Can One Triumph in the Midst of Tribulation?

I preached on the life of Joseph yesterday. He had a very difficult life for he was rejected in his complicated home situation, he experienced injustice, and was disappointed by friends. But there were three things I learned about him which were the reasons why “the Lord was with him” and “whatever he did prospered.” (Genesis 39:2)

First, he was faithful in the least of responsibilities despite his difficult circumstances. Wherever he went, he got promoted and his quality of work was incredible. The challenge for us is to give our best whatever we do – whether it’s shining shoes of fulfilling responsibilities for System Engineer Jobs.

Second, Joseph had great loyalty to his authorities and he loved and feared God. Even though he could have many excuses to give in to the sexual advances of his boss’s wife, he maintained purity because he did not want to break the trust of his authority. He also loved God and did not want to sin against Him.

Third, he trusted that God was in control. Even though during the first thirty years of his life, people tried to hurt him, tempt him and disappoint him he saw the big picture and displayed obedience – the greatest evidence of trusting God. Towards the end of his life he saw the pains, sufferings and tribulations in his life from God’s point of view.

Genesis 50:19-20 “But Joseph said to them, "Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? 20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”

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City Kart Racing is Where You Can Go Kart Racing In Metro Manila

City Kart Racing is the place where you can go kart racing in Metro Manila, Philippines, particularly in the City of Makati. It is right in the heart of the Makati business district - on Level 7 of Park Square 1. Yes, it may not seem to be a place where you can find a race track because you would think that all the cars in that building will be parked. Well, they are, but there is a floor dedicated solely for burning rubber and for giving you that adrenaline rush when you race.

On kart number 45, my first kart

Blogger Blaze 2011

Those who went kart racing in Metro Manila used to do so in City Kart Racing's previous location which was along SLEX but they have already transferred. Actually, last Saturday, I was able to try out their Fun Karts which you can rent for 12 minutes on their track (about 10-11 laps if you can do about a minute per lap) for only PHP 560. They also have a Pro Kart available for PHP 700 per heat. I tried it out with other bloggers who were invited to the City Kart Racing Blogger Blaze 2011. We were all given a free balaclava, usually costs PHP 150, to use under our helmets. Racers can also opt to wear overalls to really get a feel of a real racing experience.

Wearing a balaclava (also available in orange, green and pink)

All of us bloggers, around thirty in number, were grouped into 3 groups of 10 and tried out one heat on the fun kart. In each heat, there were about 10 racers in the track trying to accomplish their best time.

It was fun and exciting indeed especially when I found out after our turn ended that I had the best time in our heat.

Heat 19 results

About to make a U-turn

The most awesome thing about City Kart Racing is that they have integrated the race on the track to their City Kart Racing Facebook app. The cool thing about this is that every time you finish a heat, two things happen. First, your best time for that heat is automatically posted on your FB wall. So when you use their facilities for the first time, you will be asked to register with your Facebook account details. Second, you will automatically receive an email of your race stats which include details as your best time, your time for each lap, your average time for all the laps in that heat and a history of your best times compared to other people who raced that day, the past week or even the past month. Their FB app actually has the capability to show you your race stats compared to other people's stats as well, FB friends or not.

Screen capture of my latest racing stats, Heat 47

Moving on, after getting our individual best times, we were then grouped into 10 groups of three for some team racing. Each team was composed of individuals with fast, average and not so fast times based on the first three heats in the Blogger Blaze 2011. In this team event, each group was given an hour in the track where each member spent 10 minutes and then replaced by another team member and so on until the 60 minutes of race time is over. The team who made the most number of laps won. Our team, Sharpshooters, won third place and had 46.715 seconds as our best time. Team Extraodinary placed second and Tsikot.com were the champions.

Third place

I brought home the throphy

City Kart Racing's Location and Operating Hours

City Kart Racing Makati
7th Level car park, Park Square 1,
Ayala Center, Makati City

They are open everyday except for Christmas and Good Friday:

Monday to Thursday: 3pm to 10pm
Friday to Saturday: 10am to 12mn
Sunday and Holidays: 10am to 10pm
For more information visit CityKartRacing.com or please call +(632) 856-9155 or +(63917) 585-9155

(Credits to Mauie Flores for the other photos)

If you are in search of where to get a real racing experience,then City Kart Racing is definitely it.

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Haircut Time is Quality Time with My Son

My past two haircuts were performed by hairstylists from my favorite salon and my son was with me. He always makes sure that we get our haircut together. I think that’s sweet of him. But there was a time when he really wanted to go with me to the barber shop however, we did not have a chance because of my busy schedule so I ended up growing my hair longer but not long enough to get my hair styled at herstyler 3p. I’m thankful that I can enjoy getting a haircut because it is a chance to spend quality time with my son.

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Message for Teachers on World Teacher's Day

This morning, I had the privilege of giving an inspirational message to the teachers of Gen. Pio Del Pilar National High School for the "My Teacher, My Hero" World Teacher's Day celebration. I would like to share with everyone the message I delivered which, I hope, would encourage teachers to continue because God sees their efforts as they change the lives of students.

A huge part of our identity as teachers is our leadership role, and we have a tendency to want to be in control of everything that happens. As influencers, it’s critical for us to remember that while we may be leaders in our classrooms, we’re still servants of the almighty God. The Bible provides a great illustration of how to be both a leader and a servant in Joshua 5:13-15.

Joshua 5:13-14 “Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, "Are you for us or for our enemies?" 14 "Neither," he replied, "but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come." Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, "What message does my Lord have for his servant?"”

Joshua was preparing his troops for the battle of Jericho. Of course, he had no way of knowing just how God was going to cause the walls to come crashing down- he went purely on faith. As they waited, a man came up to Joshua and identified himself as ‘commander of the army of the Lord’. Joshua immediately fell facedown in reverence and asked, “What message does my Lord have for His servant?”. Even though Joshua was a great warrior who was in charge of leading all of the people of Israel, he knew who was in charge and called himself a servant of the Lord. What a wonderful example for us: to put aside our own agenda and pre-determined ideas about the next course of action and ask, What would the Lord have me do?

Before each day starts let me encourage you to take time to think about who you want to lead your classroom. We all know we’re not going to have a perfect day: there will be behavioral issues with students who against the citizen watch in the community, paperwork overloads, and complaint sessions with coworkers. Why not decide now to put God in charge of everything that happens to you? As John Piper wrote in his book Taste and See, “As soon as we discover we have a problem, God has already been working on it and the solution is on it’s way”.

Have you ever purposefully turned your classroom over to the Lord? Sure, you’ve prayed to Him intermittently throughout the day (mostly when you felt ready to strangle one the kids!). You’ve probably encountered situations in which you were powerless and sighed, “Oh, well, it’s in God’s hands now. Nothing else I can do”. It’s certainly convenient (and scriptural) to turn problems over to God when we’re in the thick of them. But what if we take our faith to the next level and give a situation over to God before it even happens?

The deeper question is, Have you ever purposefully turned your life over to the Lord? Life is a lot like the classrooms we handle. It can go out of control, we’ll have relationship problems, budget problems, we’ll encounter difficulties when other people make wrong decisions even when we try to do the right thing. As in the classroom, unexpected things can happen which are beyond our control.

But a wise teacher, or any person, would recognize that there is thatGreater Being who is in charge of everything. He is in control. And it is up to you to decide if you will allow Him to be in charge of your life, and not just your classroom.

James 3:1-2 “Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.”

We will all give an account to Him someday. So why not choose to let Him be the Boss right now and follow His ways. Admit you are powerless, Believe that Christ can change the situation and your life by trusting Him as your Savior and Commit your life to Him.

Happy World Teacher's Day!

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Praying for Our Countrymen's Safety

Yesterday, while I was at Great Wall Cars North Edsa waiting for some papers to endorse the repairs of our Peri, I saw on the news the flooding in Calumpit, Bulacan. I posted status updates about how sad the condition of our fellow Filipinos in Calumpit and learned that Hagonoy was also hit by floods. People were stranded on their roofs as some were being evacuated using rubber boats, something like clawfoot tubs make shift boats. With typhoon Quiel approaching, I just pray for the safety of Filipinos.

Flooding in Bulacan

Evacuation of Calumpit flood victims

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