Nieto Bible Page

  If there is one thing modern living teaches us, this is it: You can't live for yourself without self-destructing.  We need other people. We need to love others, we need to allow ourselves to be objects of others' love.  I know it sounds vulnerable. You're giving other people access to your life. But if you live for yourself, you will find soon enough that that is the shortest way to limit your growth and development. We are like rough stones whose rough edges are polished by our interactions with others.  When we believe in Jesus , we are placed in the Body of Christ to edify one another. We are not made a single new creation. We are part of a new creation made up of newly created individuals.  When we learn that there is more to life than what you want or need, when we learn to live for God and for others, blessings come. Sharing ourselves means investing in others' growth and there is satisfaction in having a role in the growth of others. We also show that...

  Who are you if you are stripped of all that you possessed or loved?  For Job , this is not hypothetical. It is his reality. One day, he is the richest and most respected man in the East, the next day he is stripped of properties, and children and soon enough even of health. I wish I can say with Job, "Naked I come, naked I will go. Praise be the name of the Lord." Given my fiery temperament, I will probably curse but in time, I hope I will surrender to His will.  I don't think I have reach the maturity of Job to be able to say all is well. I hope I can and I will when the time comes. One thing I know: for Job, Yahweh is the Centerpiece of his life. Even when he asked for an audience with the Lord, he did so knowing fully well that God is the center and circumference of our life. That makes what he undergoes a puzzle to his friends. Their only conclusion is he sinned, something God Himself deny.  What Job missed is understanding the behind the scenes. Readers knew ...

  Salvation is by grace through faith alone in Christ alone. And I thank God for that. If salvation comes by being good and perfect, I won't qualify.  This is a wonderful news. Yet some are not ready to accept it. They have been conditioned since birth to work, work and work for whatever they want or need. They see anything free with suspicion.  I cannot blame them. Humans are known for scamming people by offering something as free but which comes with strings attached.  Not so with God. Free is free. He did all the work. He paid all the bills. So He can offer it to anyone who believes for free.  So reject any teaching that tries to dilute the goodness of God by mixing grace with works. Whether by the works of the law, or man-made work requirements or faithfulness to the end kind of works, these works are incompatible with grace when it comes to eternal life. They may be helpful in living spiritually (the Law for Israel, daily works for believers today), but the...

  No matter how many problems come my way, I know for sure that I will emerge victorious. Not because I am a genius or powerful, but because my God is bigger... Yes, He is bigger than my mistakes, my past, my losses, my sins, my fears, or anything that people use to discredit me or to put me down. I don't have to be defined by my past. Sins are not my reality, instead my position in Christ is. My losses are temporary because God's best are yet to come.  My problems may be insurmountable from human perspective, and everything may ve hopeless but this is God's expertise. His grace and power are best seen when we are at the end of our ropes.  This requires a change in our thinking from human viewpoint thinking to divine viewpoint thinking. We need to study the Word of God to change our perspective and to act in light of it.  When we focus on our problems, God seems small. He's the last in our mind as we scramble to find human solutions. But if we focus on God, the probl...

  I will admit that some Christians are not appealing. Bawat pulgada ng kanilang buhay ay may utos. Nakakasakal kumilos dahil may isang daan lang na tama sa kanila sa kahit anong isyu.  Iisang uri ng damit, iisang uri ng Biblia , iisang uri ng kanta... ang anumang deviation is a sin.  Mas mukha pang korte kaysa simbahan ang ating mga simbahan.  Hindi nakapagtatakang ang ating mga young people ay nagmamadaling tumakas sa ating simbahan. Sa sandaling malayo dahil nagkolehiyo, hindi na sila umaapak sa simbahan.  Sakal na sakal sila sa tindi ng legalismo . Ang sanlibutan with its open arms ay mas appealing kaysa ating legalistic, graceless church.  It doesn't have to be this way. We should make our church grace-oriented . We should show unconditional love to everyone.  We drive people away when we are very exacting in our relationships.  We are saved by grace . We should live by grace .  Manatiling nakapokus sa biyaya . Huwag ninyong hayaang nak...

  I love gifts. Unfortunately kakaunti lang ang nagbibigay. At madalas sarili ko pang pera (binuking kita loving!). But seriously one of the best gifts you can give to me is to pray for me.  Nahaharap kami sa kaliwa't kanang hamon. May kolehiyo na kami and God willing this year, madadalawahan na. Nai-imagine ko na ang stress ng paghahanap ng pera.  Dagdag pa diyan ang problema sa trabaho, sa nanghihinang katawan nila Tatay at Nanay, at mga personal na problema. Nariyan din ang problema sa simbahan dahil ang paghahanda ng sermons ay hindi kasing simple ng pagkonsulta ng AI .  So we need your prayers. Please pray for us dahil nasa stage kami ng parenthood na magastos at nakakaalala. Nakakaalala rin ang malayo ang iyong anak. Kailangang matutong ipagkatiwala sa Diyos ang kanilang kabutihan.  If you pray for me and mine, I will consider it an act of love.  Manatiling nakapokus sa biyaya. Huwag ninyong hayaang nakawin ng mga huwad na guro ang inyong karapatang ...

  "God, give me grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, Courage to change the things which should be changed, and the Wisdom to distinguish the one from the other." We've all prayed the serenity prayer . I do. Many times. When I am faced with circumstances I cannot control and I entrust it to God.  It scares us to be in a circumstance we can't control. We wanted to be in a safe environment where we can flourish.  But life is not a game. It is a warfare and if you're not strategic and tactical in how you live, this life will swallow you whole.  As a believer in Christ, our enemies are the flesh, the world and the devil . And the devil and the flesh often cooperate with the world which will include people who don't always have our best interests in their hearts.  No matter how careful we try to live (not to mention if you're careless, you can exponentially multiply the dangers), we sometimes find ourselves under the machination of so...

  "The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win. Workingmen of all countries, unite!" This has been the rallying cry of the Marxists . And they never forget it while they spy our freedom and by subterfuge undermine our institutions.  The same rallying cry can be really useful for Christians , except we're not trying to win the world. Instead we're forsaking it as we put our sight on something better- a city not created by human hands .  Christians need to be united if we are to win the struggle against the world. The world will always try to pigeonhole us into accepting its ideas and systems. They will squeeze us to shape us but we should resist it. Together. With one another. With Christ .  Unfortunately, there is a lot of amicide inside the church where brothers are shooting each other. Instead of helping each other to make a stand, we're busy playing king of the mountain, building a house of card on other believers' happ...

  If you choose not to find life in the snow gou will have less joy in your life but still the same amount of snow.  That's profound if you ask me.  It is true. Many times what spells the difference between joy and despair is not the amount of snow (the problems we faced) but our attitude towards it.  Gaya ng sinabi ni Jesus, ang pag-aalala ay hindi makadagdag ng tangkad. Pero makataas ito ng blood pressure .  Most of the time, our fears are unfounded. Many times they reflect our lack of trust in God. Other times, we're simply tired and want to give up on everything. But if we have positive attitude towards the pedagogical purpose of suffering , we can choose to find joy in the midst of suffering. After all nakapila ka na nga ng dalawang oras, sisimangot ka pa ba? Just think on the good things that God gave you and I am sure you'll find more good things than bad things in your life.  I know it is not easy. Pain have a way of blinding us to the goodness of...

  Proverbs 1:10 [10]My son, if sinners entice you, Do not consent. 1 Corinthians 15:33 [33]Do not be deceived: " Bad company corrupts good morals ." We have to choose our circles. If we are not, we may inadvertently allow someone whose sole purpose in life is to sink your boat.  Contrary to the beliefs of some, sinners and bad company do not necessarily mean unbelievers. Sadly, maraming believers ang matatawag na sinners (they are not living saintly ) and bd company (they're carnal , worldly and legalistic ). Madaling ma-identify ang taong ang personal motto ay " paints the town red ." Hopefully if you have friends like these, you help them but do not let them influence and control your choices. Mas mahirap ma-identify ang mga bad company na may respectable sins. They look so holy on the outside but inside are dry bones. They are legalistic and judgmental. Some hold to wrong doctrine while being affable on the outside. Masaya silang kasama but just as poiso...

  I lift weights for hobby. I don't want to become big. I wanted to become strong. I wanted to become mobile.  Sometimes I don't feel like lifting. Especially when I am overwhelmed by work and by life. But I always tell myself, discipline beats motivation . I may not be motivated but if I keep discipline, I will lift.  Sometimes I questioned if it is worth it. We'll all die anyway. So why bother lifting?  Then I look around and see people who have chronic back, hip, knees and shoulder problems . People who are younger than me. Then I tell myself, it is worth suffering pain now so I will be pain-free when I am old.  Spiritually speaking we question why God lets bad things to happen to good people. Why us? Why now? Why?  But if we put things into perspective, maybe He is trying to improve our strength and our mobility. We have a warfare to engage in. We have a race to run. If we're not trained, we'll be casualties.  So when we are undergoing trials, q...

  We have heard the joyful sound- Jesus saves ! Jesus saves! Spread the tidings all around- Jesus saves! Jesus saves! It is one of my most favorite songs. After all sinong hindi gugustuhing awitin ang pagliligtas ni Jesus? Ngunit kung hindi tayo magiging maingat, maaaring isipin nating may isang uri lang ng pagliligtas sa Biblia . That is not true. The truth is kapag nabasa natin ang salitang kaligtasan (and related word), dapat nating tanungin ang ating mga sarili: niligtas mula saan?  Kahit ang cursory na pagbabasa ng Biblia ay magpapakitang hindi lahat ng kaligtasan ay espirituwal at eternal. Mas marami ang panawagan ng kaligtasan mula sa temporal na sakit, kaaway o panganib. All you need to do is read the Psalms.  Even in NT , may mga kaligtasang walang kinalaman sa pagtungo sa langit. 1 Tim 4 maaaring maligtas ng pastor ang kaniyang sarili at kaniyang tagapakinig kung manghahawak sila sa tamang doktrina. Maliligtas ang mga babae mula sa insignificance sa kanilang pa...

  What are the desires of your heart? I don’t know but God do. And according to the Bible, God will give it to those who are committed to Him. What it means is instead na ubusin ang oras sa paghabol sa mga bagay na ngayon ay nariyan pero bukas ay wala na, mas maiging ubusin natin ang oras sa paghanap sa kalooban ng Panginoon. Ang kalooban ng Panginoon ay madaling hanapin. In fact nasusulat na sa Biblia. Kailangan lamang basahin, unawain at isapamuhay. Maraming Cristianong mas mahaba ang oras na ginugugol sa paghahanap ng kasiyahan at kaginhawaan. Hinahabol ngunit sa sandaling hawakan ay nadiskubreng hangin lamang. Walang substance. Hindi nagtatagal. Ilan ba ang naghanap ng kayamanan na later on ay hindi maenjoy because it comes at the cost of health? Aanuhin mo ang milyon kung limitado lamang ang pwedeng kainin? O kaya naman ay kapalit ang pamilya. Madalas na sa trabaho o negosyo kaya lumaki ang mga anak na hindi kilala. Ngunit kung uunahin natin ang Diyos, if we commit our w...

  Saan mo nilalagay ang iyong confidence ? Karamihan ay nilalagay ito sa kanilang reputasyon . Kaya kapag may damaging information tungkol sa kanlla, they squash it. Sapagkat hindi nila kayang mabuhay na may kasiraan ang kanilang pangalan. Ang iba naman ay natatago sa kanilang gawa kaya kahit gabi o Linggo, wala silang tigil sa paggawa. Their whole sense of worth ay nakatali sa accomplishment. Kaya kapag nakagawa ng kapalpakan, kahit hindi sinasadya o hindi maiiwasan, ito ay bumabasag sa kanilang confidence. Ang iba ay nakatali sa kayamanan . Tiwala silang humarap kahit kanino dahil sa kanilang palagay, ang kahit sino ay may presyo. Sa sandaling umihip ang hangin na nagdadala ng economic problems , sila ay natotorete. Ang mga ito ay karaniwang source of confidence, and none of these will stick when the time comes. To use Biblical language , this is like putting your weight on a broken reed In the end, it will pierce your hands and make you bleed. Since ang source ng confi...

  Setting up boundaries does not mean you’re being snobbish. On the contrary, setting up boundaries clarify what are okay and not okay. This clarify what space you’re willing to share. This avoids and prevents abuse of privacy while legitimately enjoying each other’s company. May mga taong super invasive ng space. Nawawala ang privacy and respect. Pagpasok pa lang sa bahay, na-raid na nila ang bawat sulok ng bahay. Nagkwento ka lang ng isang bagay and iniisip nilang may karapatan silang kontrolin ang thought processes and decision making. By setting boundaries, you can communicate your values and beliefs that shouldn’t be thread on no matter what. For instance if they knew you’re Christian , I hope they won’t invite you to rob the town bank. I hope they knew not to invite you on a Sunday or that they won’t force you to eat pork stew. They know you won’t ever approve of abortion or prostitution. They pry on private matters, personal decisions and even dreams or plans for the f...

  We all like beautiful things but what we consider as beautiful may not be the same. Many people collect things, many collect money but I prefer to collect memories. No matter how many things we collect, these will soon gather dusts. They may work for awhile but they will be broken after several uses. They don’t last forever. I’d rather invest on something that lasts longer, if possible forever. Kaya sa aking mga blogs I emphasized sharing the Gospel to the family. If all the members of the family are believers in Christ, they’ll have eternal life and whatever relationship you have here, you can continue forever. So forgive me if I am not a fan of gathering things simply for the sake of gathering things. I’d rather keep pictures that I can visit when I am older. When my children have their own families and move away, I can always remember what happened through pictures and videos. I may lose memories but recorded events will always keep them fresh for me. Spending life with peo...