What comes to your mind when you hear the word "comfort/comfortable?"...

When you hear the word "comfort or comfortable" what comes into your mind?

Here's what Collins Gem English Dictionay says about the word "comfort/comfortable:"

Comfort is: (noun) physical ease or well-being; consolation; means of consolation; (verb) soothe, console.

Comfortable is: (adj.) giving comfort; free from pain; informal well-off financially.

During one of my reading times, I encountered this word and it made me think. I stopped and just thought this word for a while and meditate on it. Checked the dictionary what it says about comfort/comfortable.

Did some checking as well what the bible says about comfort/comfortable. And found that they varies with their meaning.

The world (means us, human beings) think what the dictionary says when we hear the word comfort/comfortable.

But the bible says that, comfort/comfortable is not about being well-off, free from pain, being physically fit, or being soothed or consoled.

Comfort is being at peace and content of who and where you are no matter what. Knowing your situation (good or bad) and having that inner peace, joy and contentment knowing that even if you can't do anything with your situation. there is someone that can and that is Christ.

Trusting and having faith in Christ gives us that inner peace and joy and make us content in our lives, even if things seems bleak or hopeless. It's like a steady flow of a river or a brook, even in the midst of strongest storms. Knowing that it all will come to pass.

I believe that having that kind of assurance is the one that gives us comfort and makes us comfortable to face and deal with any storms (problems) that comes into our lives.

Love...the greatest of ALL....

This morning when I was doing my morning readings part of chapter that I was reading just reminded me once again what Love is:

1 Corinthians 13:1-13

It speaks about what Love is and what it is not. I just want to share the verses that spoke into my heart while I was reading this chapter in 1 Corinthians 13.

"Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. Love does not demand its own way. Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged. It is never glad about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstances."

"There are three things that will endure - faith, hope and love - and the greatest of these is love."

In chapter 12 Paul gave evidence of the Corinthians' lack of love in the utilization of spiritual gifts, chapter 13 defines real love, and chapter 14 shows how love works. Love is more important than all the spiritual gifts exercised in the church body. Great faith, acts of dedication or sacrifice, and miracle-working power have little effect without love. Love makes our actions and gifts useful. Although people have different gifts, love is available to everyone.

Our society confuses love and lust. Unlike lust, God's kind of love is directed outward toward others, not inward toward ourselves. It is utterly unselfish. This kind of love goes against our natural inclinations. It is impossible to have this love unless God helps us set aside our own natural desires so that we can love and not expect anything in return. Thus, the more we become like Christ, the more love we will show to others.

In morally corrupt Corinth, love had become a mixed-up term with little meaning. Today people are still confused about love. Love is the greatest of all human qualities, and it is an attribute of God himself. Love involves unselfish service to others, to show it gives evidence that you care.

Faith is the foundation and content of God's message; love is the action. When faith and hope are in line, you are free to love completely because you understand how God loves.

When the Going Gets Tough...

Have anyone of you watched the soccer game last weekend? It was the 2008 European Championship, Spain and Germany was the top and tough teams that played against each other.

I watched the game (that's right, I did watch soccer game!) and as I was watching my two favorite teams, as much as I want both of them to win - there's only one team that can bring the trophy and the title back to their country!

I was watching the game and the going gets tough - both teams are trying to make the ball into the goal, but each team didn't make it easy to do so. Each team tried their best to defend their goal, protecting the goal from their opponents from scoring by getting the ball into the goal.

Both team tried their best to score and tried their best to keep the ball out of the goal. Some of the players tumbled down, rolled over, got hit by each other or by the ball, bruised, got kicked, beaten down (accidentally), bleed (have you seen Germany's team captain and midfielder Michael Ballack bleed from the head collision with the Spanish midfielder Marcos Senna?! bleeding and all, still he got up and got back in the game!) other players got broken bones and pulled muscles from their efforts!

Bleeding, beaten, bruised as the game gets tough, still the players gets going! The players showed perseverance, determination, passion, and focused on their goal - to win the game! And in the end one of the team won and reached their goal in winning the game, by keep on going even when the going gets tough, they didn't quit, instead they persevere to the end.

As I was watching the game in action, my mind went on thinking and comparing the whole thing to our lives. There are times in our lives that we will experience being beaten, bruised, tumbled down, got hit, got kicked, rolled down, bleed, broken and get tired.

But just like the Germany & Spanish soccer players, we have to get up, press on and focus towards our goal in life - to win the battle from daily problems that comes into our lives. That, even if we got beaten, broken, bled, rolled down and tired - we have to keep on getting up, press on and get focus towards our goal, which is to overcome every problems that comes into our lives. To come out victorious from the battle inspite of beating, rolling, kicking and bleeding from it.

I read somewhere that says; winners don't quit and quitters don't win. It's up to us if we want to be winners or quitters, the choice is there - i do hope that we all choose to be winners and not quitters!