33 (Thirty-Three)
33. Thirty-three. Sanse-san (in Chinese). That’s my age starting yesterday (June 27). Celebrated it with my wife and baby David at Medical City. David was confined for four and a half days due to fever, diarrhea and vomiting.
But as David also got discharged last night, I took the time to celebrate this milestone with my wife at SM Megamall and watched Transformers 2.
My birthday was like a blur. We drove out of Medical City around past 6 in the evening, dressed up for our date, arrived at the mall before 8 p.m., ate and watched movie.
One thing I realized, a birthday celebration ends in just a few hours, but how I lived each day of my birth is what truly matter.
At age 33 and beyond, there are several things I hope and want to accomplish:
- write books that could inspire people and point them back to God, the True Source of hope and life;
- jog with my wife and kids (when they learn how to jog as they grow up);
- everyday say, I Love You to my wife;
- teach my wife, Bea and David the importance of studying, speaking and writing Chinese;
- teach college athletes that a career in any sport (basketball, taekwondo, volleyball, etc.) is a mere “breath”—you’re great today, but a has-been tomorrow—but a life completely devoted to honoring God makes them a champion in life and for life.
33…I know there’s a whole lot more that God wants me to do. I’m excited with life.
I was reminded of these passages I read a few days ago. And this is my prayer for the rest of my life…
Psalm 92:13-15, “13 planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God. 14 They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green, proclaiming, ‘The Lord is upright; he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.’”
Lessons From Ants
Ants. They are small, but definitely pesky. I just recently cleaned our kitchen area by completely removing all the utensils, and then, spraying the entire area with an insecticide.
But guess what, two days later, the red and black ants were back.
Sometimes, I wonder why God created them, if they’d only be squashed mercilessly by ant-haters like me.
But their constant presence in our house reminded me nothing is accidental, and therefore, lessons can be learned even from ants.
Some people might wonder, “Lesson? What lesson can ants teach educated people like us?” Oh, there are plenty of things we can learn from them.
Sure, ants don’t possess brute strength that lions, elephants or hippos have, but these small creatures, were cited by King Solomon in the book of Proverbs as one of the tiny creatures around where we could learn a thing or two in life.
Proverbs 6:6 Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! 7 It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, 8 yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.
From King Solomon’s observation, we can get some insights.
Ants don’t hold election. They don’t have presidents, or senators or congressmen to direct their next food attack, but they still get the job done.
For example, leave your cookie jar open, and in a few minutes, you’d see an army of red or black ants swarming all over your favorite Chips-A-Hoy cookie. They work hard and store food, anything they could find.
Funny, isn’t it? In our nation, we’ve got tons of positions and titles created in our government, but too many times, we still get disappointing results.
Ants save a lot. Because we live in a time where it is tempting to buy every gadget, appliance, food and other material possessions you want, our tendency is to spend, spend, spend and forget saving. Not these pesky red and black ants.
When they see a litter, they just contact their fellow ants through their reliable antennae and presto! A swarm will grab the morsel of food.
Ants know when it’s time to gather or time to hide. I guess what insecticides fail to do completely, rainy season can fulfill, that is, keep these ants away from our house.
That’s because come rainy season, ants are holed up in their mini-caves, basically, not hiding, but enjoying a feast of what they gathered last summer.
Okay, the next time you see ants in your house or room, before squashing them, maybe, remember these lessons from these small creatures.
Dad, Papa, Pop, Father's Day
This Sunday, the world is celebrating Father’s Day, a special event that honors dads all over the globe for their love, sacrifice, and hardwork.
In my family, we call our dad, papa.
I learned the value of hard work from papa.
When I had my first summer job just before I turned 14 (as a messenger), I was scared stiff during my first day of work. I had no idea what I’m going to do as a messenger.
But I remembered papa telling me to give my very best, get the experience I need, learn from my boss (a close friend of my mother) and save up.
Now, as a father of two beautiful kids, one of the best gifts we could ever give to our children is our presence.
I remembered a quote from a book I read before that says,
What do you admire most from your father?
Adversity Brought The Best Out Of The Lakers This Year
The Los Angeles Lakers finally nailed their 15th NBA championship following their masterful 99-86 victory against the Orlando Magic to clinch the Finals series, 4-1 before a silent Amway Arena crowd just today.
For Kobe Bryant and the Lakers, there is definitely no "I" in the team.
And there are so many lessons we can derive from the Lakers chase for the championship.
Beaten up badly by Boston (39 points in Game 6) last season in the Finals, Los Angeles, led by this year’s Finals MVP Kobe Bryant, believed that had to be the turning point of their 2009 campaign as they vowed to win it all this year.
And the Lakers didn’t disappoint.
Several players were criticized for their performance in last year’s Finals.
Pau Gasol was labeled as “too soft” for a frontline man of LA. Lamar Odom, the subject of numerous trade talks in the past, has had his own struggles offensively and defensively, while Derek Fisher was said to be “aging fast that his three-point shooting wouldn’t drop anymore”.
But the seven-foot Gasol worked hard after that Finals debacle in 2008, upping his inside game, rebounding and defense several notches, more. Odom, meantime, learned to come out strong off the bench throughout this season to provide the energy LA needed.
Fisher, on the other hand, reserved his best game of the season with his heroic effort in Game 4, nailing a game-tying triple to send the game into overtime. Before hitting the go-ahead three-point shot in the extra five-minute session to cement his place among the NBA clutch shooters, while pushing LA to a 3-1 series lead.
And of course, Kobe Bryant has the biggest smile among these Laker players.
Long dismissed to be just a good player following the disintegration of his partnership with All-Star center Shaquille O’Neal at the end of the 2004 Finals defeat against Detroit, Bryant worked his way back to the top.
He sure, had his down moments during the post-O’Neal era of the Lakers.
But LA coach Phil Jackson gave a “capsulized” description of the Lakers 2009 edition.
“This (Laker) team is a learned team. They have learned from last year’s Finals (against the Celtics),” said Jackson, who is now the winningest coach with 10 NBA titles, surpassing Hall of Fame coach Red Auerbach’s achievement.
And here’s O’Neal’s twitter message to Kobe.
“When you’re together, you can withstand adversity. Congratualtions Kobe, u deserve it. You played great. Enjoy it my man enjoy it.
The Laker land ain’t a Kobe show anymore because Bryant spells Los Angeles as TEAM.
Practical Ways to ELEVATE
As I look at the eyes of the students, single professionals and some married who joined us recently in the first part of our ELEVATE—Discipleship Training series, I already imagine hundreds of people getting more involved in leading their classmates, friends officemates and family members to God.
Pastor Ryan shared a simple yet, relevant and basic principles on Engaging with today’s generation.
Engage prayerfully. Well, I could really say, I was a product of prayer. My elder brother, I believe prayed for me for years that’s why by the time I reached my senior year in high school, I gave my life to Jesus. I was stubborn for many years, but nothing is too hard for the Lord. Keep praying, it’s like saying, “God, have your way in my life, my family and our world”.
Engage culturally. It’s connecting with people. It’s exerting the effort to know people in a personal level. It’s being a friend to them and eventually, introducing them to the Friend of all—Jesus.
Engage Creatively. To be creative is to think out of the box. There are a lot of ways to connect with people creatively. Maybe God has blessed you with a talent on computer. And though you have no idea how to immediately connect with someone, you could start by teaching the people you’re reaching out by teaching them basic computer skills. That helps you kick start something.
Part 2 will happen this Wednesday (June 17) and Saturday (June 20). In these two dates, we’ll talk about leading or jumpstarting your own small group. Join us at the Victory U-Belt Center’s Main Hall.
You are a history maker! Let’s Elevate!
