The Altar of Cleansing

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Abram traveled through the land as far as the site 

of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. 

At that time the Canaanites were in the land.

The LORD appeared to Abram and said,

"To your offspring I will give this land."

So he built an altar there to the Lord,

who had appeared to him.

From there he went on toward the hills

east of Bethel and pitched his tent,

with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east.

There he built an altar to the LORD

and called on the name of the Lord.

- Genesis 12:6-8

Beautiful April bids us goodbye in just a few more hours! As  I write my end of month blog post, I am truly grateful for how Abba Father touched my heart this month in unexpected ways... new faith lessons that help me see where I am in my journey.

And I am joyful for the freedom and opportunity to share how the past four weeks have graced my life.

The wise Socrates knew what he was saying when he said, "The unexamined life is not worth living." 

This is a universal, eternal truth. Abba Father actually tells us the same.

One of my favorite Bible verses is Psalm 90:12, which says:

Teach us to number our days 

that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

A few other translations render this passage beautifully, such as:

Teach us to keep account of our days 

so we may develop inner wisdom.

(International Standard Version)

and

Teach us the number of our days 

that we may enter the heart of wisdom.

(Aramaic Bible in Plain English)

Keeping track of our spiritual lessons helps us discern the diverse patterns woven between the lines of our life story of which Abba Father is the author. The more we understand what His purposes are, the better we can cooperate with Him, instead of getting in the way of what He is doing.

Frederick Buechner writes:

"Maybe nothing is more important than that we keep track, you and I, of these stories of who we are and where we have come from and the people we have met along the way because it is precisely through these stories in all their particularity... that God makes Himself known to each of us most powerfully and personally. If this is true, it means to lose track of our stories is to be profoundly impoverished not only humanly but also spiritually."

He couldn't have said it better. I write my stories because in doing so I am enriched. There is always a connection between my external circumstances and the inner dimension of my life. There is always a junction where God's story and my own story meet!

While I was in Manila last month, the song Oceans was sung in church one Sunday. It was my first time to hear that song, and the lyrics really spoke to me. Somehow I sensed that it was a special message from Abba Father for my 61st year. (Listen to Oceans here.)

It was a call to launch out into the deeper waters... once again, the uncharted territories ahead of me.

That spiritual message for March about trusting the Father to re-seed my faith and expand my trust borders continued on even into the early weeks of April.


Showers of Blessing

The past days have been very hot and dry. To make matters worse, the city water supply has not been reaching our neighborhood; all we get is a trickle during the night. We have been grateful for our electric pump that supplies our household with well water, but we've been waiting for rain!

What a clear sign of favor when a refreshing downpour suddenly fell over our city at noon today, drenching the dry earth with much needed life-giving moisture, right on the last day of the month!

Thank You, Abba Father, for the prophetic message that the rains spoke to my heart today!

Passover

On April 14 we at the Negros Island House of Prayer celebrated Passover. This was a special event for us because this year's Passover "coincides" with the first blood moon of the lunar tetrad for 2014-2015. This is not mere coincidence. God has an important message He wants to convey, and we are paying attention. Right after the celebration we also had a solemn assembly during which we interceded for our nation the Philippines, and for Israel.

Butch and Mylene Yulo at the head table during the Passover Seder

Hebraic Roots

I now understand the importance of being connected to the Hebraic roots of my faith and developing a Hebrew mindset. Every single book of the Bible was written by Jews, therefore, the Bible in its original language is a result of Hebrew thinking. Scripture is therefore best understood when read with a Hebrew mindset.

A quote from Brian Knowles:

"The Bible, in its original languages, is, humanly speaking, a product of the Hebrew mind. The first and original manifestation of what we now call "The Church" was also an expression of the Hebrew mind. At some point in ecclesiastical history, someone snatched away the inceptive Hebraic blueprint by which Jesus’ movement was being constructed and replaced it with a non-Hebraic one. As a result, what has been built since is at best a caricature of what was intended. In many respects, it is downright contrary and antagonistic to the spirit of the original believing community.

"The Head of the Church, Jesus Christ, appears, in our time, to be returning his people to the original blueprint. The Hebrew Roots movement, led I believe by the Holy Spirit, is doing much to restore to the Body a sense of its first foundations." 

Celebrating the feasts of the Lord these past years is one way of  helping me connect to my Hebrew roots and gaining a deeper understanding of my Christian faith.

Family
Daughter Obedient One arrived on Holy Wednesday and stayed up to Resurrection Sunday. Family togetherness is one thing that means so much to me. Although Obedient and I see each other often as I visit her regularly in Manila, the last time we were all together as a family was a year ago when we celebrated my 60th birthday. We usually look forward to being together at Christmas, New Year, and Resurrection weekend. This Holy Week was therefore a very special time for all of us. Chosen One's mom, Madora, also arrived from Manila on Good Friday to spend the Resurrection weekend with us. What a special opportunity for us to renew family ties!

Resurrection Sunday lunch at Kaisei Japanese Resto

Dinner at Chicken House

Osbron Hall
One very special event that took place this month was the granting of a posthumous recognition award to our church's founding pastor, Gerald Osbron, and his wife, Barb. We fondly called them Jerry and Barb. Ernie and I went to the Baptist Conference Church one Sunday in June 1979, the very week we moved to Bacolod from Manila as a one year old married couple, and we never left. From a handful of about twenty members in 1979, our church steadily grew under this couple's faithful and loving shepherding. They retired in 1993, giving our church fifteen beautiful years of care and nurture. Twenty one years after they left us, our church has definitely grown, having given birth to many daughter churches all over this province and other islands.

Jerry and Barb were given the Arado Award, received by their eldest daughter Amy, together with her husband Dan, who flew all the way from Manila for this special night.

Arado is a local word for "plow" - it is a symbol of faithfulness and perseverance.

I am reminded of this verse that speaks of remaining loyal to the Master till the very end:

No one having put his hand to the plow and looking back 

is fit for the kingdom of God.

- Luke 9:62

That night was also special for us, especially those who received spiritual nurturing under Pastor Jerry and Barb. The new sanctuary which can seat over a thousand, was officially named "Osbron Hall" in their honor. The tiny seed that they planted 36 years ago has grown and matured to be a nurturing tree for many others as well.

Dan and Amy with Pastor Joe at our church driveway, right after their arrival from the airport.

Pastor Joe invites all the 18th Street church originals to go up the stage as Marilou Ascalon (Pastor Joe's wife) prepares to give Amy and Dan some tokens in honor of their parents.

Amy can't hold back the tears as she reads to us
a Scripture that very much applies to the work
that her parents began in Bacolod City

Pursuing Intimacy with God

Last week the Women of Purpose of our church listened to Marian Sycip teach on "Pursuing Intimacy with God," a lesson condensed from Edmund Chan's book Cultivating Your Inner Life. I love the opening words that Marian spoke, praying to give the teaching with a surrendered heart, "not with wisdom or eloquence, lest the Cross of Christ be emptied of its power" (1 Corinthians 1:17). What a privilege it was to listen to her humble words. It was like drinking from a well of life-giving water! 

Here are a few lines taken from the notes I took, golden nuggets of life to chew on in the days and weeks to come:

Intimacy with God is our one defining passion in life.

Prepare yourself to choose the deep things of God.

Passion is begun and sustained by God. A self-sustained passion is a short-lived gimmick.

Learn to read the Bible from a theocentric perspective, not an anthropocentric one. (A theocentric perspective looks at God as the center of the universe, while an anthropocentric viewpoint considers human beings as the most significant entity in the universe).

The Bible is all about the epic love relationship between us and God.

Intimacy with God is not just a key to blessing... it is the blessing! It is a relationship that anchors my life and blesses everything I touch.

True spirituality is first and foremost a restedness of soul that allows us entrance beyond the holy veil into the glorious presence of God.

Beyond the veil God quietly waits to meet us.

Abraham's Altar

In mid April I began meditating on the story of Abraham, which begins in Genesis 11:26. There is much to be said about this man, especially because the promise of a land and a people was originally given to him. But what spoke to my heart is his faith, considering that Abraham comes from Ur, a city in ancient Babylon known for its worship of the moon god Nannu.  It is very likely that Abraham was an idolater at the time God called him, a fact that makes his response of obedience noteworthy. 

The Bible notes that Abraham built an altar at significant points in his journey toward Canaan.

I've always paid special attention to Abraham's life. Known as the man with the tent and the altar, he never drove his stakes down too deep; he was always ready to move. And I love the fact that he built an altar whenever he reached a turning point in his faith journey.

I have often thought of an altar as a place of worship, but this month I came to realize that Abraham's altar was first and foremost a place of cleansing.

Surely before Abraham could worship God, his heart needed to be cleansed from the idol worship of his earlier years.

Cleansing provides the basis for worship. 

The reason for a daily altar is the urgent need for cleansing in the pilgrim life. (Ray Stedman)

My personal altar is located in my prayer room, as shown in the header picture of this blog. It faces east and is located right by the window. The gentle rays of the rising sun almost always shine on me as I sit there on most mornings. 

I've approached this altar often to worship my heavenly Father.

Yet on many mornings this month, I have come to my altar seeking not so much to worship as to ask God to cleanse my heart of clutter and distraction.

These past weeks I have been aware of the spirit of offense hiding in a little corner of my heart. One small offended thought gives birth to another... "A little leaven leavens the whole batch..." So, I've had to come often to my altar, asking Abba Father to renew my mind, and to cleanse it of unrighteous thoughts.

I do want that restedness of soul... a surrendered heart, spoken of by Marian... and gain entrance beyond the veil.

The Call to Separate

Further along in the story of Abraham's life, we read of his decision to separate from his nephew Lot. The herdsmen from the two camps had begun to dispute, leading to strife and enmity among them. The obvious next move was for Lot and Abraham to part ways.

In an act of magnanimity and grace, the elderly man gives his nephew first choice.

image source

We read in Genesis 13 that Lot chose the well watered plains of the Jordan. 

Some commentators accuse him of being greedy and selfish. However, after Lot departs, the LORD says to Abraham: 

"Lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east and west. All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever." - Genesis 13:14-15

Abraham gets the better deal after all.

It is easy to make choices based on what our earthbound physical senses tell us: Watch out for #1! The truth is that Someone is watching out for us, and He can be trusted to make the best choice for us.

This story has appeared in my devotional reading plans several times this month. I sense God calling me to a separation, and yes... I am paying close attention. While it is not clear as yet what I am to separate from, just like Abraham, I am ready to obey.


At the Oaks of Mamre
I have always wondered about this place called "the Oaks of Mamre" where Abraham eventually set up his tent. In Genesis 18, the beautiful account of Abraham's encounter with the living God starts on a normal hot day, and finds him sitting by the door of his tent. Nothing new was expected, but that is how God works in our lives, when we least expect him. Abraham is still waiting for the son of promise. After begetting a son with Sarah's maidservant he realizes that he can't take things into his own hands. Both he and his wife must be at the point of despair. And yet it is in that very place where God meets them.

"This time next year, I will certainly return to you, and Sarah your wife shall have a son." The Lord tells him.

It is said simply, matter-of-factly, straightforward, without fanfare. Believe it or not. Take it or leave it.

Abraham feels like laughing. And Sarah, listening behind the tent door, laughs within herself.



Commentators have said it is the laughter of unbelief.

Maybe that is only partly true. I believe deep inside Sarah, it is a laughter of hope. It sounded too good to be true. And yet... what if it was true?

Suddenly, in the midst of the years of waiting, with despair setting in, Abba Father graces their lives and says, The time has come for My promise to be fulfilled in your lives.

The Bible is careful to describe the way Sarah laughed. Not out loud... but within herself. 

But God does not let the moment pass. With authority He confronts any trace of doubt in Sarah and Abraham. Is anything too hard for the Lord?

"I believe, help me in my unbelief."

Right here under the oak trees of Mamre, heaven came down and brought hope to this couple. Doubt and despair gave way to joy.

This is probably the top highlight of my month... that God speaks gently to me through this story.

I am at that point in my life where I am asking God Abba Father, Is this all there is to my life? Or is there something more?

Five years ago when my husband went home to heaven, the direction of my life changed. And this year, my 61st year, I am again at an intersection, a crossroads.

Is anything too hard for the Lord? This time next year...

I kneel at my altar of cleansing. Asking Father God to remove seeds of doubt from my heart.

Make room for hope... and come away laughing with joy.

A fresh infusion of hope is a ray of light on my path as I travel on.

I receive heaven's promise that there is a time coming when I will see the fruit I have been waiting for.

So be it, Abba Father. So be it.


This has indeed been a month of encounter with life-giving refreshing water and golden nuggets of truth. I name this month "Altar of Cleansing."

As I come to God and submit to His cleansing power in my life, He speaks hope into my heart and fills it with gladness.

As I read His word "theocentrically," a big word to simply say "putting Him in the center" instead of me, my desires, my expectations... Abba Father comes and brings understanding... a refreshing perspective from which to view my present circumstances.


These passages from the Psalms speak powerfully to me as this month ends:

O Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup;
You maintain my lot.
The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Yes, I have a good inheritance.
- Psalm 16:5-6

When the Lord brought back the captivity of Zion
We were like those who dream.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
And our tongue with singing.
Then they said among the nations,
"The Lord has done great things for them."
The Lord has done great things for us,
And we are glad.

Bring back our captivity, O Lord
As the streams in the South.

Those who sow in tears
Shall reap in joy
He who continually goes forth weeping,
Bearing seed for sowing,
Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing,
Bringing his sheaves with him.
- Psalm 126

And this anointed song by Esther Mui, entitled Psalm 126, which fills my heart with so much hope, is my song for April (YouTube video embedded below).