My New Year Song

I just just love Today is the Day by Lincoln Brewster. It's full of faith, encouragement, hope, assurance in all that is good in my awesome God, it makes me want to shout and praise and worship....it's definitely my 2012!  Sing it OUT LOUD with all the oh oh oh oh's! c'mon!

video from integritymusic@Youtube

Today is the Day - Lincoln Brewster
buy the song/iWorship album

Here we go!
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
I'm casting my cares aside
I'm leaving my past behind
I'm setting my heart and mind on You 
Jesus

I'm reaching my hand to Yours
Believing theres so much more 
Knowing that all You have in store for me is good
Is good 

Chorus:
Today is the day You have made
I will rejoice and be glad in it
Today is the day You have made
I will rejoice and be glad in it
And I won't worry about tomorrow
I'm trusting in what You say
Today is the day

Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Today is the day
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
I putting my fears aside
I'm leaving my doubts behind
I'm giving my hopes and dreams to You
Jesus

I'm reaching my hand to Yours
Believing there's so much more 
Knowing that all You have in store for me is good
Is good 

Chorus

I will stand upon Your truth.
(I will stand upon Your truth)
And all my days I'll live for You
(And all my days I'll live for You)

Saved Festival 2011 Manila Concert Report

SAVED FESTIVAL 2011, Manila - Six hours of worship with eight amazing Christian bands and performers and one inspiring pastor.  Was the 1k ticket worth it? Are you kidding me?! There's no price tag for uninhibited, passionate, and sincere worship for God!

A concert for worship

Gary V's fire-filled performances left us wanting for more of God

The difference between this Christian concert with other concerts I had attended in the past was that all the shouting, clapping and frenzied joy were not for idols we were watching, but for the one true God who alone is worthy of our praise.  Every performer exhibited this attitude for God when they went onstage.  

Gary V. is one of the, if not the, most well-known and vocal Christian performers in the Philippines today.  To put his popular songs like "Take me Out of the Dark" and "Natutulog ba ang Diyos" in context, he interspersed his singing and dancing with readings from bible verses and some personal reflections. He told us that sometimes when he performed and said stuff like "praise Jesus", people would usually look at him oddly. He said that it felt great to be in the presence of people who would actually understand what he meant when he said things like those.  I feel you Gary V!  In a concert such as this, you really wouldn't be able to help praising and thanking God.

Lyrics were projected for free worship. These are lines from one of my many favorite Gary V. songs 

Mr. Pure Energy

Gary V. is also known as Mr. Pure Energy, and people just naturally assume that it's because of his awesome dance moves.  To quote roughly:  "I'm called Mr. Pure Energy, not because of this (dances a bit for the audience); all the energy comes from God"

Mr. Pure Energy himself

Everyone who follows the Filipino pop scene must know that Gary has been battling Type 1 Juvenile diabetes, a sickness he has lived with since he was 14 years old. He emphasized that it was amazing that he was even performing for us at that moment. Isn't God amazing?

More Pinoy worship leaders

 After many songs from Gary V (which I believe was already worth more than 1k!), Quest motivated us to let go and enjoy the party. He got everyone up on their feet to dance.

I also loved his smooth and inspiring RnB/rap grooves that were just so good for the spirit. Those who like Pinoy Christian worship might recognize Quest as Jose Villanueva III, the one who composed the touching "Lord of All".

Sideshow followed Quest's upbeat performance with some Pinoy Christian rock. There should be more powerful voices and bands like Sideshow! Kamown Pinoy Christian musicians! Rock for God!

Photo from Sideshow's Facebook page

It was the first time I heard Jodi King. She sang Breathing in/Breathing Out plus some other songs with her husband on the guitar (awww so sweet).

Beautiful woman of God

 One of the best things about the concert was hearing life testimonies of the grace of God. Pastor Steve Ruetschle of the Union Church of Manila talked about his personal experience with brokenness and the power of prayer.  He was in a motorcycle accident that made him a quadriplegic, and doctors told him that he would never walk again.  It was the faith and prayers of his friends and wife that pushed him through this difficult phase.  He likens his story to the story of the paralytic whose friends wanted to bring their paralytic friend to Jesus to be healed. However, the house where Jesus was staying was already filled with people when they got there, so the friends decided to course the paralytic through the roof. This way, Jesus was able to heal the man.  Pastor Steve reminds us that everyone suffers from brokenness in one form or the other.  During our times of brokenness, we should never underestimate the power of praying for each other.  

In a benefit concert for Pastor Steve, Gary V told the audience that he had a vision of the then-paralyzed Pastor running. Seeing Gary V onstage, dancing and singing, and comparing himself seated on a wheelchair, Pastor Steve found this unbelievable. His friends did not lose faith though and continued to pray for him. Today, the pastor praises God for His faithfulness.

He's not just walking...preach it, Pastor Steve!

Pastor Steve: Walking, but not running...."yet"

 Two in One

Other amazing testimonies were those of the Parachute Band and Martin Smith of Delirious?

Parachute Band Frontman Omega Levine talked about being bullied growing up because of a physical deformity.  He became bitter and angry despite being raised in a Christian family with a pastor for a father.  It was the love of God that brought about the positive transformation in his life.  The band led all of us to an amazing worship and sang their new song, "Keep the Fire Burning". 

Martin Smith's testimony really inspired me.  Martin is the composer of "I Could Sing of Your Love Forever" and most people know him as the lead singer of Delirious?, a popular Christian band. Martin said that the band's schedule could get really busy, and they had to rush and fly around the world to go to gigs. It got to a point that his intimacy with Jesus became compromised.  It was because of this that Delirious? decided to disband.  Martin said that sometimes, you just had to do things like "leave the band" because you have to set your sights on a bigger prize -- Jesus Christ.

It was great seeing Martin Smith and the Parachute Band together, singing.  Despite their relatively popular status, they shifted our eyes from being starstruck and led us to praise God.

Photo from Facebook wallpage of Parachute Band

Dancing and Singing with Starfield

Martin Smith and Parachute Band were followed by Starfield. The band stimulated us yet again with a string of Christian rock tunes. Lead singer Tim Neufeld also lent some humor to the concert and led the crowd to groove to some, as he says it, "ridiculous" dance moves.

Hosanna in the Highest

Beautiful man of God

Saved...the ending and the beginning.

Need I say that Citipointe rocked Araneta?

Six hours of praise and worship wasn't tiring.  It was refreshing. I left that concert knowing that something in me had changed and that the best things had been revived. Praise God for beautiful endings and even more beautiful beginnings.

Photo shared by Amalia dela Cruz on Facebook

For it is written, "AS I LIVE, SAYS THE LORD, EVERY KNEE SHALL BOW TO ME, AND EVERY TONGUE SHALL GIVE PRAISE TO GOD." - Romans 14:11, NASV

Beautiful people I was with

Ria, Mabs, April

VGmates from Ortigas and Los Banos

Beautiful Church that led me here

The shirt is my Saved Festival souvenir

Beautiful God

Saved Festival 2011 was held at the Araneta Coliseum, Manila last Nov. 26, 2011. 
More (and better) pictures here

Saved is an annual God-centered festival where people from all over the world will travel far and wide to witness the great gathering of united Filipino believers in Jesus Christ!

From the Saved 2011 Facebook page:

The SAVED FESTIVAL 2011 is for the benefit of:

WORSHIP PROJECT (2011)

THE WORSHIP PROJECT recognizes the need to enable committed and qualified individuals to lead the local churches in their spiritual worship, equipped with Bible-based discipleship and high-quality instruments. THE WORSHIP PROJECT will target select churches in Metro Manila in need of better instruments in order to further encourage and reinforce that our worship to the Almighty Father should be nothing short of excellent. The following program provides discipleship and interactive training sessions to further advance each team member’s growth in their skills, God-given talents, and spiritual life.

At the end of the program, the participating churches will be rewarded and equipped with instruments of upgraded/enhanced quality as available. 

Birthday treats

I turned 30 something yesterday!  I say that with all the surprise of a girl who thinks she's still in her early 20s. Here's a glimpse of my special day <3

Facebook greetings from acquaintances, best friends, family, former students, former teachers, and celebrity contacts. hehe. thanks everyone!

Gifts from family, friends and from myself *huge grin*

Aside from charcoal-cooked sinukmani from my supervisor and Starbucks chocolate cake from my sister (sorry, gobbled them all before picture-taking); I also got inspiring Papemelroti words from officemate Tala, a new dress from myself haha, slobbery kisses from Shobe and Chichi, and these other yummy and crazy and beautiful things!

crazy photoshop thingy from our SEO specialist. 

Lindt Dark Chocolate from Chris and Olive. My fave brand and choco.

A new hardbound book of poems.
I don't like the title, but this is one of the best collections of poetry ever!
Louis Gluck, Margaret Atwood, William Carlos Williams, Gwendolyn Brooks, Pablo Neruda...and more!

New jeans (now in the laundry)  and shoes from my Mom.

Alice in Wonderland necklace from Ching. LOVE!

I absolutely love this!  The pages are smooth and nice to write on.
An eco-friendly journal for my quiet time with God :) 

Best parts of my day were my feel-as-fat-as-you-want KFC lunch with family and special moments like these...

My bestfriend's baby's 1st birthday.  Also Tanya's and her brothers' baby dedication.  

This darling cute boy over here is my inaanak, and his super mom is one of my bestfriends.

Juju singing  "I Will Rise" by Chris Tomlin. Love this song.
I will rise on eagle's wings/before my God/fall on my knees...

Look at all the preps she did and tell me she doesn't deserve to be awarded Birthday Mom of the Year! (thanks to Tita Beth for these pictures)

hard-at-work mommy

Finished products

Flower Power pompoms...from the love of a mom.

 Enjoyed a cool day with my high school friends at the La Mesa Dam guest house.  'twas also the first time I met Bitoy's fiancee Jackie. Welcome to the barkada girl-in-yellow Jackie! I could tell she fits right in with all our craziness.

Jackie, Bitoy, Ella and baby Gaby, Ting and Tanya, Chris, Me, Dek

Bea was in Baguio and Olive was at home studying. And Ven...she had just given birth the day before! So many nice things happening on my birthday!

Welcome to the world baby Claire! pic by Abby Venida

I spent part of the night playing with baby Gaby in the car and ended the whole day the best way possible...




WORSHIP.  
 Listen to this podcast 'Faith" by Pastor Noel Landicho.VCF Ortigas.
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty. Who Was and Is and Is to come.
With all creation I sing, Praise to the King of Kings! You are my everything. And I will adore You. ~Revelation Song


Thank you God, for a great birthday.


And to you who's reading this, I leave you with this poem by a favorite poet from my new poetry book.

i thank You God for most this amazing
e.e. cummings

i thank you God for most this amazing
day: for the leaping greenly sprites of trees
and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything
which is natural which is infinite which is yes

(i who have died am alive again today,
and this is the sun's birthday; this is the birth
day of life and of love and wings: and of the gay
great happening illimitably earth.)

how should tasting touching hearing seeing
breathing any -- lifted from the no
of all nothing -- human merely being
doubt unimaginable You?

(now the ears of my ears awake and
now the eyes of my eyes are opened)

Be free! Healing Begins by Tenth Avenue North

Do you feel like a failure? Do you feel that you should "pay" your way into heaven?  The good news is that Jesus has already freed us! This does not mean that we are going to sit by the sidelines and wait for the blessings to come. On the contrary, the love of God will overcome you so much, that you wouldn't be able to help yourself...you just HAVE to share it to the poor, to those who are crying out for justice, to those who need comfort, to those who are successful but who haven't heard about God.

I love this song by Tenth Avenue North from The Light Meets the Dark album. Our healing from all this world's brokenness and our own limited views begins when we accept the freedom Jesus brings.

Healing Begins lyrics 

So you thought you had to keep this up
All the work that you do
So we think that you're good
And you can't believe it's not enough
All the walls you built up
Are just glass on the outside

So let 'em fall down
There's freedom waiting in the sound
When you let your walls fall to the ground
We're here now

This is where the healing begins, oh
This is where the healing starts
When you come to where you're broken within
The light meets the dark
The light meets the dark





Afraid to let your secrets out
Everything that you hide
Can come crashing through the door now
But too scared to face all your fear
So you hide but you find
That the shame won't disappear

So let it fall down
There's freedom waiting in the sound
When you let your walls fall to the ground
We're here now
We're here now, oh

This is where the healing begins, oh
This is where the healing starts
When you come to where you're broken within
The light meets the dark
The light meets the dark

Sparks will fly as grace collides
With the dark inside of us
So please don't fight
This coming light
Let this blood come cover us
His blood can cover us

This is where the healing begins, oh
This is where the healing starts
When you come to where you're broken within
The light meets the dark
The light meets the dark

A song that comforts me: I Am by Mark Schultz

I received some distressing news this morning, something that I can't publicly talk about.  The situation put me in an awkward situation, and I just didn't know what to do.  In times like this, music becomes my solace. I tried listening to some of the songs I posted on this blog and some other songs on my Media Player playlist.  Despite their positive messages and affirmations of how strong or how beautiful I am made by God, I wasn't quite comforted.  I was nearing the end of my playlist when this song came on.  It helped revived my spirit. It helped me realize that I am not strong, but God is at my side. I can trust and be secure in Him.

God is  "I AM," not "I WAS," or I WILL BE," But He is "I AM," forever and unchangingly.  The Great "I AM," the same yesterday, today and forever.

I Am - Mark Schultz 

I am the maker of the Heavens
I am the bright and morning star
I am the breath of all Creation
Who always was
And is to come

I am the One who walked on water
I am the One who calmed the seas
I am the miracles and wonders
So come and see
And follow me
You will know





I am the fount of living water
The risen Son of man
The healer of the broken
And when you cry
I am your savior and redeemer
Who bore the sins of man
The author and perfecter
Beginning and the end
I am

I am the spirit deep inside you
I am the word upon your heart
I am the One who even knew you

Before your birth
Before you were


Before the Earth (I am)
The universe (I am)
In every heart (I am)
Oh, where you are (I am)
The Lord of lords (I am)
The King of Kings (I am)
The Holy lamb (I am)
Above all things


Yes, I am almighty God your father
The risen son of man
The healer of the broken
And when you cry
I am your savior and redeemer
Who bore the sins of man
The author and perfecter
Beginning and the end
I am

Loving the unlovable + The Light in Me by Brandon Heath

One my constant struggles is loving unlovable people.  Not that I'm a loveable person. I guess all of us meet that person that just rubs us in a wrong way. The past days, I was tested on this.  I just felt an overwhelming anger and irritation for two people.

 At last night's worship service, I was reminded about how much God loves me, despite my being unlovable.  What credit is it to me if I love those who are easy to love?  Loving others is not something that I should wait to do until God gives me great faith...it is actually one of the greatest commands that I should follow instantly, like forgiving others.  But it's so hard to do right?

This song by Brandon Heath reminded me where I can get the strength to love those who are hard to love.  I also like the upbeat melody. Really nice to listen to when you need a pick-me-up.

 The Light in Me

My life before You
I was a flame burning down
I was burning out

But You knew me better
For You there was never a doubt
God, since You gave me life
Something was different, I knew it the instant
You put the light in me

The spark, the shot to the heart,
You are the hope that leads me out of the dark
You let Your love shine down
So that the world could see
You put the light in me

The light, You put the light in me
The light, You put the light in me
The light, You put the light in me
The light, You put the light in me

You are the Maker, you tell the sun when to rise
I'm just a house on a hill
But You make me brighter than all the stars in the sky
Keep me from growing dim

'Cause in Your perfection, I'm just a reflection
So pull me closer to You
I catch like a fire and I'll hold You higher
'Cause You put the light in me

The spark, the shot to the heart,
You are the hope that leads me out of the dark
You let Your love shine down
So that the world could see
You put the light in me

The light, You put the light in me
The light, You put the light in me
The light, You put the light in me
The light, You put the light in me

I'll raise it high, I'll let it show
From the rooftops down to the streets below
In day and night, You will be known
And all will see
You put the light in me
'Cause You put the light in me

The spark, the shot to the heart,
You are the hope that leads me out of the dark
You let Your love shine down
So that the world could see
You put the light in me

The light, You put the light in me
The light, You put the light in me
The light, You put the light in me
The light, You put the light in me

music monday on a thursday: Beautiful Things by Gungor

“If leading worship is just about bringing a group of people into a room so we can get goosebumps and sing songs together, there’s not much value in that. But if leading worship is a means to an end, that we leave this place as a different kind of people, as part of a new humanity that God wants to create – the people that are caring for the widows and orphans, that aren’t bound by the systems of this world but becoming free, becoming fully engaged in our world – then that matters.” ~ Gungor



My new favorite song.  Let the lyrics speak for itself.

Beautiful Things

All this pain

i wonder if i’ll ever find my way

i’ll wonder if my life could really change at all

all this earth

could all that  is lost ever be found

could a garden come up from this ground at all

you make beautiful things

you make beautiful things

out of the dust

you make beautiful things

you make beautiful things

out of us

all around

hope is springing up from this old ground

out of chaos life is being found in you

you make beautiful things

you make beautiful things

out of the dust

you make beautiful things

you make beautiful things

out of us

While searching for the lyrics, I stumbled upon this Wordpress blog: Visual Devotions. The artist creates web art inspired by song lyrics. Check this out; I love it.

  

Music Monday: Jars of Clay

For Music Monday, I bring you unplugged versions of two of my favorite Jars of Clay songs --  Love Song for a Savior and Worlds Apart.
If the flash player below doesn't work, click on the following Youtube links
Love Song for a Savior (with lyrics) Youtube
Worlds Apart Youtube

Music Playlist at MixPod.com

I got introduced to Jars of Clay, a Christian rock band, way back in high school.  I wasn't a Christian then, and many of my friends weren't, but their song Flood just flooded the airwaves and got our attention.  In college, I heard another Jars of Clay song Hymn being played by our organization's guitarist.  I had that song in my head for weeks, and it's still one of my favorite songs until now.

credit: breathecast.christianpost.com

The band's name was based on the New International Version's translation of 2 Corinthians 4:7:
"But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us."
Their music is inspiring and uplifting without being cheesy or "religious".  I like Jars of Clay because of their contemporary rock rifts and poetic lyrics all written to glorify God.  If you like alternative rock and beautiful lyrics that would quiet your heart, listen to Jars of Clay.