Competitive in Christ

“God is a just god; our sins cannot go unpunished. God is a merciful god; He would not allow us to suffer the death we deserved for our sins. But God is also a god of grace; and He would find a way to serve justice for our sins without allowing us to suffer its true consequences – by offering His son in our place.”

There are about 4200 religions estimated around the world. From that, with certain religions having more than one god, there are an estimated 8,000-12,000 deities known throughout history. These gods are worshipped by men, as they are seen and revered as perfect beings; a far cry from us mortals. There is one God however, who allowed Himself to be as vulnerable as we all are. Already a God, he came down to earth living amongst us. Experiencing fear, loneliness, abandonment, rejection, and all other negative emotions we humans succumb to. Physical pain was no exception. Excruciating pain was necessary. This god was eventually wounded, and died in the hands of men. There is no other god like this one. Jesus, as we Christians have come to know Him is the only wounded God known to mankind.

As a college student, excerpts from Henri Nouwen’s “The Wounded Healer” was a required reading. As I went through them, I fell in love with the Christ who was so much like me. Gods are meant to be looked up to, and to be chased even if they are supposedly unreachable. This god, the one we call Christ, seemed to be just by my side. Yes, he was deity. But He was also very human – a god I can not only identify with, but a god I can choose to break bread with everyday of life.

“In our own woundedness, we can become a source of life for others,” was the line that truly caught my attention. When we hurt, only a friend who has been through the same experience can effectively comfort us. Christ was the first wounded healer. People question how someone who called himself the King of the Jews, sent by the father Himself, and the Son of Man in the flesh, could allow such a tragic death to end His life. If He was truly god, He would have done something about it. But if He did, will we ever be able to relate to Him? Or will God continue to be a distant being that we are forever separated from because of sin?

We may never understand it fully, but the hanging of Christ on the cross was absolutely necessary. The greatness and goodness of our God makes Him unreachable for sinners like ourselves and needed an atonement like no other. For thousands of years, the Jewish people would offer sacrificial animals to make-up for their sins. Truth be told however, none of the animals they offered could really bridge us back to God. The sins of the world were so grave, that only an unblemished, holy of holiest being, could bridge the wide gap between God and man. God is a just god; our sins cannot go unpunished. God is a merciful god; He would not allow us to suffer the death we deserved for our sins. But God is also a god of grace; and He would find a way to serve justice for our sins without allowing us to suffer its true consequences – by offering His son in our place.

When you start to see sin as a suffering you need saving from, then Christ has touched your life in a way that no god can ever do. Such is the value of a wounded healer. When we take a good look at Him, His grace is so ever blinding, it reflects our true selves like a mirror does. We see how far we have fallen and are able to bow our heads down in humility. We learn to lift our faults to God instead of hiding them from Him in shame and guilt. This capacity is a gift that can only come from a god you know you can unite with one day. For He is a god of hope, and not a god that enslaves.

But why does evil continue to proper here on earth? Even if we choose to accept His grace, we continue to experience pain and suffering in our lives. Most would question why this is so, and walk away. For how can such a loving God allow these horrible experiences for His people? It just doesn’t make any sense at all. But neither does it make sense for a one year old to see his father pay a doctor to stab a needle under his skin even if it contained a very important vaccine. We all know this is necessary to prevent further turmoil in his life, but there is just no way for his tiny baby brain to understand this. In the same way, a shepherd would have to yank his sheep in the neck from time to time just to make sure it doesn’t stray away. At times, we may not be able to comprehend God’s work in our lives on earth. During such moments however, the image of Christ on the cross brings great calm and allows us to move forward as Christians. The fact that He himself went through it, then conquered death after three days makes me believe that the pain and suffering we question will cease when His love story for us comes to its eternal end. Such is the power of a wounded deity, a god like no other.

Every successful sports team has a leader to thank. A leader who was willing to make sacrifices to ensure that the troops were always in a position to move forward towards their goal. They may not always be hailed as a superstar or are known to the public eye, but they are there somewhere, an indispensable part of the winning formula. Sometimes they come in the form of a coach, a GM, a player or even a chaplain. They can also have different leadership styles. There are the Bobby Knights who show tough love, the Phil Jacksons who practices stoic leadership, the Lebron James type who builds on brotherhood, the Sister Jeans who lead through inspiring words and positivity, and many more kinds out there. The point is, you won’t get too far without one.

The servant-leader is easily my favorite type of leader. And there is no other better model for this than the leadership that Jesus Christ showed. His ministry on earth was short lived, dying at a very young age of 33. Yet his teachings and his ways has somehow reached all the ends of the earth to this day. He was a son of a carpenter, was called a commoner, and persecuted by the high authorities of both his people and the mighty Roman empire. There is nothing about his situation then that could suggest he was in a position to be influential. But I cannot think of any other person who walked this earth that turned out to have more impact on others than this man. Presently, around two billion people, two thousand years after his death, confess to follow him. So what was outstanding about this man’s leadership? How could He have left such a mark on humanity?

When we think of a leader, we always think alpha male. Someone with a strong personality who demands attention to himself when he walks into a room. But Christ surely did not like the attention. When one reads the gospels, it’s easy to tell that He was a man who shied away from the crowds. Yes, He drew them with his miracles and charismatic preaching, but He was also known to have withdrawn frequently from the “mobs” and into a solitary place. Often times, he would even instruct those he healed to “tell no man what was done.” Definitely not a fame whore. I could just imagine Him not having any social media accounts if this was the world He entered into as a human being. He did however have a strong personality. His teachings were based on His strong convictions that no one could ever sway. His standards were so high, but so was was His compassion. And this allowed us all to follow Him despite our imperfections. Most leaders with high standards would turn-off a number of followers as they start to doubt their capabilities. But not Christ. In His team, everyone was welcome and yet the quality of the pack did not diminish. He was an alpha male but without the attention seeking trait, which He replaced with a deep sense of compassion.

“He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. ” – John 13:4-5

Positions of leadership are also traditionally linked to some kind of special treatment. Kobe Bryant used a chopper to get to the Staples Center for game days. Most CEOs and other top executives get additional benefits not available to their co-employees. Team captains of varsity teams usually don’t have to do chores such as filling-up the team jug with water. Christ however was different. He did not seek special treatment in anyway. He was called a master, but He was there to serve when called for. There is no better scene in the bible that depicts this better than Holy Thursday, when Jesus washed the feet of his primary followers, the apostles. Why? Was it to show today’s popular trend of being on equal footing of those you lead? Of course not. In fact Jesus made it clear that “no servant is greater than his master.” Jesus performed this deed for no other reason than to demonstrate love and humility through service. Two very important traits of a servant-leader. Washing of the feet may seem like an easy task. One must remember however that Christ lived during a time where people walked on dirt roads all day in sandals. His apostles had very dirty feet! Yet, without even being asked, He stooped down and demonstrated His love with such an act. Love and humility are essential.

Servant-leaders are also visionaries. They tend to leave a legacy that goes on way after they are gone. Though this does not fully apply to Christ for He is with us “until the end of age,” at least His human form has left the earth. But as mentioned earlier, He still impacts a number of lives today. Servant-leaders show their followers so much love that not only are they encouraged, but somehow pleasantly obliged to carry on the legacy left with them. A servant-leader knows that the cause He serves is bigger than Himself. Perhaps, the washing of the feet has a secondary purpose. It was symbolic of the vision of Christ that His apostles would carry on his legacy to all corners of the earth and thus He prepared them for more travel. A servant-leader sees beyond.

My favorite leadership trait of Christ that is another must have for servant-leaders is His obedience to His cause, regardless of the discomfort this may bring. Christ was on a mission. But somewhere before His final task, He got cold feet and started to pray to His master above (yes, He has a master too like all other servant-leaders have), begging to back-out of the task if possible. Notice however that His plea did not end with asking, but added that “Your will, not mine, be done.” Jesus made it clear that He was going to do it if that’s what it takes. What amazes me even more about Christ is not only His willingness to go through something even if it brought Him pain, but the fact that He was not afraid to show His true feelings. He cried at that garden that night and He wasn’t alone. Others saw Him. Some leaders would do things through pain but would try to hide such. They refuse to show any trace of weakness, and instead show a strong face despite it. Not Christ. Christ did not believe in “shows.” He was always Himself regardless of what others thought. He did not have one ounce of insecurity in His body because He was always certain of His actions. Well, He is God after all and therefore all knowing! But I believe this certainty came from His pure intentions. If every other servant-leader would act with such pure intentions, no decision could be far from right.

There are many other ways Christ demonstrated the servant-leadership model during His days in the Holy Land. Many have written books on this topic alone. The irony of Jesus’ leadership example however is that He is called the “lamb of God.” The ultimate sacrifice offering that replaces all other lamb slaughterings that the Jews practiced for atonement of their sins. Lambs are very meek animals, known to just follow whoever tends them. Leaders are never likened to them as they do not show any leadership qualities whatsoever. Wolves on the other hand are always used to demonstrate leadership. They are very curious and eager creatures that always seek out opportunities. In fact, they seek lambs. Shepherds had to be equipped to fight wolves in order to protect their herds. The lamb itself was defenseless against a wolf. Yet, Christ was a lamb that stood out as leader. Perhaps the best leader the world has ever seen.

What makes a good sports story? Is it the talent the participants have? Or the drama drawn from their diverse set of backgrounds that come into play in the heat of competition? It’s probably a mix of both. You will need just enough talent for a high quality match that will bring the audience to its feet. Nobody wants to watch a game of tennis where mediocre serves cant even be returned. That’s a given. But the stuff that brings us goosebumps and occasional tears, that’s the drama brought about by their life away from the sport they play. How many times have you emphatized with a basketball player scoring a career high after losing a parent? How about tearing-up when Tiger Woods won another Masters’ title after all the off course controversies? How about that euphoria upon watching Sabrina Ionesco’s 1k-1k-1k game right after her Kobe Bryant Memorial speech? Countless of championship runs of the so called underdogs, comebacks, and many similar storylines are always a big story in sports. Why? Because they found a way to make the impossible happen. They were done even though nobody expected them to thrive under the circumstances they found theirselves in. Thus, for all the bystanders, they have not just witnessed another sporting event – they instead have witnessed a miracle.

Outside of sports, similar miracles take place in our lives. There are countless of stories, sometimes of people we know personally, where a highly unlikely but pleasant event takes place, bringing the person involved down to his knees to say thank you to the big boss up there because only the hand of God could have authored such a masterpiece. The witness lives to tell the story, and the story circulates and touches everyone’s life in the process – often bringing them closer to God or at least in a place in their lives where they start to seek Him. Everyone is on a high, reaches out to the almighty, waiting for a miracle of their own to happen in their lives. Time passes, it never comes, and they’re back to living a life that doesn’t know God.

Miracles can lead lives to God, but the absence of such can also mean walking away from Him. It’s a sad but worldly reality for a majority of the world’s citizens. We want God, but we don’t know Him well enough to embrace Him fully. Because what this reality exposes about us is that we see God as a miracle machine – a magic genie in a bottle that is supposed to answer our prayers or grant our wishes. A provider. Yes, He truly is. But we forget that He is also so much more than just that. And so when we don’t get the miracle we are waiting for, He is all of a sudden no longer deserving to be hailed as our God.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.” – ISAIAH 55:8

God however never abandons us no matter how hard it gets for Him to love our imperfect selves. Regardless of how far we run away from Him, the moment we choose to just look over our shoulder, He is there with open arms, ready to receive us back again. He is ALWAYS there, and this is true regardless of whether or not He grants us our wishes. Yes it’s true, it can be frustrating to wait at times. Here you are being as obedient as a Christian can be, requesting for just one small miracle and yet He can’t even give you that. But here’s what we need to get into our tiny human brains: God always answers our prayers, you just have to remember that “no” is also an answer. And that “no” can be a miracle in itself. Because if you just stick with Him, sooner or later you will see through His eyes that the “no” you got years ago was life changing. God’s omniscient character gives Him the ability to know what is truly best for us, even when we are in a place where we can never understand why. How many times have you prayed for something, things didn’t turn out the way you prayed for them, then sometime in the future you look back and thank God you didn’t get what you asked for?

In Psalms Chapter 25, we learn that to be instructed by God is in itself a blessing. In fact the Psalmist here pleads for instruction as he declares that his hope is in the Lord all day long (Psalm 25:5). For the Psalmist, the only way to live is by living God’s will. And for all our inadequacies as human beings, this is probably the only true miracle we really need on earth. To receive the guidance of God and the courage to follow Him, a bi-product of the assurance he gives us through His gift of salvation, is the only true miracle we need to experience. Once you truly grasp that, which is another miracle in itself, everything else that follows is a miracle. Our whole life then becomes a miracle as we reflect Christ to the people around us. Miracles are not only contagious, they are also exponential in nature. And as these miracles are continually formed by the hand of God, the world becomes a better place for us all.

“Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior,  and my hope is in you all day long.” -Psalm 15:5

When the Golden State Warriors made basketball too easy, everyone in the NBA wanted to beat them. When they acquired Kevin Durant, it became close to impossible to do so in a seven game series. The NBA needed a miracle. It didn’t happen. Curry, Durant and the rest of the Warriors just couldn’t let that happen. Miracles don’t always happen. Sometimes, what the world expects is what it gets. Free will gets in the way and we walk the earth as we please, not as God wants us to. There is a great deceiver out there, out to target us all. Trying to lead us away from God’s will. We should be careful, we should be vigilant, and we shouldn’t rely on our own strength. We should ask for Christ to live in us and use His strength instead. If there is something we need to remember about miracles, it’s that it requires strength beyond that of those involved. The underdog in sports had to bring something with him from outside, didn’t he? An extra push to overcome the impossible. We need that too.

“If you have a body, you’re an athlete. – Bill Bowerman

One thing most people take for granted is their physical well being. No, nobody wants to get sick and takes the necessary precautions to avoid that. But is that what taking care of yourself is all about? Is it just about preventing something, or should there be more to it? Let’s put it this way. In a sports tournament, the goal is to win. Yet, we see at least two kinds of mentalities amongst the competitors. There are some who are there to win it all, as everyone should be, while a few joining just want to put up a decent performance or not end up last. Those who just don’t want to get sick are the ones who are just trying to avoid last place. They put in a little work, but not to the extent that they maximize their potential – because yes, each of our bodies are full of potential.

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10

We are full of potential regardless of what shape or form we take. We may not all look like we were built to run a marathon under two hours (which has been done by the way!), but we are built for something. Some of us may have even been born of some physical handicap or had an accident that altered our physicality along the way, but still we were all built for something special. And even if we are in a stage in our life where we still don’t know what that is, we have no excuse to prepare for it. Preparations for such should always include physical training. We simply have to take care of the bodies that are given us to the best of our ability. Several verses in the bible teach us this. In the book of Romans we are asked to offer our bodies as a holy and living sacrifice to please God – and calls this the true form of worship. In Corinthians, our bodies are called the temple of the Holy Spirit.

Such verses, and yes there are plenty more, suggest to us that developing the full potential of our bodies is actually a spiritual discipline. Spiritual disciplines are methods we go about to reach our perfected selves as children of God. Things we do or practice, to grow closer and more alike Christ. Worship, prayer, reading your bible, and fasting are other spiritual disciplines Christians practice throughout their walk with Christ on earth. These are the most common ones at least, while developing yourself physically is usually left out. But the truth is, those who hone their bodies are the ones who are able to reach the furthest ends of the earth to preach the word of God. They are also the ones that live longer and therefore have the most wisdom to share. They are also usually the ones capable to do good works within a community – like distributing goods to those in need during a pandemic. And of course, they are the ones always full of energy, a trait that every Christian should posses, since we are commanded to be joyful during our lifetime.

A lot of people, even non-Christians, do practice physical fitness but for the wrong intentions. Physical fitness by the way is composed of two things, exercise and proper diet. More often than not, people invest in this industry to look better, lose weight, become sexier and the like. It’s all about vanity. There may be nothing wrong in wanting all those but if you want to use your bodies to glorify God as you should, then you must practice the discipline with such intentions. Everything else could be a bi-product of such, or a bonus of sort. It’s important to do this, because we we know, God looks at the heart – He knows what our intentions are and we will be held accountable for them. If you’re an athlete, you want to be putting in the work for the prize you’re after. Not for the potential endorsements or the fame. It’s the same thing here.

So put on those sneakers and start moving. You’ll never know what God is going to call you for and you don’t want to be out of shape when your number is up. There is a lot of work to be done for His kingdom, and there is no excuse for us to slack off and become the best versions of ourselves because He deserves no less. Make keeping yourself physically fit for the Lord part of the spiritual discipline you practice. Especially these days where we are all stuck at home, we just have absolutely no excuse to get our hearts pumping for the Lord. Have fun!

“As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work.” John 9:4

A college athlete in the Philippines has 5 years of eligibility. After 5 years, you’re back in the backyard playing pick-up games. Sure, some go to the pros – about 2% or less. Not all sports have professional leagues in place, and not all those who play in sports that have them are good enough for it. 5 years will make or break your legacy. Those who understand this pour out everything they got, making sure they walk out of the court, the field or the oval with no regrets. Such is the life of a college athlete.

Yet, many don’t see this, or realize it too late. They spend their time at the beach, hanging out with friends at the mall or partying late at night just like any other college kid. They forget that they are not just any other college kid. They forget that they are student-athletes. And in the end, they look back, scratch their heads and begin to talk about an infinite number of “what ifs” to their friends, later on to their colleagues at work, and even later to their children and children’s children.

Then, there are those who don’t see it at first, but somehow get themselves together before it’s too late. They are the student-athletes that are luckier than the rest of the pack. They have coaches who have mastered the art of not only making them understand this fact, but also teaching them how to attack this reality. These coaches have a gift that allows them to make players who are blinded by their youthfulness to “see” what could have only be seen by a fully matured adult.

These coaches remind me of how Christ healed the blind man in John 9. We all know that Jesus Christ performed a number of healing miracles during his short time on earth as a man. But of all of his miracles, this one catches my curiosity more than any other. Not so much because the man he healed had the disability since birth, but more so of the way He did it – with spit and dirt. How can this combination from the earth’s trashiest and yuckiest things heal a blind man? How can you even let someone’s spit combined with dirt touch the skin of your face? It was completely outrageous, yet it worked.

The accompanying conversation of this particular passage also catches my attention every time I read it. Christ was asked if this blindness was due to the man’s own sins or his parents’ sins. A question we always ask God when something goes wrong in our lives – “Why me Lord? What have I done to deserve this?” Remember how you were sidelined by an injury as an athlete after working so hard? Was it because of sin? Of course Christ makes it clear here that this was not a consequence of sin, but rather was by God’s design that His works may be known. I remember as a child sitting in a Christian Living class in school, the message drilled into us was to see your own deformities, if any, as a blessing – as an a opportunity to serve and give glory to the Lord.

There’s also the additional words from Christ where He calls us all to “do the works of He who sent me,” while warning us that there will be a time when no one can work. What in the world does that even mean? Bible commentaries argue that Christ is revealing that He is the light of the world, and that when He leaves, there will be darkness – sin taking over. Thus, as followers we must spread the Gospel as much as we can, while we can. “Do the works,” He said. Here, he made a blind man see using spit and dirt. Today, we are called to make those who are spiritually blind see the truth that Christ has left us with. And as Christ has shown, we can use things or experiences that trash this world to preach the good news. Events such as the Covid-19 disease for example, a disease spread through saliva, to open the eyes of those who still do not believe.

Just as the good coaches have the ability to make a young athlete see, we too must find ways to make the “blind” of this world see. Teaching moments are moments that coaches are always on the look out for. When a teaching moment arises, chances are, whatever you teach at that time will be retained. Science tells us that traumatic experiences bring lessons to us that we never forget. In fact, more often than not, we try to suppress our learnings from such situations when the learning is in the negative – like learning to be afraid on a certain trigger. Teaching moments are of the same idea. The situation opens up whatever part of our brain that safe keeps information that leads to action upon a certain trigger. When a coach can identify a teaching moment, his potential to teach is great. When a coach can create such teaching moments, his bound to be a coaching legend. It is during these teaching moments, that these coaches are able to make their players see.

I pray that as Christians, we learn to adopt the ability of these coaches to identify or create teaching moments for the people around us. Yes, seed planting is a real thing and we do plant seeds even when they don’t seem to listen. But imagine how far greater the Truth can reach if we could be more efficient in opening the eyes of those who are spiritually blind. It is an ability worth working hard for. And we can begin gaining this ability by looking again at John 9 and studying the situation Christ was in. Remember, after seeing, the once blind man went out spreading what Christ has done for Him. Isn’t this what we want as Christians? To proclaim the name of God that the whole world may know? It’s a short verse worth going back to and learning from. For me, the teaching moment Christ saw was made of this: questions/confusion just around the corner, a disability/tragedy, and something trashy that heals in the name of the Lord. If you can find these in a situation, then you’ve got your teaching moment.

“Be still and know that I am God.” Psalms 46:10

Love is naturally on a high during the good, happy times – but it runs deepest at a time of crisis. After a century since the last major pandemic that killed millions, the world is once again battling a disease it cannot control. Amidst all the advances in medicine, we humans are still way behind what really goes on in our very own cells. The COVID-19 disease, which comes from the virus called SARS-CoV-2, is spreading across our borders at a pace our health care workers could not keep up with.

As of writing, 179,111 cases have been confirmed with 7,426 deaths (WHO, Situation Report 57, https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situation-reports/20200317-sitrep-57-covid-19.pdf?sfvrsn=a26922f2_4 (last accessed March 18, 2020)). Reports are not accurate. It doesn’t take a scientist to report that we are now all affected – maybe not physically, but this virus has definitely reached each of us mentally, and more so emotionally. Most governments by now have restricted movements in major metropolis areas. In the Philippines, the island of Luzon has been placed in an Enhanced Community Quarantine, while other major regions such as Davao and Cebu have been planning similar strategies to contain the virus themselves.

As a result of these measures, most Filipinos are stuck in their very homes, allowed only to go out for essential transactions such as banking, seeking medical care and buying necessary goods to keep them afloat during these times. Shouldn’t be so bad, right? It’s like being on sick leave, except that you aren’t sick – or at least you don’t know it yet in this case. The idea of the lock down however, has made staying at home for all of us much more challenging than we thought it would be. Even those who were allowed to work from home are complaining of how much work they are asked to accomplish during these days. By opening your social media accounts and scrolling down your timelines of the different platforms available, you can spot how different people are behaving nowadays. Everyone is finding a way to keep themselves “sane” despite the stay at home orders from our government.

Along with the different behaviors, comes the different opinions on the matter – this blog included. But I’m not going to talk about how to handle the situation better or what we should or should not be doing. Neither will I be giving tips on how to go about if you do have the symptoms. Instead, I’ll be sharing my thoughts and emotions from the last few days I’ve stayed at home, some of which have nothing to do with the virus at all.

Fear. About 60% of time I’ve been home, I’m afraid of what might be. I’ve been told in the past that being afraid of something that might happen is as good as being afraid of a ghost that isn’t there. Yet, one can’t help but think of the possibilities that may come about. I’ve been checking my temperature at least 4x a day. I have not gotten a reading over 37.1, yet I feel like I’m a potential carrier. My dad’s room is just across the hall and I’m so afraid that he might get it from me, regardless if I had symptoms or not. They say it’s not much of a risk to have it at my age, but when the elderly get it, it’s potentially fatal. In our country, most especially. I think we may have the highest death rate, considering that we have just about 200 confirmed cases with around 20 dead. Because of this, the ghost seems so real. And instead of using this time at home to bond with family, we have to deliberately choose to be apart.

Apart from the fear that the virus would get to our elders, I also can’t help but think about what life would be after this hiatus. Socially and economically, it will surely be different. Will you ever shake another person’s hand again? Open a door without sanitizing after? Hire an Angkas driver? Get on a Grab car? Loan a Citi bike? Will the stock market recover?How long will it take? Will 50% of the government’s budget now go to health care? How many businesses will close after this? How many workers will be laid off? Too many questions that lead to one answer right now – wait and see. And when the answer is wait and see, we become anxious, and anxiety is the worst way to feel fear. It is the hardest to conquer because it drives a multitude of thoughts into your brain and affects it not only during the moment of being fearful but also when the fear is gone. It damages our brain by inserting some kind of trauma that is just waiting to be triggered.

Luckily, just like any other trigger, there is a safety switch that prevents the trigger even when someone tries to pull it deliberately. The book of Proverbs tells us “Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad.” (Proverbs 12:25) What is a good word? It could be different for each of us. What’s good for me, isn’t necessarily good for you and vice versa. The way we were raised and our experiences growing-up will all contribute to what’s good for us. My good word is this, “you know you’re a true Christian when you are no longer concerned about what other people say, and instead concern yourself with what God will say about you.” I heard this from our church’s head pastor during a trip to the Holy Land. Those words stuck to me like glue since then, and has provided me with a shield from any evil thoughts that attempt to cloud my mind, including fear. Whenever I hear those words, nothing else matters except that fundamental relationship I have with the Lord. If I can take care of that, I will be fine no matter what. And even better, I am certain that the whole world will be okay because He is in control.

However, fear can also be good. In fact, what has allowed people to stay at home and fight this virus is fear. Fear drives us to do what is good. Have we not heard many times over that to be God-fearing is a trait you ought to look for in a friend? So why then find a way to stop the trigger of it? Or does stopping the trigger, trigger the good word that we need to remind ourselves of from time to time? Your guess is as good as mine on this one.

History. About 10% of the time I’ve spent at home has allowed me to look back at history. What does history teach us about this? A lot of infographics on the different pandemics the world has been challenged with have surfaced the internet these past days. The black plague, the Spanish flu, SARS, etc. We have been through this before, and the fact that we are still here means these viruses have not won against the human race. Eventually, we will find a cure and we will overcome this. Sure, life may never be the same as before, but how else does the world progress except to adapt, change and move forward. Mind you however, progress does not always mean to be more technologically advanced. Progress of the human race can only be progress if things are better, less complicated, for us all. Isn’t that what technology is all about after all? To make life simpler for us? Yet, not all technology has done this for us. Some has brought us backwards by complicating our lives. How else did you think this virus got to 176 countries in such a short time? It doesn’t seem like we are using technology wisely, does it?

More than the history of viruses, I have thought about social pandemics that plagued our past. Particularly the one Jose Rizal talked about – the cancer of society. Rizal saw a problem growing within our people. Simply put, people were growing corrupt under the Spanish rule. It’s no different today. With or without the Spaniards in our land, corruption still lives among us. Today alone, we have heard stories of checkpoints asking for bribes from health care workers just to let them pass. We have also heard of subtle, yet very petty debates between our politicians on who is doing a better job in their respective LGUs. Some politicians have even been accused for using this crisis as a platform for the next elections. Then there are the many asymptomatic “elite” individuals being tested, while those who need them most have to wait in line due to availability. And of course, how can we ignore the stories of deception, real numbers being hidden from us, because they did not want to cause panic? Had we known and started earlier, we could have moved to keep still faster. Funny how such an oxymoronic phrase makes most sense nowadays. The point is, when this is all over, we all need to work on our hearts and keep it free from corruption. “Above all else, guard your heart.” (Proverbs 4:23) If we can do that, a lot more problems than just this virus will be solved. It’s about time that we learned from history – and there is no better way than to look at HIStory.

Love. 30% of my time has been spent on Netflix, watching the Korean show everyone has been raving about. CLOY or Crash Landing on You is a love story about a couple whom fate keeps bringing together, but the world keeps tearing apart. A North Korean soldier falls in love with a South Korean aristocrat. I have not finished the series yet, but there seems to be one thing about their love for each other that stands out the most to me. The couple’s love for each other is expressed in their willingness to be alone together. No wonder it’s constantly in the top 10 most watched Netflix materials these days. Most of us are now struggling with this – being away from our loved ones. It does not matter if they are across the hall or across an ocean right now. The fact is, we have to stay away from each other. How does that even work? Staying away from a person you love because you love them? What kind of a world do we live in if that’s the case? A cruel one, I suppose.

But the bible says God is love. (Ephesians 4:2) The greatest love known to man kind is the love the God has for us. Yet, while here on earth, we are separated from Him since birth. The history of that of course goes way back to the time of Adam and Eve. We all know that it was their disobedience that had destroyed their fellowship with God, and evicted them from the garden of Eden. But God did not love us less even when he chose to separate from us. There is always a debate as to why God even allowed them to be disobedient – did He plan for us to be separated? The answer of course is a no. But from the beginning, part of loving us was giving us the freedom to choose. It was this freedom that led to our separation. Then one would argue again, if He loves us that much, why separate from us despite our disobedience? We will never fully understand the mind of God of course (“For My thoughts are not your thoughts” Isaiah 55:8), but this much I have come to know. To love someone is a choice. Loving someone is putting that choice to action, and it isn’t easy. There are several things you need to learn, and as you learn how to love, you love even more. Most of the time, loving someone means allowing them to get hurt, because it is when we are hurt or broken, when we find ourselves in a crisis, that we truly love deeply. And if there is a greater feeling than to be loved, it is to love with all your heart – and this is what God wants for us.

God allowed separation to allow us to get hurt and feel all the other negative emotions one feels when separated from God. It’s like He sent us on a life long retreat, to reflect on our disobedience, while reminding us of how much He loved us by sending His only Son to bridge that gap. And it worked. Most of us have found ourselves running back to Him, yearning to know of this love. From time to time, while still on earth, we experience Him through divine transcendence. We are filled with His grace, yet we continue to sin and somehow feel the gap widening. It’s a sad love story when no matter what you do, you just can’t get to the one you love the most.

I don’t know yet how CLOY will end, if the cross border couple will find a way to unite at some point and live their lives together. I have at least 3 more hours of film waiting for me. But even if they don’t, I admire them already. They get that love is not just about being together, but that it does not have to cease to exist when you are apart. Love in the time of Corona is a love that runs deep. A love expressed through separation. It’s close to the love that God has for us, a love that most of us have either forgotten or taken for granted. “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10) is a verse we all need to put into practice nowadays. To know God is to learn of love. And to learn how to love (through Christ), is the greatest love this world has known (John 3:16).

“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” -Philippians 3:12

In sports, we would often hear that the complete competitor is one that is not only skilled in his craft, but someone who possesses a fire within him that no amount of setback can put out. This is often reduced to the word “grit” in the English language. But what exactly is grit? And how does one make it part of his arsenal? Is it something we are born with or something we work hard to have?

Grit for me, is the non-tangible asset that allows one to be successful amidst the many obstacles that abound in pursuing a dream. Today’s guru of grit, Dr. Angela Duckworth, defines it as perseverance and passion to achieve long-term goals. Whether in sports, business or life itself, grit has been an important asset, probably a necessary one, of those we have deemed to be successful. It’s the ability to continue pursuing your goal, staying on track for the long term, regardless of what happens around you. We have all heard the stories of the great ones. Thomas Edison failing with several inventions before coming-up with the light bulb, Walt Disney closing his cartoon company due to bankruptcy, and Steve Jobs being kicked-out of his own company before reinventing the Apple brand to name a few. Grit is good! The problem is that not everyone who wants it, has it. As attractive as it is to have, it is also just as elusive. Very few possess this golden virtue. Is it even a virtue? A virtue has a moral element to it. Grit does not seem to have this, as grit is all about getting what you want.

Thinking about grit, I am reminded about the concept of “the force” in the iconic Star Wars saga. The force, according to Wikipedia, is a “metaphysical and ubiquitos (present everywhere) power in the Star Wars universe.” It is used by both the good and bad to their advantage. The bad or “dark side” even claims that it is more powerful when used by them. This of course is because their intention in using the force is really to exploit the power to their advantage, while the good, the so called Jedis, only intend to use it to maintain a balance in the universe. So definitely not a virtue, but rather a skill that can be used to achieve either good or bad.

The apostle Paul called this, the ability to “press on.” Paul was a man who started at the South Pole if being Christlike was to be at the north most point. His was a story where grit was honed and used for the bad, but was eventually redirected at the peak of its power to be used for good. At the beginning of his story, Paul was one who advocated against Christ’s teachings and even persecuted His followers. Paul was “the” enemy of Christianity. But somehow, after an encounter of a lifetime at the road to Damascus, things started to change. Something changed inside of Paul, the former Saul, which pushed him to keep choosing that hard, less attractive, but right decision. Just like an athlete trying to reach for that championship trophy – choosing to go to the gym instead of hanging-out with friends, choosing the boring grilled white meat instead of the deep fried wings, and choosing to go all-out on every run, instead of just cruising by to check it off his to do list for the day. Paul was an athlete in the arena where life with Christ was the trophy. And he was a really good one, a champion if you may. Here are a few of the moments where Paul showed grit in his journey home to Christ…

Losing Sight, Gaining Might: Paul lost his sight when he first encountered Christ through a shiny bright light. Most people I know, would at this moment question God instead of revere Him. “Why take away my sight, Lord? What kind of a God are you?” Instead, Paul, who encounters Christ for the first time makes a 360 turn. He had no prior pleasant experience with Christ before this, at least none that has been accounted for. The only explanation would be grace – the grace of Christ was upon him, allowing him to make the right choice of proceeding to the city of Damascus where Christ told him to go, instead of going back to the comforts of his very own Jerusalem. He said yes to the voice of Christ, yes to the task given him. Then he endured three days of no sight, no water and no food before being approached by Ananias, and that takes grit!

Prisoner to Singer: Paul and Silas were in Philippi when some scammers realized that their opportunity to make money was halted by Paul’s ability to call out spirits in the name of Jesus. This eventually led to the beating of, and later imprisonment without a trial of the two. We all know that it is human nature to frown upon unfortunate events that happen to us when we try to do good. It’s just unacceptable that bad things should happen to good people. Karma shouldn’t be working that way! Instead of having a bitter attitude however, Paul and Silas started singing hymns of praise to the Lord our God when they were in prison. Being in prison was not going to stop them from doing what they needed to do. Other prisoners were even able to share in this joy. There was just no stopping Paul from his goal of uniting with Christ. It did not matter what kind of luck met him on the road – he was going to continue to matter what! Again, grit in full display.

From Sinner to Winner: Paul is known for struggling with sin even after his conversion. He said “For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.” (Romans 7:15) Paul understood that he was a slave to sin, as we are a slave to the same. He even went so far as to call himself a “wretched man.” But to talk about overcoming sin may be too much to digest, so let’s talk about being a slave to bad habits instead. Often times, when we try to get rid of a bad habit, such as snoozing that alarm clock for another five minutes, we just give-up on it and accept it as part of who we are. Paul refused to identify with sin even if he repeatedly fell to it. He fought it, pushed through it, never gave-up and continued to follow Christ despite the hold this had on him. He kept trying, even if he kept falling. And we all know how his life later on ended in relation to this… “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on the crown of righteousness is laid up for me…” (2 Timothy 7-8) Again, the gritty Paul refused to settle.

Small everyday decisions, small everyday actions, leading up to what will later be perceived as great choices because they led to your ultimate goal, is what grit is all about. We are all born with it, but not all develop it into a strong tool to help them reach their goals. It’s a skill that can be honed for sure – starting with small victories that can lead up to bigger ones. Paul’s life is a shining example of how one lives with grit. But Paul teaches us even more about grit than simply building it and getting stronger at persevering. Paul’s grit, or as he calls it “press(ing) on,” has a partner that it cannot live without – faith. The main motivator for his grit may have been the goal of uniting with Christ one day, but it was also his faith that what he did would lead to Christ that kept him going. “Trust the process” is how our modern day athletes would put it. And the process must be trust worthy to begin with! No matter how hard you push, if you push the wrong way, you just won’t get there – and eventually the limitations of the human body will lead you to failure. Some people persevere but don’t make it, because at some point, their mortality gets to them before they get to their long-term goal. Because sure, you can fail an infinite number of times as long as you get up every time, but let’s not forget that our time is finite. So the next time you think of yourself of a gritty person just waiting for your breakthrough, think again and don’t forget to check your methods. Paul’s methods were on point. If yours aren’t, then you’re just another stubborn man.

“Teach us to number each of our days so that we may grow in wisdom.” – Psalm 90:12

They say that time is the most powerful force in the universe. In the hundreds of years that man has walked this earth, not one of us has been successful in manipulating time for even a fraction of a second. Time just flows on its own, undisturbed and unassuming of its stakeholders. Sure, there are many other things in this earth that we can’t control – the weather, earthquakes, and volcano eruptions to name a few. But all these forces are driven by elements around them; variables that lead to changes in their behavior. As random as their abrupt courses of action seem, the property of sensitive dependence, commonly illustrated as the butterfly effect, applies to them. Cause and effect. On the other hand, time is dependent on absolutely nothing. It will pass, no matter what we do or what happens around it. It will not slow down, nor will it ever speed up. We can never control it. The discovery we humans need to make about time is not how to turn it back or jump it forward, for that surely will be a waste of our time; but rather how to make the most out of it.

So how should we spend our time, given its infinite but finite nature? In sports, time is just as powerful. Whichever discipline you find yourself in, more than talent, time is an athlete’s greatest ally. For any skill can be mastered with time, and in time any game can eventually be won. Hours and hours of training is what truly creates a champion. The late Kobe Bryant had little time in this world, but has been known to make the most of his “4AMs.” Repetition forms habits, and habits determine your behavior. If you have the discipline for that, elite performance is bound to make a showing. The thing about performing in the highest level is that these pressure packed situations don’t give you much time to think. Thus, your body, your instincts, your gut, will force you to do what you’ve been simulating under the same conditions. Input creates output, as if we were programmed like a computer. Practice is key, and practice is done over a great amount of time that most of us claim not to have.

Think of the time you spend on practice as an advance, or as an investment of sort. It’s your main capital, your initial resource, which you will use to build your success. To allocate the time is step one. There is of course a second layer, where in you will have to decide on which particular skills sets you will be using the time you set aside for. When I was coaching a basketball team, one of the more important things I had to be on top of was how to manage practice time. Basketball is a very diverse discipline. There were so much concepts to cover and so many skills needed to bring a system to life. I had to make a choice. Do we run though everything and be a master of none, or choose a few we would live and die with? I went with the latter, choosing a few things I believed we could really be good at. I knew that when game time came, the pressure would pull down our efficiency in execution. If we weren’t masters of what we were trying to do, we wouldn’t be able to execute at all. If you master something however, you would be so high up there that even when you factor pressure in, you would still be at least “good” at it. What you repeatedly do becomes innate to you. It now takes the brain less time to process what it wants to transmit to your muscles. Your muscles on the other hand are so used to the command, that it can easily recognize what it is you want it to do, lessening the room for error.

In real life however, most of us don’t have the patience to see this through and we often choose not to invest our time in a certain few crafts we wish to master. The discipline of a sportsman is different from that of an ordinary man. We humans are so obsessed with time´s finite nature that we try to squeeze in as much as we can into the time we are given. We hide behind the excuse of something not being worth our time, but end up day dreaming about it for even longer hours. As a people, we generally live like there’s no tomorrow and are hailed for living such lives. “YOLO” is such a popular way to live nowadays. We try everything. We chase anything. We fail to focus on our one true thing, whatever that may be, and end up getting a little of something from here and there. Not a bad life, to be honest. Some would say it’s the only way to live. But not for those who are committed to chasing something special. The more special that thing is to you, the more time you are willing to expend on it. The great ones, they have the sportsman´s discipline and take their time in learning their craft. Even if it takes their whole life.

However, one may be quick to point out that those who are highly successful in what they choose to do are not necessarily the happy ones in life. The very reason for that is that at some point, they regret the time they have poured in, to get to where they are, as it was done at the expense of overlooking more important things in life. The truth is, regret is always there to bite us in the end, regardless of what we choose to spend our time on. Those who live life like there´s no tomorrow and just get into about anything they can get their hands on would also always look back and ask themselves if they could have been great in something. It’s almost like a trap. No matter what we choose to do, life is still full of what ifs. There just isn’t enough time.

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Or have we been looking at time from the wrong perspective? After all, Albert Einstein did say that time was relative. For a Christian, time is not as finite as it seems. It shouldn’t be at least. The very crux of Christianity rests on the fact that Christ conquered death – that life on earth is not the end of it all. Thus, for those who believe, time is seen from a vantage point of eternity, drastically changing one’s mindset from wanting to get the most out of life, to using life on earth as an investment for what comes after. There is a prayer in the bible which is believed to have been authored by Moses: “Teach us to number our days oh Lord, so that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” At first reading, the prayer seems to ask God to make us more aware that our time is finite and that we should use it wisely. Let’s remember that this was written in old testament times, before Jesus showed us that there is more to life on earth. The bible’s words however, the truth in it, is timeless. So if I now add my knowledge that there is eternity after death, then what this prayer asks is not to remind us that life is short. To “number our days” now means being made aware that life surpasses earth, that the days are plenty. With this perspective, knowing that there is something beyond, the wise thing to do about my life on earth is to invest it for what comes after. For as much as we are free to choose the way we live, we are not free to choose the consequences of the choices we make.

So instead of rushing through life and trying to make everything fit, take your time in making decisions. Decide on using your time for your one true purpose – take your time in figuring out what that purpose is. God has one for all of us, otherwise we wouldn’t be around. “Be still and know that I am God” from Psalm 46:10 is another favorite of mine. Being still and reflecting on our one true creator will surely help us determine our purpose. So pause for awhile and pray. Constantly ask yourself if you’re on the right path, not just if you’re comfortable or happy at the moment. Take time to reflect on what to remove or add to your life and do this often. What’s leading you to God today may not do the same for you tomorrow. Tantum Quantum is what the Jesuits practice, and we all should too. Don’t ride the wave of this fast paced life that will surely haunt you with regret – many regret while still on earth but the regret we want to really avoid is the one that haunts you during the second death. Unfortunately, most people here on earth either don’t know, or don’t believe that such a second death is possible. While some spend their time disregarding what they have been told even if they do believe it. They simply take it for granted. I hope and pray you’re neither of the three described above. Instead, may you be the turtle, who slowly but surely, wins the race. Yes, the clock was ticking for the turtle, but he knew that all he had to do was beat the hare and not necessarily clock in a fast time. Time is relative.

So again, time on earth will keep moving no matter what, so be patient enough to wait for answers before you go do your thing. Wait patiently even if it hurts. Because life on earth is ultimately a choice. Agony in waiting. Do you wait on the Lord even if it means to experience agony now, or do you wait for agony to come when the Lord decides to separate from you forever?

In the age of a million gigabytes of information available to us with a touch of our finger tips, the human race is ever so confident that they will finally come to answer all the questions this mysterious world we were placed in comes up with. Man’s curiosity has led us to many adventures here and there, regardless of what sphere we find ourselves focusing on. Even Adam and Eve had curiosity levels spiking up, prompting them to take from the Tree of Knowledge despite specific instructions not to do so. As human beings, a common thing that binds us all is the search for truth. And yet, as we unravel the mysteries of this world, we just open ourselves to even more destruction that requires a greater solution. We search and search for answers, but in the end we just keep digging a deeper hole for us all.

Man has gone to great extents just to uncover the truth. We have gone beyond the earth and below its surface – have called them unprecedented feats, and yet we all live in a world much worse than yesterday.

The fact is, the truth we all seek has been imprinted for us. All we have to do is read. Read and read again, until the words are engrained in our very souls where it makes sense the most. It does not matter that the manuscript was written when the world was far different from that we live in today. This is a truth that knows no time. It is a truth that must be revisited again and again.

This blog is an attempt to reflect on its words through the life of a competitor in the field of sports. Because not only does the good book defy the rules of time, it also defies context in ways you never expect.

“What has been will be again, what has been done, will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” – Ecclesiastes 1:9