HOW CHRISTIANS GROW STRONG

3 So He humbled you , allowed you to hunger , and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know , that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone ; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the LORD .

Deuteronomy

8 : 3 NKJV

But He answered and said , “ It is written , ‘ Man shall not live by bread alone , but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God .’ ” Matthew 4 : 4 NKJV

St Luke , after telling the story of Jesus birth and his visit to Jerusalem at the age of 12 , and His three - day conversation with the rabbis and doctors of the law in the temple , went home with his parents , and “ He increased in wisdom and stature , and in favour with God and man .” All creatures grow , whether they are plants or animals and each one needs lots of water , sunlight , food , and care . So does a person who has chosen to be a follower of Christ . It is not enough that he has been given a series of Bible studies , accepted them and is baptized into the church . Both St . Peter and St . Paul consider a new convert as a baby and needs to be nourished , nurtured and guided so he will grow strong . Applying the principle in Proverbs that said “ Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it ” a new Christian is to be trained carefully so he will grow in the faith and also become a trainer for others .

Is there a formula for the growth of a Christian ? I haven ’ t seen one yet but there are principles that could be used to effect Christian growth . I ’ d like to share with you 5 Principles of Spiritual Growth

study which I found in my Bible . “ The most important decision in life is the decision to accept Jesus as personal Saviour and Lord . With this decision of faith a completely new life begins . For our physical life we need air , food , rest , and exercise in order to develop our capacities , grow , and maintain a healthy life . Principles for growth are also found in the spiritual realm . If we follow them , we will become mature Christians and enjoy our fellowship with Christ .

1 . FIRST PRINCIPLE : READING THE BIBLE

There are very few people who would not not want to eat for a week or a day . Food is necessary to stay alive . Being without food for sometime makes us feeble and sick . Lack of spiritual food has the same effect on our spiritual life . Therefore we read God ’ s Word on a daily basis . 1 Peter 1 : 23 says , “ Having born again , not of corruptible seed , but incorruptible , through the Word of God which lives and abides forever , and like “ newborn babes , desire the pure milk of the Word that you may grow thereby . 2:2 . At the confrontation between Christ and Satan on the mountain when Satan tempted Jesus with appetite , Jesus said , “ Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the Word of God .” Matthew 4:4 refer also to Psalm 1 : 1-3 and Joshua 1 : 8

2 ; SECOND PRINCIPLE : PRAYING

“ Prayer is a dialogue with our loving heavenly Father . Oftentimes , weakness of character can be attributed to a lack of prayer . When it feels most difficult to pray , we should pray most . Therefore , we daily approach God in prayer .” Jesus ’ prayer life is a constant . He prayed all night before He selected his disciples . Mark said that

before dawn Jesus always went up to the mountain to pray . In Gethsemane , he told his disciple that they should pray because they might enter into temptation . He said that the “ spirit is willing but the flesh is weak ”. Matthew 26 : 40-75 . Consider Peter ’ s experience when he denied his Lord three times . In 1 Thessalonians 5 : 17 , St . Paul said , “ Pray without ceasing .” To pray without ceasing means that during the day our thoughts turn to God again and again and we just talk to Him freely and openly . Some call Jeremiah 33 : 3 as God ’ s telephone number . God said , “ Call to Me and I will answer you , and show you great and mighty things which you do not know .” Another promise of answered prayer is found in Psalm 50 : 15 that says “ Call upon Me in the day of trouble ; I will deliver you and you shall glorify Me . How many times we call somebody on the phone and the reply would be , “ Not in service ” or not available at this time . God always anwers His phone calls , and we never hear a busy signal .

3 . THIRD PRINCIPLE : SEEKING FELLOWSHIP WITH OTHER CHRISTIANS

“ Fellowship means to spend time with others who love Christ . A pile of logs normally allows for a good fire . If , however one log is separated from the others the fire on that log goes out soon . Likewise , Christians must support each other and stand together ; otherwise the fire of their enthusiasm will soon be extinguished . Fellowship is essential for Christian growth . Therefore , we belong to a church and are actively involved in it .”

St . Luke relates that the followers of Jesus were together and their fellowship was so close . He said in his book Acts 2 : 42-46 , 42 And they continued steadfastly in the apostles ’ [ a ] doctrine and fellowship ,

in the breaking of bread , and in prayers . 43 Then fear came upon every soul , and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles . 44 Now all who believed were together , and had all things in common , 45 and [ b ] sold their possessions and goods , and divided [ c ] them among all , as anyone had need . 46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple , and breaking bread from house to house , they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart .

St . Paul counseled the Christians in Hebrews 10 : 23-25 . He said , 23 “ Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering , for He who promised is faithful . 24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works , 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together , as is the manner of some , but exhorting one another , and so much the more as you see the Day approaching .”

As the Second Coming of Jesus Christ draws nearer , Christian believers should be more fervent in Bible study reading , praying , and fellowshipping together to strengthen each others ’ faith . Signs of His coming are fast fulfilling that Satan is scared his end is coming so he will do his best to take away our allegiance from God by hook or by crook . The last two principles will be considered in the next issue of this paper . May God bless us all , Amen . For questions and Bible Studies , call , Ben at 604 581 1278 , Junjun at 778-927- 8040 , Stanley at 604-700-3053 and Pastor Leomar Macaraig at 604 928 3579 . The Abundant Life Seventh-day Adventist Church meets at the City Center Church on 13062 104th Avenue , Surrey on Saturdays . All are welcome to attend .

Fr . Jerry M . Orbos , SVD

The story is told about a man and a parrot seated side by side on a plane . The parrot orders whiskey , and the man does likewise . The parrot shouts at the stewardess and demands to know why there is no ice , and the man does likewise . After more displays of rude and proud behaviour , the two were thrown out of the plane . While they were plunging down , the parrot tells the man : “ For someone who can ’ t fly , you complain too much !”

In today ’ s Gospel ( Mk . 9:30-37 ), Jesus teaches His disciples : “ If anyone wishes to be first , he shall be the last of all and the servant of all .” Like the disciples , we , too , argue a lot about who is the greatest , who is right , who is most holy . And like the disciples , we all need to learn so much more about humility . Yet all we need to learn is to be like a child again .

Listen to a proud person talking . After the initial admiration or amusement , you will soon experience boredom , and eventually , pity . Why ? You quickly realize that the proud desperately need attention , affirmation , and self-worth . Pity the proud .

They are so full of insecurities and fears .

Today is the Feast of Saint Padre Pio , the simple , prayerful Capuchin priest who took the road of hiddenness and humility , and is now one of the most popular modern-day saints . Padre Pio had no personal agenda save that of glorifying God in his life , work , and sufferings . Humility comes when we recognize and realize that there is someone greater than ourselves , and that we are just “ dust in the wind .”

What is the difference between happiness and joy ? Someone said that happiness depends on happenings ( i . e ., people , things , events around us ) while joy is the fruit of a peaceful soul . I wish us all simple joy which the world cannot give or take away .

And it all starts when we humbly acknowledge our need for , and dependence on , God .

I thought I knew what humble prayer was until I received a request from my octogenarian friend , Renato , that when his mind no longer functions , and as long as his heart still beats , this prayer

be continuously repeated into his ear : “ My Lord and my God , in You I trust ; I love You , oh , how I love You . Have mercy on me , a most contrite sinner . Oh , have mercy !”

I just finished my chemo No . 2 . Two more ! ( No , that sounds like “ tumor .”) Two pa ! ( No , better to say two na lang !) Chemotherapy makes one weak , but “ prayotherapy ” makes one strong and positive .

One of the fruits of my cancer is getting to know Saint Ezekiel Moreno of Spain whose statue was brought to me by Maribi Garcia , of Bethesda Prayer Community and herself a cancer victor . Saint Ezekiel belonged to the Order of Augustinian Recollects ( San Sebastian , my alma mater !), and was ordained in Intramuros in 1871 . He worked in Calapan , Oriental Mindoro , in Palawan , in Santo Tomas , Batangas , and in Cavite , working among the poor and the sick for 15 years .

He became a bishop in Colombia . He had cancer of the palate which also affected his throat , nose , ears and eyes .

He is invoked as a special patron of cancer patients , and I have personally experienced his assuring presence and healing . His statue in our Mission Home has been observed sweating through the nose , eyes , forehead , ears and jaws . Saint Ezekiel Moreno , pray for us !

San Lorenzo Ruiz , pray for our country and our people ! Saints Michael , Gabriel and Raphael , defend our country and our people !

A moment with the Lord :

Lord , remind us again about the futility and emptiness of being rude and proud . Amen . ( jorbos @ inquirer . com . ph )