The Powerful Tongue

"The tongue is but three inches long, yet it can kill a man six feet high." - Japanese Proverb

"One thing man hasn't been able to tame is his own tongue. It can cause the most uncontrollable evil in all creation and can spread the deadliest poison. If not disciplined and controlled, one minute it can praise and bless God and the next minute it can curse those created in God's image.'' - Inspired by James 3:8,9.

True, the tongue is just a small piece of flesh in the human anatomy, yet how many morals have it destroyed? It is a muscle part of the digestive system yet many times it becomes a double-edged sword that violently quells the values of an individual. How many dreams, decisions, reputations and even families have it slayed and hurled into the fiery furnace of doom?

From elite brains to morons, this piece of flesh doesn't choose whom to wreck or regard. It is not even learned nor educated. It just flaggelates anytime when jerked.

And have you ever wondered yourself of the time when you became either the hero or the villain in the battlefield of the tongue? How many times did you become the villain or the hero? Did you feast upon your triumph?

It is such a tragedy that man easily embraces the deceptions carefully woven by the tongue into the norms of society today that psychologists would even justify as a favorable response. This sets me then to wonder that if as long as a man lives (that includes me of course), how much is the ratio between the correct usage of his tongue to its grave misuse.

It's not surprising though that the first misuse of the tongue happened at the Garden of Eden by the earliest couple of human beings which had since then been passed from generations to generations. Unfortunately, the misuse was thoroughly bred through the years giving birth to multiple deceits, debaucheries, treacheries to name a few.

If we want however real change and live in a world of honesty and Godly ways, where then do we divide the line and promise to use it in pious ways. How do we guard it from the imps around and cease from hissing?

Taming the tongue is a task so huge to undertake and one way to conquer its deceptive powers is to acknowledge that we are sinful and need to sincerely repent and totally turn around for change. The evil powers of the tongue must not be allowed to prevail.

"Such a tiny flicker it begins, sets many mountains into flames. Friend or foe this li'l creature power it so keeps." - Yolanda B. Botigan

Luck Vs. Blessing

"Oh, you're lucky!"

Whenever something gets rewarding is usually owed to luck.

I am an individual who believed in luck during my earlier years so that I, too, always had the "good luck" words dangling in my vocabulary.

Luck in the common lingo is basically defined as, "the accidental occurrence of events affecting an individual, fortune and fate." Concluding thereby that luck is not something to be achieved.

A blessing on the other hand is defined as a "divine benefit or gift, that which promotes happiness or prosperity." It is a "consecration" and further means that it is a "special favor or approval."

Luck plays a lot in the lives of many whatever race and culture one belongs. It even goes to the extent of keeping charms and gems just to attract it to the bearer. We bid friends good luck if they are to undergo something challenging, i.e. exams, sport competitions, etc.

Unawarely though, too much dependency in luck leads a person to cast wholely his/her faith to it tending him to become either an agnostic and/or forgetting God the sole provider.

Here are some reasons why we put our faiths in the name of luck:

a. We are afraid of failures and other shortcomings the reason we even gamble the rest of what lies ahead aiming to double or triple that fortune. At the end though, imps will be laughing at our loss.

b. Plain laziness.

c. Offering life and fate in the name of luck is a form of greed because of discontentment.

d. Unbelief in one's capacity to face life's challenges and then immediately surrendering to weakness/es.

e. Unbelief in Jesus Christ our Saviour and God who provides everything.

In any achievement where efforts were invested, a blessing of course will surely follow. Blessings are in uncountable ways and these have not just existed or accidentally given. It is/was with a purpose that blessings are/were infront of the blessed.

We live daily with all the undue blessings that the Almighty God gave and is giving us. Only we just ignore or lack to acknowledge their presence in us, i. e. our very own lives, the whole creation where we stay and enjoy, the smile of a child, the encouraging words of friends, the smell and site of blooming flowers, the foods on our table, etc...

Just as there are reasons why we put faith in luck, so are there reasons also that hinder blessings to flow:

a. Unbelief in God who provides all blessings.

b. Greediness. One can own acres of land and fine houses here and there through greedy motives. But one may ask, are these still blessings because they were of course acquired through efforts? Material things are of course blessings provided, they are/were acquired through the most legal and Godly way sacrificing no one.

c. Unconfessed sins. We hide sins that hinder the normal flow of events in our lives.

d. Pride. This is also an unconfessed sin that we always blanket with all sorts of lies, artificial smiles, etc...

e. Plain laziness.

In my own tribal dialect, luck is termed, "gasat." If one wins in any game show or lottery draw, or is given a house and lot from any sponsoring agent, he is usually said to be "nagasat."

Winning in game shows and lotteries which involves betting are best examples of luck, an accident or probability that befalls upon one's name. This is in no way a blessing but is a form of gambling!

Remember that there is no such thing as luck or "gasat" to the one who has faith in God Our Saviour and Provider.

Learn to identify what is a blessing and what is luck.

The Year of Our Lord Jesus Christ

"2008 is the year of the rat." "I was born in the year of the boar." "Last year was the year of the horse." etc...

Most Filipinos believe on these named years dictating them even on what to and not what to do, what to wear, where to go, what's good for business and many more.

Where did these, "in the year of the animals," originate though?

The Chinese people believe so much on lucks and omens so that they have all sorts of charms and calendar guides for direction on what to either keep or let go of. Their calendars are full of symbols to follow everyday. Each new year is welcomed with extravagant celebration owing to tradition with all eye-catching decor of antique and period pieces to all sorts of delicacies with tikoy never to be forgotten. The captivating lion and dragon dance symbolizing a prosperous future and long life respectively are parts that complete each celebration. And each year is named accordingly with an animal. Whenever unfavorable situations cross paths is usually blamed to the animal symbolizing the year.

As Bible believing Christian, each day, week and year is the day or year of the Lord Jesus Christ! He made each day of the year and blessed it for every human being to enjoy. Animals have nothing to do with each turn of the year. Any event, therefore pleasing or not is generally the consequence of man's own doing.

2008 is the year of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!

The Paradox of Our Age

(I found truth in this poem so I posted it here to share it to you. I don't know who the author is.)....

We have taller buildings, but shorter tempers;
Wider freeways, but narrow viewpoints;
We spend more, but have less;
We buy more, but enjoy it less.

We have bigger houses and smaller families,
More conveniences, but less time;
We have more degrees, but less sense;
More knowledge but less judgment;
More experts but more problems;
More medicines, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke to much,
Spend too recklessly, laugh too little
Drive too fast, get angry too quickly,
Stay up too late, get up too tired,
Read too seldom, watch TV to much,
And pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions but reduced our values,
We talk too much, love too seldom and lie too often.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life;
We've added years to life, not life to years.

We've been all the way to the moon and back,
But have trouble crossing the street to meet the new neighbor.

We've conquered outer space, but not inner space;
We've done larger things, but not better things;
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul;
We've split the atom, but not our prejudice;
We write more, but learn less;
Plan more, but accomplish less.

We've learned to rush, but not to wait;
We have higher incomes, but lower morals;
More food but less appeasement;
More acquaintances, but fewer friends;
More effort but less success.

We build more computers to hold more information
To produce more copies than ever
But have less communication;
We've become too long on quantity, but short of quality.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion;
Tall men, and short character;
Steep profits, and shallow relationships.

These are the times of world peace, but domestic warfare,
More leisure and less fun;
More kinds of food, but less nutrition.

These are the days of two incomes, but more divorce;
Of fancier houses, but broken homes.
These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throw away mentality,
One-night stands, overweight bodies,
And pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill.

It is a time when there is much in the show window
And nothing in the stockroom.
INDEED IT'S ALL TRUE!

- Anon-

The Story of the Three Trees

As many as there are Christmas stories told year in and out so as the story of the three trees fits itself along. I heard this story from a church pastor during a children's Christmas program and I want it to share to you, my readers.

One fine day, there were three growing trees bragging to each one of what they would want to become when the time comes they would be harvested and carved into something of their dreams.

The first tree boasted that it wanted to be built as the finest mansion so it can house rich and respected people from anywhere around the world. It would serve guests cozy rooms and attractive surroundings.

The second tree said, it wanted to be built as a very big and elegant ship so it can travel to any place around the world. It would be a great ship because it would carry great passengers, kings and queens and other very important personalities around the world.

The third tree also said, it wanted to become a strong bridge so that anyone who passes through it will never get afraid. Anyone would just cross to the other end with confidence.

The time came when the lumberjacks came, fell the three trees and brought them to a sawmill where they would be built into their dreams. The three were of course very excited.

The first tree who wanted to be built as the finest mansion was instead made into a manger and was placed in a barn. The tree became so disappointed because its dream to house respected and great people from anywhere around the world would never come true. Unknowingly though, upon this manger, was to be born the child who was to become the Saviour of the world and who was to be named Immanuel, which means God with us.

The second tree on the other hand, who dreamt to be the most elegant ship was built instead of a small boat. It got disappointed also just like the first tree because its dream to carry great people would also never come true. But on this boat, the Lord Jesus Christ was to ride with His disciples into the sea to catch fish. It was on this boat that Jesus' disciples would wake Him up when strong winds and huge waves were rocking them onto the roaring sea. Jesus would then wake up and command the winds and waves to calm down and stop. His disciples would get so amazed and asked if who Jesus was. This boat was to be used during God's ministry here on earth.

Just like the first and second trees, the third tree was never built as a strong bridge the way it wanted to be. It got so frustrated also because never to its plan that it would just become a two-pieced post where a man is to be hanged.

The third tree though, never also realized that the man to be hanged and nailed onto it would be Jesus Christ, the King of all kings, God of all gods and the man who would once and for all, save humanity from sin. It was to become the bridge to fill the gap between God and man. Truth is, the third tree became the bridge, mightier than the strength it dreamt to be.

Physically, each of these three trees dreamt to become great and mighty throughout their lives as fine mansion, elegant ship and strong bridge, respectively. Never on their thoughts did they ever plan to be built in very humble ways opposite their dreams and be used as mightily as ever, mightier than how they wished to be used.

Jesus Christ is God, the Saviour of the world, born onto a manger, calmed the sea while on a boat and died on a cross.

Because of the third tree who at the end became the cross, many were able to reach God. It became the strongest bridge, the world has ever had.

These three trees were built in different and unique ways, but there is just one common thing among them --- the presence of God in each.

In our own lives, there are things that we ourselves direly want to happen that we tend to get so depressed once none of it will materialize. We only don't realize that what we wanted are not important at all in God's eyes. Why? He has greater things He wants us to become and greater things that we can be used of. Besides materials things are not at all enough!

Research 'toughening up' Thailand's jasmine rice

I got this article from the e-publications of SciDev.Net authored by Piya Wong.
19 November 2007, Source: SciDev.Net

[BANGKOK] Thai researchers are developing a breed of aromatic jasmine rice that is resistant to some pests and diseases, as well as to flash floods, drought and salinity.

The ongoing research, which uses laboratory techniques to back up traditional breeding methods, was presented at the international BioAsia 2007 conference in Bangkok this month (7–9 November).

Thailand is the world largest rice exporter, with jasmine rice the most popular. But the country's rice plants often have to struggle against severe flooding or drought, as well as damage by the brown plant hopper (BPH) and bacterial leaf blight (BLB).

The experimental rice withstands nearly three weeks of flooding and is resistant to BPH and BLB, says Apichart Vanavichit, director of the Rice Gene Discovery Unit in Thailand, who is leading the research. His team are now looking for genes that enable other rice plants to tolerate salt conditions and drought.

Vanavichit said they hope to release their "super rice" with the whole set of resistance genes by 2012.

The scientists use genetic marker techniques to locate the desired genes in different rice varieties, which helps them identify the best parent plants for breeding.

Work began in 1998 with the identification of flood-resistant genes in a local Indian rice variety.

In 2001 the researchers conducted a field trial, and last year gave the flood-resistant rice seeds to farmers in northern Thailand.

Meanwhile, researchers crossbred plants with BPH- and BLB-resistant genes from a wild Sri Lankan rice and samples from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), before combining those traits with the flood-resistant jasmine rice.

"What would happen if India hadn't allowed us to use its rice variety? The sharing of genetic resources is definitely beneficial," said Vanavichit.

Surawit Wannakrairoj, a member of the Thai National Plant Variety Committee, told SciDev.Net that the results showed that Thailand does not need to embrace genetic-modification biotechnology.

Duncan Macintosh, a spokesperson for IRRI, says the development of flood-resistant rice is progressing well in several countries, so the chances of success in Thailand are high. "But the main challenge will be to maintain the quality of jasmine rice," he told SciDev.Net.

Unusually Sane?

As new technologies are released to the amazed public and while babies are born and people get old, so are out of this world things take place. Other "out of this world things" are even listed in the Guinness Book of World Records which are usually made by man purposely for recording. And, of course the people who do it are not insane!

Just like one late February afternoon, I went for my rounds of jogging around the Freedom Park of our university. I saw a man probably in his late 60's having his afternoon walk but with what I thought at first glance, was a roan-colored small dog. The animal was dressed in a cream girl's spaghetti shirt. I was astonished at second glance that it was a baby goat! Instead of jogging past them, I walked in their pace and made sure that what I was seeing was really a goat. It was! A pet goat! Of course, I giggled to myself because it was really out of the ordinary to have a leisure walk with a goat! Goats are raised purposely as source of milk and meat. And in almost all of the provinces of northern Philippines, goat meat is a common delicacy. I began to wonder what the world is now doing with the minds of people!

The following weekend, I went for an early morning walk and saw the same old man with a stick in hand but this time walking with a rooster! 'This man is really amusing!' so I took time to watch them together. They went to an entrance of one of the buildings where there was a stair. He let the rooster get up, up and down the stairs with the help of the stick and was even talking to it in English. If the rooster reached the topmost stair, it's master would command it to crow. It would really flap its wings and do its morning crow boasting in triumph. Later, they approached a nearby iron pole around 3 meters long lying at breast level. The rooster was again commanded to walk on it and cross to the other end. Every time the rooster accomplished one task, it would crow and was given a reward of corn bits. What an amusement that morning!

I often saw the pair on their regular morning routine during the months that followed. The goat who has already grown up was taken for walks usually in the late afternoons.

Almost two years passed since I first saw this man with his pet goat and I was back to work when I watched them featured in one of the documentary segments on television. I learned that the rooster was named Robinhood and the goat, as Sandara.

What made this man treat a rooster and a goat the way pet dogs are taken cared of? This man wanted to teach something to everyone through his unusual efforts with Robinhood and Sandara. But for me, "Lolo" remains one of the "out of this world" animal lover.

oOo

During my semesters in the university I always had an early morning class which started from either 6:30 or 7:00. One morning I was walking to my class around 6:00 when I met a young gentleman. (One needs to keep his legs strong if in this university since students usually walk to and from distant buildings). He was fair-skinned and had clean-cut hairdo. He was wearing a neatly ironed pair of gray slacks and light-blue trousers. He was in necktie, in very-well polished pair of black shoes and was wearing a black shades (at an early morning). He was carrying a black portfolio in one hand and was pulling a string on the other hand. He was actually pulling a small marine toy car! UUuuuHHHH!!!! what a questionable look!!!! What's going on guy????!!!

Two days after, I came from the university's main library and was going for a noontime break. I saw this guy again walking around the vicinity of the library in the same looks!

I learned later from friends who happened to see him also that he was a neophyte of a certain fraternity undergoing a series of initiations!