Trusting God through Life's Turbulence

“It’s now 3 minutes past 8 in the morning, and we will now start to descend. Please fasten your seat belt as we will have slight to moderate turbulence. Estimated time of arrival in Manila is at 8:30..”



Enjoying this view when the pilot announced that we will now start to descend, and slight to moderate turbulence will be felt. Although ang ganda ng clouds above here, the moment you go through them is a different experience. Maalog, malubak, and sometimes parang biglang babagsak. Especially when the plane you are into is the small one, you’ll really feel everything.

So, we pass through the giant clouds. Intercession became intense. And while interceding, the Lord just comforted me on the Isaiah 43:2 promise. Pero dahil my heart is so weak, kinakabahan pa rin ako while traversing the cloudy sky. But God revealed in my failing heart that He separated the Red Sea so that the Israelites can pass thru and reach their destination safely, ulap pa kaya. What I am praying to the Lord is just an easy thing in His eyes.

Few minutes later, Manila skyscrapers are starting to peep in. We made it through the clouds, hurray! Thank You Lord. But until we land on the grounds of Manila, praying hasn’t stop yet. The Holy Spirit was too quick to speak in my heart that I / we should be like this in prayer.

1. We will definitely experience storms and turbulence in life, but know that God will be with us. That when you walk through the turbulence of pain, of struggles, of depression, of problems, God will be with you and He WILL NEVER abandon you. That when you walk through the fire of problems, the flame will not set you ablaze.

Isaiah 43:2 (NLT)

"When you go through deep waters, I will be with you.

When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown.

When you walk through the fire of oppression,

you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you."

Hebrews 13:5 (NLT)

For God has said, "I will never fail you. I will never abandon you."

2. And when you see glimpse of hope, don’t stop praying until you see your prayers being answered. Be like Hannah.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 New Living Translation (NLT)

Always be joyful. Never stop praying.

Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.

1 Samuel 2:1 (NLT)

“My heart rejoices in the Lord! The Lord has made me strong.

Now I have an answer for my enemies; I rejoice because You rescued me."

3. When you reached your destination or when the prayer has been answered, acknowledged that it is and will always be God’s doing and not ours. Life’s turbulence are part of God’s strategies to sharpen our trust. Thank God for allowing such because it means that you are privileged and blessed to experience first hand the miraculous moving of God’s hands in your life.

Psalm 3:8a (NLT)

"Victory comes from You, Lord."

Exodus 14:14 (NIV)

"The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

PRAYER:

Thank You Lord for sharpening my trust through life's turbulence. May I always cling unto You, the finisher and perfecter of my faith. May this failing heart of mine always find rest and refuge in You. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

Becoming the Joshua Generation

The recently concluded Youth Summit 2018 Legacy Bearers held last October 19-20, 2018 at the Cuneta Astrodome led by the Kristiyanong Kabataan Para sa Bayan (KKB) and Christian Youth for the Nation (CYN), the national and international youth arm of the Jesus Is Lord Church Worldwide, has made the youth took on the challenge of bearing and continuing the legacy. They embraced that they are really the youth of the nation, the franchise-holders of the future, and the legacy bearers.

But what is the legacy to be passed on, by the way? And what are the qualities of such legacy bearer?

We commit to tackle that on the following entries, but for the mean time let's put our focus on one Bible character who caught our attention from the two-day summit. May the Holy Spirit's enlightening power & guidance be with us right now.

Joshua

Son of Nun from the tribe of Ephraim. Moses' assistant and successor. Leader of God's army. Believer of the impossible. Obedient follower of God. Brave warrior and conqueror.

These are some of the great qualities we want to possess as a leader or as a follower of God.

The attentive student of Moses led the Israelites to enter the promised land after 40 years in the desert. Joshua was destined to turn the promise into reality. God's promise to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob (Genesis 6:4) and Moses (Genesis 6:8) to give the land of Canaan is now historically fulfilled in the life of Joshua (Joshua 1:1-6, 21:43-45).

So what made this assistant so great that his leadership was remembered from generation to generation?

Joshua in his youth experienced the bitter realities of slavery in Egypt. He also witnessed the plagues and the Red Sea miracle as the Israelites tried to escape the Egyptian army and then the water opened before them.

Thanks to his discipler and a great follower of God, Moses. With God's help, it was Joshua who led the troops of Israel to victory over the Amalekites (Exodus 17:8–13). He alone was allowed to accompany Moses up the holy mountain where the tablets of the law were received (Exodus 24:13–14). And it was he who stood watch at the temporary tent of meeting Moses set up before the tabernacle was erected (Exodus 33:11).

As the Joshua generation entered the promised land under his leadership after circling in one whole generation (40 years), we are reminded on these powerful traits that that generation possess.


1. The Joshua Generation is a generation of accomplishment.

Where Deuteronomy ends, the book of Joshua begins. God is faithful to His promises and He never delays it, it is always on time. His promises to His patriarchs to enter the promised land was completed in Joshua's time. This act completed God's mission which He started with Moses of redeeming and bringing the Israelites out of slavery. Like Moses, Jesus delivered us from the bondage of sin and slavery. And like Joshua, Jesus will bring us to our eternal Promised Land and everlasting rest (Hebrews 4:8-10).


2. The Joshua Generation values holiness in the camp.

They do not tolerate ungodliness. They will have renewed call to godly and holy living. They will seek and fear the Lord and will passionately walk in His presence. Achan syndrome (Joshua 7) will not be tolerated.


3. The Joshua Generation will be believers of the impossible.

After the 10 spies reported horrible things about the land they are about to enter, the Israelites began weeping all night and complain to Moses. It's as if they are complaining to the Lord instead of believing Him after all the miracles God did for them. But Joshua and Caleb encouraged the people that the land is indeed wonderful (Numbers 14:7). And if the Lord is pleased with them, God will bring them safely into that land that is flowing with rich milk and honey (Numbers 14:8). Joshua said that the Lord is with them and they don't need to be afraid (v. 9).


4. The Joshua Generation honors the leadership of the previous generation.

In spite of the previous generation wandering in the wilderness for 40 years, Joshua still remained as a faithful servant of his leader, Moses (Ex. 33:11). Joshua bided his time and served faithfully until Moses transitioned out, and God commissioned him as the new leader. Young leaders that are impatient and want their mantle prematurely will find out the hard way that their gifts and abilities are not enough to take them into the promised land. Consequently, people who dishonor their leaders from the previous generation will not be trusted by God to lead the next generation.

Arise -- Joshua generation!

Here are some of the snippets from the Youth Summit 2018 Legacy Bearers!

Sea of worshipers endlessly praising the Lord!

Embrace the calling, KKBs!

KKBs and CYNs re-surrendering their lives to the Lord.

KKBs and CYNs is now taking the challenge!

Our number one agenda is to stand up for God's agenda! ~ Bro. Eddie Villanueva