Category: Words of Wisdom

The Invisible Soul

Let’s do a little test. Who can see radio frequencies in the air before they are transmitted into your radio to create meaningful sound and music? Who can see television signals before they reach your tv screens to create meaningful pictures for you to watch? Who can see cellular phone signals before they reach your mobile phones to create messages we could actually understand?

Probability is that no one could see such things. But does it mean they don’t exist?

How about the human soul? Could it be that even if we do not actually see it, they exist within this mortal physical frame we call our bodies? And could it also be possible that even if this mortal body dies, the invisible soul still remains, untouched, and very much alive?

Even if your radio breaks, it doesn’t mean that the radio frequencies also cease to exist. They’re still there! All you need to do is to repair that radio or buy a new one in order to continue hearing your favorite songs.

There are times when we’d rather stay home than set out on a new adventure for fear that we wouldn’t have the strength to finish it through. There is nothing wrong with that, especially if we have carefully assessed our strength as compared with the needed stamina of our adventures.

In the journey of life however, we make the mistake of comparing our present strength with challenges that lay so far ahead in the future. Why be disheartened with things that won’t happen anytime soon? And why think that you couldn’t grow in strength from where you are now?

As we continue to travel the journey of life, we also grow in strength and wisdom (provided we do not shrink from challenges that come our way.) We are far stronger now than when we were children, and we’d even be stronger in the future to tackle even greater milestones and adventures that come our way.

Will I be strong enough then to finish this journey? I desire and hope to be. With God’s help, I believe I will be strong enough to finish the climb!

Would You Like to Know Everything That’s Going to Happen?

Let’s admit it.  We often felt it would be cool to know what’s going to happen next.

We’d like to guess how the movie we’re watching is going to end. We’d like to know whether we’d marry the person we like so much. We’d like to know what the winning numbers will be at the next lottery!

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have such a gift?

But what if we could really take a peek into the future? Are we going to be happy in the long run?

What if we’d know all the events that are going to happen to us – the person we’d marry, the kids we’d have, the problems we’d encounter, how these problems are going to be solved. What if there will be nothing left hidden from us, to surprise us, to take our breath away? Are we still going to have as much zest in living our lives?

The journey of life, like every other journey, is filled with unexpected turns. Oftentimes, even if we have a map with us, we don’t really know whether a path has been blocked, and another one opened for us, another path which is more challenging, and better filled with joys God desires us to claim.

Let us not lose heart when things don’t always go as we expect them to. Sometimes, we’d be more thankful they turned out far better than we imagined them to be! 😉

What type of traveler are you? Are you the type who prefers to travel alone? Or are you the type who prefers to have the company of friends?

Traveling alone has its advantages:

1. When traveling alone, you are free to explore a place in any way you wish! No one would contradict you or tell you to do something you don’t really want to do.

2. Traveling alone increases your courage. As you have no one to rely on to but yourself, you learn to trust your abilities and you learn to solve many problems on your own.

3. You trust God more. God’s help is given you in other ways instead of being channeled directly through your companions. He could use a variety of things to assist you. Even strangers you never thought would get out of their way just to be there for you would help you.

On the other hand, you’d experience these benefits when you travel with friends:

1. You’d seldom be lonely because you know that there are people beside you who care for you, people who’d make your journey more unforgettable because of their very presence.

2. You’ll always have a helping hand. When you trip or feel too tired to walk, you know you have friends who can assist you and lift you up.

3. You get to see a place in a whole new way. When you’re with friends, you don’t merely see the place through your own eyes. You also see it in the many different perspectives of your friends. Hence, you learn more and you realize many things you may not realize on your own.

At times, it is fun to travel alone, experiencing that freedom and independence, and being able to reflect and savor the richness of your journey with that kind of spiritual intimacy. And yet it is also good to travel with friends. It’s a different thing when you know somebody’s there for you. Even your happiness is multiplied with their presence.

There are places I’ve enjoyed traveling on my own. But I guess I wouldn’t want to go there again all by myself. The next time I go there, I want to have my good friends with me. In that way, I get to travel TWICE without really repeating my journey! 😉

When I was working as a field auditor, I was fortunate enough to have trustworthy companions in many of my travels. They were my good friends. They watched my back when we went to remote and dangerous places. They cheered me up when I missed home. They walked the paths I walked. And they never turned their backs on me when I needed them.

But know that in the journey of life, you will meet many friendly faces who don’t really care about you. You will meet people who smile on you on the outside, but betray you deep within.

Test your friendships. When the going gets tough, it’s the toughest of friendships that will see you through. Know whom to trust. Know when to trust. Find trustworthy companions with whom you can entrust your very life!