I didn’t really get a decent sleep the other night, and it was even worse last night since I got to hit the sack around 4-ish AM already (dunno what I was doing... x__x). But even though I only had around three hours of sleep, somehow I felt rested. And I praise God for that. Because it meant that I was able to wake up early (and not groggy), and had the opportunity to attend the first church service. I was scheduled for 24H duty today and time-in is 8AM, but I asked permission to be late so that I can go to church. I felt really blessed and thankful because Mam Cha and Doc Geng told me it was OK to be late. So lugging behind my two huge bags, I set off to go to church before leaving town for work.
I haven’t been to church for quite a while already because of work. I know that’s really a poor and sorry excuse and I actually don’t like using that reason but that’s really the truth. I also don’t have a small group, and also don’t get to attend bible studies or prayer meetings or any gatherings for that matter. Sometimes I also don’t follow my quiet time diligently. In short, I feel that I am spiritually starved. But praise God because in Him there’s HOPE, and that was exactly the message this morning.
Pastor Chris opened the message with a witty anecdote about his sliding experience in Splash Island several years ago. And he summed up his experience by saying that
1. Life is a ride that we should enjoy, and
2. When you hit rock bottom, don’t panic. There is a lifeguard.
And then he proceeded to discuss about DEAD ENDS and HOPE, using the Israelites’ exodus out of Egypt and through the Red Sea as an example. I thought it was a very exciting message, direct to the point, with very effective powerpoint slides. He even pointed out a contrast between the Worldly responses in facing dead ends (We fear. We cry. We panic. We blame.) and the Christian way of dealing with such (We fear not. We stand firm. We stay still. We let God fight for us.), appropriately backed up with the Holy Scriptures of course. And while listening to our Pastor teach us and guide us concerning these truths, I couldn’t help but shed a few tears (which I promptly wiped away with the back of my hand). I always tend to cry during church service (to my utter embarrassment XD). Somehow I just can’t control the tears whenever I am reminded of God’s goodness, mercy and love for us, and especially for me. I am so unworthy, and yet I know He cares for me deeply. What a truly awesome God He is! ^____^
After the service, I dragged my two heavy bags along and went for a quick stop at McDonalds to use their restroom and buy some food. I felt a bit embarrassed cos the whole place was packed, and I somehow looked like a runaway. Nevertheless, feeding myself is a much higher priority than keeping face, and so I just had to endure the curious looks of some onlookers. I then left the place, took a taxi to the terminal, and rode the bus to Malaybalay. I arrived around 1230PM. Good thing it didn’t seem like a busy day for Doc Geng.
So now I’m on 24H duty but I am just so tired. I’m not really sleepy, although I have been yawning countless times since I came here. I just feel really tired. I hope there won’t be a lot of patients tonight, so that my physical body can at least recover a bit. But nevertheless I’m really happy, because I got to go to church. And that really made my day.
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