Him. It won’t always be how you expect it to be, but you can be confident that God will get you through. 

Thank You, Lord, for Tuesday!

end~ saaavi

2011

In my 2011 CBTL planner, under the vision board, I wrote this: Lord, may You be glorified in my life this 2011!

I had no idea what I was in for. No idea at all. 

January went by, just as any other month did. February went by, and I turned 18! March came, and everything changed. I went through a break up from a relationship that wasn’t a relationship of four years. Haha! Yes, it was a weird and messy thing. Haha! The next couple of months were rough for me. I mean, you could imagine, right? 

I seriously had no idea what I was in for. No idea at all. 

I came across this book that I bought a couple years back. I didn’t even remember buying it. Haha. I’m glad I read it when I did, because it put everything into perspective. And by ‘everything’, I do mean more than the break up. Click this link for what I got from the book. If I wrote about it all again here, this post would be too long! Hah. But do read the posts if you have the time. It shouldn’t take too much of it anyway. :)

If I realized anything from that book, it would be that I had been living for myself, even when I thought I was living for God. 

“The greatest incongruence in Christianity is wanting God but not surrendering to Him. Absolute surrender is the key to absolute victory!” - Reverend Edmund Chan (Cultivating Your Inner Life)

I hadn’t surrendered my life fully to God. In that four-year relationship that wasn’t, my life was not fully surrendered to God. And even as I was trying to recover from the break up, I wasn’t fully surrendered to God, until I realized what it is that we should be doing here on earth as His children.

I didn’t. I really didn’t know what I was in for this 2011. 

This year was full of everything. It started out pretty bad, and it only became worse towards the middle of the year. But as the months kept passing by, it only got better and better. Better than it has ever been before. And I mean that with all my heart. 

I look back and I don’t have to wonder what got me through those rough months, because I know that it was God. Even during those rough months, I knew only God could get me through and that it was high time to completely surrender my life to Him.  

“True trust in the wisdom of the Creator is evidenced by a life YIELDED to the Creator’s design for our lives.” - Claude Hickman (Live Life on Purpose)

I had no idea that this year, I would gain new friends and develop new good friendship relationships in church and in school. I had no idea that I’d get close to the people I got close to. I had no idea how encouraged I would be this year!

I had no idea that 2011 would be the year that I would choose to completely surrender my life to God, to His purpose. I had no idea that this year would be that year when I would actually really enjoy reading God’s Word everyday. I had no idea that this year was when all the plans I had for myself would crumble in order for God to place a new desire in my heart, a desire that I had always been hesitant to pursue. Hello, missions!

I had no idea that 2011 would be such a beautiful year. 

Lord, I can only thank You and praise You for what You have done in my life this year. I pray that, as this year ends, I was able to glorify You with my life this 2011. 

And for 2012? Well, I’ll have another blog post for that!

“To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.”

 Jude 24-25 

[15 Nov 2011] Day 101

I just want to thank God for the peace, comfort, security and joy that He has been giving me the past couple of weeks months. It’s amazing and so exciting to have a relationship with Him. :)

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

John 14:27

end~ saaavi

Completed: 100 Days of God’s Goodness Project

Praise God! :)

Even though I’m done with the 100 days, I’m definitely going to keep this project going. :) It’s a good reminder for me to always be thankful for what God is doing in my life, despite how things don’t always go according to plan. :)

end~ saaavi

[08 November 2011] Day 100!

I want to thank God for assurance of His presence. 

I plan a lot, but rarely do they ever go exactly according to my plan (may it be my plan for the day or my plan for my future). I mean, c’mon. You guys have seen how many times I’ve planned what to do in a day and failed to follow them. 

Earlier this week, I was kind of discouraged. I kind of felt like whatever it was I wanted, I wouldn’t get them. 

I was reminded of one passage. 

“Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Psalm 37:3-4

The verse doesn’t mean that He will give us what we initially ask for. Thing is, God will give us what He wants to give us. He will give us what we need in order for His purpose. 

This verse means that when we trust God enough to obey Him completely, our desires would be the same as God’s desires. It is not God’s desires that change according to ours, but ours change according to His. This happens when we spend time with Him, learning more about Him, His ways, His purpose.

Over the weekend, something distracted me from His purpose for me. I stupidly allowed myself to become set on something that was actually really just nothing. Haha. And that’s what happens when we aren’t set on God’s purpose for us. We get frustrated because things don’t go according to the purpose we allow our lives to revolve around. They revolve around God’s purpose, which is far greater and ultimately better than the purpose we could ever ‘make’ for ourselves. 

In relations to his, another verse came up in my time with God today that really encouraged me. 

“All my longings lie open before you, O Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you.”

Psalm 38:9

It’s very hard not to feel bad about not getting what we want. But Psalm 38:9 reminded me that God is aware of our desires. He knows when we’re down. And He wants us to express our dependence on Him.

After reading this verse, I just let it all out to God. I was reallllllly down about this one thing. 

God knows. He knows what my desires are, but He knows that we’re all safest when we are living in accordance to His plan. And if my desires are not a part of His plan, then I should be reason enough for me to be willing to let go of those desires. 

Today, God assured me of His presence in my life, despite how things don’t work out the way I want them to, and for that I am grateful. :)

end~ saaavi

[25 October 2011] Day 99!

Last night, I mentioned in my blog that I wasn’t going to use the internet until 3 pm. HAH! When I woke up this morning, I didn’t feel the urge to log in to tumblr, twitter, or facebook. I doubt it was a ‘miracle that happened overnight’. For sure, it was by God’s grace. I noticed, though, that in the past few days, tumblr, twitter, and facebook got more boring. 

I don’t know. There’s just not much to do anymore, I guess. 

Anyway, I woke up later than intended, but I actually ended up being way ahead of schedule. I told myself that I had to finish cleaning my room by 12 NN, but I finished 30 minutes earlier. I was also able to sort out the clothes that I planned on selling in less than three hours, which gave me some extra time to have a siesta and watch some TV before I got to reading Live Life on Purpose (click here for today’s entry on what I read today). 

I haven’t had a productive day as today in such a long time! I guess really setting a time for the internet (and sticking to it) plays a big role in how productive you are in a day. Mleh. Yes, I’m only realizing it now. Haha. Disciplineee! Self-controol!

Speaking of discipline and self-control, I also told myself I would sleep earlier this sembreak, so I will now get ready for bed! \:D/ Good night, all!

“But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.”

1 Corinthians 9:27 (ESV)

Thank You, Lord, for a productive day! 

end~ saaavi

[09 October 2011] Day 98!

Since Sundays are for Reflections in the Bible 365 campaign, this blog will serve as my devo for the day. 

Yesterday, I finished Bible 365. Can I just say? I find it amusing that I should finish it on a Saturday. Wala lang. Hindi alanganin. Haha. Sumakto. HEH.

So this reflection won’t just be for the week, but for my whole experience with Bible 365.

As I mentioned in my testimony before, I initially did not want to participate in this campaign. I found it too time-consuming, and with a course like mine, I felt that reading several chapters a day would be too much for me to handle. I decided to continue reading the Bible at my own pace (December 29, 2009, I started reading the Bible from cover to cover. I was reading one section of it per day). Eventually, I was encouraged to go along with Bible 365’s schedule. I decided to join in when my reading schedule matched the schedule of Bible 365’s. Hope that made sense, haha. 

Ironically enough, I eventually decided to read two sets of Bible 365’s readings in one day, which is why I’m ahead. 

I found myself enjoying God’s Word, and learning more about Him each day. It’s been an amazing journey! Really! 

I remember dreading having to do my devos before, but now, by God’s grace, I just can’t go a day without spending time reading His Word. 

Anyway, when I was preparing for my testimony in Youth L.I.V.E., I looked back at my first devo with Bible 365. Here’s what I wrote down in my journal:

Key Verse: 2 Samuel 24:24, “But the king replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the LORD my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.”

Lesson: Doing something for God is not always easy. There will be times that we may lose something or that we may experience pain. But if we are really doing something for God, we should be able to find joy in giving whatever we can.

As I also mentioned in my testimony, this lesson has been a recurring theme in my life since then. Before, I thought I was growing. Well, I was, but I was growing slowly. But as I continued on with Bible 365, I noticed that I was growing faster than ever.

The difference, I believe, was complete obedience. It doesn’t matter if you do your devos everyday if you don’t literally do your devos (whatever it is you learn in reading the Bible) everyday. 

In my journey with Bible 365, my desire to obey God has grown stronger and I have come to appreciate His Word so much more. 

So what am I going to do now for my devos? I’m not sure yet, but I know I want to go back to certain books where I’m pretty sure I missed some big stuff (like Revelations HAHA). I also have a couple of books that I bought that I want to read over the sembreak. But for now, while I’m still trying to figure out how to go about them, I’ll stick to following the Our Daily Bread that we have here at home. :)

Thank You, Lord, so much for a wonderful, exciting journey reading Your Word! Lord, I’m looking forward to more dates with You, learning more about You and what You want for me in life. I really am so excited! :D 

end~ saaavi