26. Wala ka sa Lolo ko. He was feeling weary, and the Lord said to him, come to me and I will give you rest.
18 September 2020
Pastor Dan Guzman and his wife Myrna; he is acknowledged here.
A friend loves at all times,
and a brother is born for a time of adversity. (Proverbs 17:17)
Come to Me.
Matthew 11
28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Isaiah 55
Invitation to the Thirsty
1 “Come, all you who are thirsty,
come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without cost.
2 Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and you will delight in the richest of fare.
6 Seek the Lord while he may be found;
call on him while he is near.
2 Corinthians 1
Praise to the God of All Comfort
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,
4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.
5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.
God the Father is the God of compassion and of all comfort; He sent us His Son our Lord Jesus Christ from whom our comfort abounds.
At this moment, please join me and let us come together in prayer, for comfort for people who each of us know personally who are at this time feeling weary in their individual circumstances.
As I was trying to plan for this blog, I tried to look back for past reflection I had on the top passage above, Matthew 11:28.
I am reprinting the reflection in verbatim, one in October 2017 and another related one in November 2017.
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14 October 2017
Rest. We escape to get it, yet it escapes us.
Hebrews 4:10 For anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his.
Hebrews 4:4 For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: "On the seventh day God rested from all his works."
Hebrews 3:18 And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed?
In March 1997, at 37 I was given early retirement by the company after 14 years service; I got tax-free separation pay net of car loan and housing loan. That Saturday, I woke up early yet refreshed, it must be psychological; my last 4 years I was commuting daily from Lipa to Makati by aircon bus 2 hours one-way on the average. My mind was rested, simply because I would not wake up early the following Monday, otherwise I would wake up late on a Saturday.
Nowadays, everyone looks forward to a long weekend, a respite from the daily grind from traffic.
In my case, I had a long respite, time for rest, but the irony, I was restless.
It started about 2000 when in the next 5 years, I was out of work, in gaps, for half the period. Our children were starting college at that time.
Prior to that, there was a time there were 3 vehicles in the garage, my new company car, the FX paid off from my separation pay, and the school service for our children and other students.
Suddenly the garage was empty and the house was on mortgage. I got sick and my fear was that I would not even see my eldest daughter Vannie graduate college.
I am alive today because I found rest in the Lord.
Lord, "Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him.
Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.
Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him.
Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
My salvation and my honor depend on God ; he is my mighty rock, my refuge.
Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.
Surely the lowborn are but a breath, the highborn are but a lie.
If weighed on a balance, they are nothing; together they are only a breath.
One thing God has spoken, two things I have heard: "Power belongs to you, God, and with you, Lord, is unfailing love"; and, "You reward everyone according to what they have done" (Psalm 62:1, 2, 5, 6-9, 11, 12).
Lord, I will praise You forever, in Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
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18 November 2017
The LORD tests the heart.
Proverbs 18:15 The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge, for the ears of the wise seek it out.
Proverbs 17:17 A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity.
Proverbs 17:3 The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the LORD tests the heart.
Seems to be just yesterday, I went through the test of life and I was a failure.
No work and no money, and got sick under severe pressure when my children were starting college.
Same time it was test in the heart, to know my God and put my trust in Him. I put my ears to listen to His words for I was tired and restless.
His message came through one whom I met first time, Pastor Dan Guzman, for I was shying away from people because of my adversity. I am thankful for my God, who sent a friend and a brother born for my time of adversity.
Present day, it's "Children's children are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride of their children" (Proverbs 17:6), parents who put their trust in the Lord when tested in the heart.
Thank You, Lord, Compassionate God, for You said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30).
"Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him.
Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.
Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him" (Psalm 62:1, 2, 5).
I praise my Lord and my God, in Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
___________________
To all that these greetings may come, who are feeling weary, I say, come before the Lord Jesus, trust in Him with all your heart.
John 14
Jesus Comforts His Disciples
1“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me.”
I am a living witness to the kindest of His Heart.
I attest.
Someday, my children's children will say, wala ka sa Lolo ko, he was feeling weary, and the Lord said to him, come to me and I will give you rest.
The Good Lord restored my strength, restored my life.
Lamentations 3
19 I remember my affliction and my wandering,
the bitterness and the gall.
20 I well remember them,
and my soul is downcast within me.
21 Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:
22 Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness. Amen.
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