A Mom Chosen By God

I have been meeting with parents this week. This has let me to reflect the blessing they are for their children. I see how much they do for their kids and how much they provide for them. So naturally, I started thinking about my mom.

Today she turned 83. I thought of how God chose her (read Psalm 139:15-18), not someone else, to be my mom. Yes, let’s get it clear, she wasn’t perfect at all. She was by-product of her times.  She grew up in a rural area in El Salvador, had 3rd grade education, worked hard, never received attention from her parents nor received the material benefits many others had. In fact, she started wearing shoes at around 16 years old.  She had kids at a young age (I am not sure when she married and I am leaving some details out) and old age, ten total. One did not survive (it was a boy). I was child number eight. She was 42 when I was born and she gave birth to my baby sister at 44.   We grew up in rural area and I have faint memories, none of my mother when she was young.  As a mom, she worked tirelessly to provide for all of us. So I didn’t see her much as I was growing up.  She also wasn’t the affectionate nor the apologetic type. I don’t remember her saying “I love you,” or “I am sorry.” Her parents were like that, she was like that, and I am somewhat like that (ouch!).

But she was the mom God chose for me. I didn’t choose her. It’s not my job to question it. It is my duty to accept it and be thankful to God for her. It is my duty to honor her as my mom.  He chose her just as He chose to grant me grace I didn’t deserve. He saved me, and this is not from myself, it is a gift of God (Ephesians 2:8). She was God’s instrument to bring me to this world, to provide for me, to guide me, to nurture me and yes, to love me.


She also has taught me with her example. She has always been a giver. In fact, she has given so much to others that she has very little materially. She had chances to make money, but decided to give to others. She was never selfish and thought of herself first.  Many times I have thought she went too far, but she never has regretted this. I fall short in being like her. 


She also possesses determination and resilience.  She has faced very difficult situations and has overcome them.  Whether it was walking long distances to provide for her family or working tirelessly, she has never given up. 


She is compassionate and cares for people. I can make a list of the people she has helped or cared for without counting her 9 children, 21+ grand kids and great grand kids.  


As she has aged, my mom can no longer do what she was able to do. But she has left a mark on me forever. I can only be thankful for being my mom. When eternity knocks at her door, I know she will be well received and I will miss her greatly. But not forever. I walk the same path. We’ll be together. Forever!



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Speak Well of Him

It has become my personal tradition to read Psalm 103 every Thanksgiving. For me, this Psalm  expresses what we truly ought to be thankful for. I know that today we are thankful for many people and for that which is valuable to us. But the question is who are we thankful to? Are we thankful to them? Are we thankful to ourselves? or are we thankful to God? As a Christian, of course I am thankful to all those who are part of my life, but ultimately it is He who I speak well of today. It is to Him that I say,

“Bless the LORD, O my soul,
   and all that is within me,
   bless his holy name!
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
   and forget not all his benefits,” (ESV)


It is interesting to not that the word “benefits” in verse 2 above, in Hebrew,  is the same used (“gamal”) in verse 10 where it says, “He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.” This was intentional.  The writer of this Psalm wanted to make clear that we enjoy God’s benefits because he doesn’t deal with us according to what we deserve. 

 I stopped to think about this: “God withholding what we really deserve, is a benefit in of itself. Wow! And he doesn’t do it just for me but for all of humanity. They enjoy his benefits.”

The Psalm has a list of benefits that God has bestowed upon us: forgiveness of ours sins, health, physical strength, daily provision, mercy, everlasting steadfast love, patience and fatherly compassion. He gives us these benefits because of his own steadfast love in spite of our own sinfulness.  He knows us quite well because He made us. He knows that our life is short and what we really are, clay! 

The Psalm ends by urging everyone ought to bless Yahweh (the Lord) even angels.  

Today we should continually say,

“Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
 2Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:” – KJV

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A Sinful Woman

I have been thinking about the passage in Luke 7:36-50.  It’s a passage where Jesus is at a Pharisee’s home eating dinner.  Pharisees where the top religious leaders of that time.  Apparently this man was interested in knowing more about Jesus or had come to believe in him as the Messiah (Savior).  A sinful woman, who we do not know who she is, but was likely a woman of the street, finds out where Jesus is staying. She walks in and starts to weep while kissing, cleaning his feet, and pouring perfume on them (during this time, people would sit on the floor and recline on their right side and thus would leave the feet exposed).  What a weird story you say.  Not so weird.  This sinful woman is washing his feet, something a slave or the host would do for guests.  Not only this but she poured perfume which was very costly.  This caused Simon to think to himself how Jesus could not be a prophet or else he would have known what kind of woman she was and would not have allowed her to do this. But why these thoughts? Simon knew that “good” people like him would not associate themselves with these type of people. But Jesus did not come to seek those who were righteous but those who were sinners (Matthew 9:13).

Jesus direct himself to Simon as soon as he is having those thoughts.  Stop for a moment. Think about that. You just had a bad thought in front of Jesus. He knows it. He answers you! Jesus was omniscient (all-knowing) and knew Simon quite well (and still is and knows us quite well as well. Everything we say, do, or think is before Him NOW!). He tells Simon a story of a man who forgives two people who own him money. One owed more than the other. He forgives them both. He asks Simon who he thinks would be more grateful and he answer correctly.

Now he gives him the application. You are the one who doesn’t consider himself THAT sinful thus you are not as thankful for God forgiving you.  The woman knew how sinful she was and she is grateful and showed great love for Jesus. But wait, she hasn’t asked anything up to this point. But Jesus knew all already. He knew her heart. This woman came seeking forgiveness from Jesus and considered herself so unworthy of it.  Jesus forgives her sins (Notice he doesn’t dismiss her sins. He doesn’t try to minimize her sins or to try to make her feel better).  Jesus saves her. Jesus blesses her and gives her peace! And she never really asked verbally, but Jesus knew her heart and knew Simon’s heart. He knows your heart.

As I thought about this, there were some things that came to my mind. How many men are like this woman? I tried thinking of men in the New Testament that came to Jesus expressing the same emotion of repentance as this woman and I couldn’t think of any. Would I have done what the sinful woman did? Not very likely. I would have been like Simon.

I thought about my own sinfulness.  As I have grown older, my sinfulness has become more apparent. I’ve realized how much I need Jesus to take a hold of me and not let my sinful inclinations control me. I’ve realized that I need his grace and forgiveness each day. I’ve realized that without Him I could not take a step forward without falling.

I also thought how uncomfortable we about admitting our own sinfulness (just like Simon).  And I am not talking about telling everyone our sins.  But do we show to our Savior how much we love him by our thankfulness for his forgiveness for all of our sins? Do we have the brokenness of heart that the sinful woman had?

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Grace and Legalism

When Christ saves us, he saves us by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-10).  Christians acknowledge and believe this without a doubt. It’s how we live in this world that becomes problematic for many Christians.  On one side there are those who believe they are now free to do anything and thus abuse the grace of God (Romans 6:1). Many have the idea that once saved always saved (which I do believe) and thus if you sin, then you just have to ask forgiveness and move on. It becomes their pattern and continue to use it as an excuse to justify their behavior which they know is wrong (e.g. similar to the statement: “I’m not perfect just forgiven.”). Others do it, not with the intent of doing it, but due to the lack of discernment.  They just continue to follow the cultural trends without much thinking which often leads them to unwise and even sinful choices.
On the other side is legalism. Legalism as it appears in most churches today is not what the New Testament often speaks about (e.g. book of Galatians) and yet it is applicable to us today.  In the New Testament legalism was related to salvation. Many believed that in order to be saved you had to have faith but there were additions to it such circumcision and keeping the Law (Old Testament).  All of these related to commands given to the Jewish people. In essence, they were black and white issues. Once those Jewish and Gentiles (non-Jewish) became believers, they were faced with questions as to how to live (see Acts 15). Some Jewish believers commanded others to live by the Old Testament Laws or else they were considered “not saved.”   They were turning the grace of God into a system of faith+works.  The Apostle Paul wrote letters to clarify these issues (see Galatians, Colossians 2).  This was mostly a Jewish-Christian problem.
Nowadays, the issue of legalism is that many have created rules by which Christians ought to live by (faith+man-made rules).  These are mainly what we call “gray “ areas.  Areas where there is no clear teaching in the Bible. I have a lot of experience here. I have been part of these churches in my early days as a Christian.
Here are a few examples of legalism:
  •          Dancing is wrong
  •        Going to the movies (especially rated R movies) is wrong.
  •        Being friends with non-believers is wrong (you can have contact to evangelize them but they can’t be part of your “friends”)
  •        Celebrating Halloween is wrong (It’s Satan’s day and it started  back to the time of the Druids).
  •        Rock and Roll (and any music except Classic) is of the devil and contains backward messages from him.
  •        Smoking or drinking beer is wrong.
  •       Skipping church on Sunday for any reason is wrong.

Here are some “must do’s” that were also part of the “system”:
  •        You have to come to church every Sunday, Wednesday nights and all special events.
  •        You have to be involved in the church, passive attendance is not allowed.
  •        If you a young person and desire to “court” a young lady you must ask permission to the youth pastor and follow the “Philosophy of Courtship” (a list of do’s and do not’s). If pastor said no, you were out of luck! If you were “approved” then you were asked to seek for the full blessing of the believing parents (non-believer parents were not considered!) if you did not have their “blessing” then you were out of luck.
  •        You must never question what your pastor teaches, says or does. If he asks anything even if it’s money, give it to him. Don’t expect to be paid back.

I can go on an on but you get the point. So what is the point of all of this? As Christians we are called to live by grace. Living by grace does not mean living by a “new” set of rules derived from out of context passages in the Old or New Testament.  The Apostle Paul said it quite clearly: “After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?” (Galatians 3:1). Living by grace means living guided by the Holy Spirit. Living by grace is not living for yourself either. Living by grace is living for and in Christ every single moment of your life (Philippians 1:21).
Reading the biography of Jesus in the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) has helped me understand what it means to live a life of grace, dependent on the Father. When I have a question about something not clear I ask myself what He said or what He would have done (WWJD?). I want to imitate Him. I want to honor Him. I want to live for Him. 

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Theological Reflection on The Scarlet Letter

My wife and I just finished listening to The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne.  I have to admit I knew a very basic plot but never read it until this past weekend.  It is very probable that there is much discussion, information and analysis, especially relating to literary qualities about this novel.  I won’t try say much about it in this regard, but just a simple observation.  Hawthorne’s description of characters is very thorough and deep. It appears he was very keen in studying human nature and took his time describing it through the characters he created.  Quite the opposite exists in popular novels nowadays.  Current novels are written for mass consumption and entertainment and not for the exploration of human nature. Many find classics like Hawthorne’s unappealing and unreadable because they do not fit the modern paradigm of a good novel. How much we are missing!

But the most impressive for me, in this novel, was the rich theological presuppositions layered throughout.  I will try to be brief, though much can be said. First, Hawthorne The Scarlet Letter shows us the sinfulness of man and the effects it has on us.  All of his major characters demonstrate this point.  Hester Prynne the adulteress is the most obvious.  Not only has she committed the sin of adultery but she is the one who pays the most for it.  She spared of the death penalty but her punishment is just as good as being dead.  She would carry the letter “A” engraved on her and forever be ostracised for her sinful act.  The Reverend Dimmesdale is also guilty of immorality and even though he hides it, his sin finds him out. He is tortured by it for seven years.  Roger Chillingworth,  Hester’s husband is guilty of the sin of revenge.  It dominates his life completely. Not only are the major characters sinful, but the whole Puritan community is as well.  Their pride, lack of compassion and judgmental spirit makes them just as sinful as the rest.

I find it interesting the Hawthorne never minimizes sin and its consequences. I didn’t find the novel a treatise condemning hypocrisy or making sin be less than what it is.  For us readers in these modern times it may a bit “antiquated” because the idea of sin is almost foreign.  Adultery and immorality is commonly accepted in our society.  The threat of being punishable by death, as it was during Colonial Times, not only sounds antiquated but absurd, especially those with no religious background. It could easily be said that we are just as bad. We have thrown out all of our morals for the sake of being tolerant. But Hawthorne does not minimize sin. He writes: “After exhausting life in his efforts for mankind’s spiritual good, he had made the manner of his death a parable, in order to impress on his admirers the mighty and mournful lesson, that, in the view of Infinite Purity, we are sinners all alike.”

The Scarlet Letter also deals with the concept of mercy, both human mercy and God’s mercy.  Hester life is spared as an act of mercy. More evident is God’s mercy.  God’s mercy is evident by the fact that even as sinful as we are, God does not judge us accordingly.  No one understood this more than the Reverend Dimmesdale who said, “God knows; and He is merciful! He hath proved his mercy, most of all, in my afflictions. By giving me this burning torture to bear upon my breast!”  He saw all of his inner guilt and persecution by Roger Chillingworth as an act of God’s mercy.

Another concept is the idea of living our life according to what we believe. For us Christians, it is to live for Christ each day.  In Hawthorne’s words, “Be true! Be true! Be true!” Don’t pretend to be something you are not. Live what you believe.

Much more can be said about his novel, especially about the dear seven year old child Pearl.  No one shows the hideousness effects of sin that this child who suffers the consequences of everyone’s wrong doing.  She pays a hefty price and yet her innocence shows us what we have lost; what we need: Faith, love, virtue, and compassion!

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How Running Saved My Life

Running is the means by which God has changed my life. Let me explain. I started running over 2 years ago. It all started by when I wanted to get in shape and started to bike (I was 25 lbs. heavier). One day I decided that running was easier. I could just put shorts, tennis shoes and go! So I did. After that I thought I should do it everyday. That’s how the running started. God has used running to change me.

I have been a Christian since I was 13. After serving for over 15 years, in various ways including, a church-planter pastor I came to the decision that it was enough. My life was at a crossroads. The experiences and the suffering my wife and I experienced during this time (it would take a long time to explain, but if you know us you probably know a lot already) led me to a state of questioning everything I had believed. I stopped praying (I know some Christians don’t pray but this isn’t normal). I stopped reading my Bible (I know some Christians don’t read their Bible but this isn’t normal). I stopped teaching the Bible (this isn’t for everyone!). My life went on the decline. I even wondered whether God existed. I didn’t do all this in rebellion but due to disillusionment.  I was disillusioned with God and the Church and yet I did not stop going to church.  I knew that God wasn’t surprised on my behavior nor did I expect Him to punish me as some would think.  Yet, deep in my heart I couldn’t let go of everything I knew about Him.  I concluded He was real but I struggled and wrestled with many questions. The hardest was praying. How could I pray if I wasn’t sure He answered any prayers. Here is where running comes in the picture.

It was during my beginning runs when my son decided to go on a mission trip to Ecuador for a couple of weeks.  For the first few days they were disconnected from us with no means of communication. I started to worry a lot and think the worst of thoughts (i.e. death). In my desperation I started to offer gruntings to God. It was so hard to do this. It was so unnatural but I continued doing it. Slowly I started to say complete sentences. I told him I asked only for a few things: to protect my family, to help me be a blessing to others and to know Him.  All this happened while running. My running became my time of prayer. Slowly God became to change me. He started teaching me, slowly, each time I prayed to Him. Then I began reading the Bible again but this time with “new” eyes.  God’s Word became alive and I saw it as if I was reading it for the first time.  God showed me that if I was to live, it would be all for Him or nothing at all. I told Him, “This is the last time I am going to try…” Hard to believe I said this but God had much to teach me.  A year ago, I taught the Bible to the youth where I serve now,  after 9 years of not stepping to a podium.

So that’s how running was used by God to change me and continues to do so.  My running time is my prayer and worship time. I can’t run without doing this. Never will running be only running for me. It will always be worship time for me. It will keep me in shape (get it?).

Update: 12/8/2016 – Seven years have passed and I still run 6 days a week. I still use this time to commune with God. It is during this time that I also get some of my best instruction from Him. I am often working on a sermon and God brings forth the ideas that I need to put in my sermon. I am thankful for how God has used running to save me from myself.

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Characteristics of A True Christian – 1 John

The last study on 1 John which also summarizes all ten characteristics of a true Christian shared at our youth meeting.

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I John – The Christian and the World

Gabriel Colunga shares with the youth at Iglesia El Camino  where I have been serving as youth pastor for the past  9 months.  He speaks on what it means to not love the world. Gabriel has come a long way from being one of my students at Word of Life club long time ago to now.

Click Here or the picture below
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1 John

Jeremy one of our youth leaders shares from 1 John at our youth meeting from Iglesia El Camino

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A Community of Love

In John 13:34-35 Jesus said, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (NIV)


This wasn’t a new command for it was found in the Torah (Leviticus 19:18). It was new in the sense that Jesus as The Son of God demonstrated how love should be manifested. In John 13 he washes his disciples’ feet demonstrating an act of a servant.  He came to serve and not to serve (Mark 10:45).  He gave his life on behalf of his sheep (John 10:15).  His disciples, his Church are now commanded to show that same love. It will be their distinguishing mark. It will not be their Theology, though it is important. It will not be their type or mode of worship though it is important. It will not be the eloquent preaching. It will not be their orthodoxy. It will not be their programs. It will be their love for one another.  


Today I was reading the introduction for a book called Satan And His Kingdom.  The author points out that as the Church we need to have a spiritual warfare mentality.  We cannot live in a mentality of peace. Why? Because our enemy is seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8).  What does this have to do with love?  I believe Satan’s strategy is to undermine God’s purposes for His church.  It is obvious that he does not want a community of love for God’s church.  He knows that as such it can have a great impact in people’s lives.  


So you say, “This is not a problem in my church! Everyone loves each other?” Really? Look around! I believe that Satan strategy is a much clever one.  He will have us love our little circle of friends and neglect all others. In many churches you can be anonymous for a long time. New visitors go in and out! I’ve done this! I once attended a large church for over a year and never met a single person. So you say, “It’s your fault! You need to get involved in a small group.” Really?
So Jesus said, “By this they will know you are my disciples, if you show love in a small group”?


I recently started working in a private religious school and I was blown away by the attention we newbies got. Multiple people approached us seeking to help us and not one time but many times. Everyone we ran by, shook our hands and introduced themselves. They welcomed us! The church in the school has not been any different either. They make the best coffee for teachers every day. I thought to myself, “If The Church was like this, man would we make a difference!”  


Today I heard again the story of Stanley. Stanley was a survivor of one the Twin Towers. He was on the 81st floor and saved by a man named Brian. He was pulled out from the collapsing floor by this man. What impressed me was what Brian said to Stanley after he pulled him over the wall. Stanley recounts the following: “This man looked at my palm, looked me in the eyes and said, “All my life I lived as an only child. I always wanted a brother.” On his left palm he had a gash. And this man took my right hand and looking me in the eyes and rubbed them together and says, “From today, you’re my brother.”


And he meant this. He is part of Stan’s family now. That’s love! 


We need community love. We need community life. We need to stop the talk and do what Jesus told us to do.  We need to seek those whom God loves.  We need to serve those whom God loves. We need to stop pretending we love people when just walk right by them in church or anywhere we are!



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