Daily Manna from Heaven

by James Parmis

It’s been 4 years now since my dad was missing last 27th of September 2005. Until now, my family still do not know whether he’s dead or alive. My last conversation with my dad over the phone happened last 4 years ago. He just disappeared without any traced at all.

Today, 27th of September 2009 is the fourth year anniversary of my missing dad. I am hoping that my family will be able to know whether he’s still alive or dead already.

I can still recall the happiest moment together with my dad. When I was a kid around 3 to 6 years old, my dad would always brought me to any place where he conducted his business all over the Philippines. My mom called me, “Dad’s Pet.”

My dad was a businessman. He was trained to do business with a generous filipino-chinese family in Cebu during his teenage years. He only finished grade three. He didn’t even finished his elementary school days. But I am very proud of him because he was able to send me and my siblings to a very prestigious school in St. Peter’s College of Ormoc City, Leyte, Philippines.

My dad was a generous giver. He helped a lot of people in my hometown. He was a good provider to his children and a loving husband to my mom. Oh by the way, my dad’s name is JAIME RICARTE PARMIS. His friends called him Jimmy, Jim or Jaime.

Dad, I want you to know, that we love you. We missed you so much. We will always remember you. Someday, we will see each other again in heaven. May God bless us always.

P.S. - If any of you happen to know the whereabouts of my dad, please email me at jamesparmis [at] yahoo [dot] com

P.S. - I want you to love your loved ones while they are still alive. Tell them, “I love you” always! Life is short.

Article Originally Published At Source

by Dr. Harold Sala

“They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground. These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.” -Hebrews 11:38-40

Webster defines the word anomaly as “a deviating from a general rule, method, or analogy; abnormal.” Yet I can’t think of a better word to describe why God chose to use some individuals who have neither education, good family connections, nor are particularly intelligent; while the gifted, educated individuals with good background and connections get set aside in the economy of God.

There are reasons, and I see them coming together in the life of a man well loved by Jews, Christians, and Moslems Abraham. Why did God use this man when surely others better qualified didn’t get the job? Three remarkable qualities or traits seem to come together in this man as they do in the lives of people, no matter where they are, past, present, or future, if God is to use them.

Quality #1: Unswerving obedience to the call of God.

When God spoke to Abraham and asked him to follow Him, he packed up and said, “Let’s go!” When God said, “Abraham, I want you to give me your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love,” Abraham didn’t respond, “Hey, God, let’s make a deal. I’ve got quite a lot of money and servants, how about my giving you ten of my best?” He responded in complete confidence that God is a good God, and that He asks no less than He, Himself, is willing to give in return.

It’s right here that a lot of well qualified individuals lose out with God. They want to make a deal with God, saying, “I’ll go so far but no farther.” They are more interested in serving God in an advisory capacity, rather than grass-roots involvement. That kind of attitude not only would leave them out of corporate headquarters in the world of industry but doesn’t give God much to work with when it comes to His kingdom, either.

Quality #2: Another reason why God uses individuals of simple background is that their commitment is undivided.

That was true of Abraham as it was true of Dwight L. Moody, a shoe salesman turned evangelist. Moody said, “The world has yet to see what God can do with a man who is totally dedicated to the cause of Christ. I will strive to be that man!” Moody realized that he lacked much, subsequently Moody gave himself completely and without reservation to God, and it is amazing what God can do with somebody who realizes that he is nobody.

Moses also painfully learned the same lesson. For forty years Moses thought he was somebody. After all, he was the adopted son of Pharaoh’s daughter, and then after failure struck, he spent forty years learning he was nobody; and then for forty years he discovered what God can do with somebody who is a nobody.

Quality #3: God uses unlikely candidates for success because they have simple faith that God will honor the promises of His Word.

For years Abraham patiently awaited the promised son, yet he was confident that God would somehow meet him. Eventually, God did, and when that happened, God set aside the natural laws which had caused them to be childless. God made a promise, and Abraham believed that promise. In His time God performed exactly what He had promised.

The words of 2 Chronicles 16:9 are still true: “For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.” God hasn’t changed, and you can be the person used by Him in your office, your home, or your school. Trust Him and let Him work His will in your life.

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by Dr. Harold Sala

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” -Hebrews 11:6

Why God chooses to use some individuals who have few natural qualifications and talents, but seems to bypass others whose training, education and natural aptitudes seemingly better equip them for accomplishment is something which has never ceased to amaze me.

The fact is that some of the most successful leaders in the Christian world have had little real promise of success. God uses some unlikely individuals such as John Bunyan, who earned his living as a tinker, something like a welder today. Then there was Dwight L. Moody, the shoe salesman turned evangelist, and the attorney, C. I. Scofield, who wrote the notes which have helped several generations of Christians better understand their Bibles.

The story of world missions is no different. Consider the impact of a Scottish lass by the name of Mary Slessor on Africa, or Hudson Taylor on China, or the strong willed C. T. Studd on his generation, or the coal miner, Evan Roberts, whose prayers sparked the Welch Revival. Today is no different.

Consider Dave Wilkerson and Teen Challenge, or Cam Townsend who founded Wycliffe Bible Translators, or Corrie ten Boom, an old maid watchmaker sent to prison in World War 2. Scores of well educated, talented individuals never made so great a mark on their generation. Why?

Is it possible that human strength becomes weakness, and God then uses the less qualified individuals to do His greatest works because when individuals lack much, they also trust much? And individuals who are gifted, and educated, having personal resources, trust their own abilities rather than Him who called them?

Long ago Paul wrote to a group of people whose culture boasted in their wisdom and education. To the Corinthians he wrote, “But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty…” (I Corinthians 1:27:8, KJV).

If I wanted to be a great heart surgeon, I should like to have studied under someone like Michael Debakey, one of the pioneers in heart transplant, who died at the age of 99. If I wanted to be a great artist, I would study the techniques of Michelangelo and the great masters, and if I felt lacking in personal qualification, then I would want to study the lives of these lesser individuals who seemingly accomplished much for God.

Why did they succeed? What was it about their lives which allowed God to do something very great and powerful through them?

Over the years I’ve been intrigued with the biographies of individuals who have been used by God, because I, too, want to be used by Him; and frankly, I’ve learned much from both the mistakes and failures of other people. As the cliché goes, “You can go to school on the failures of other people!”

Are there some qualities which go beyond the veneer of education, and culture, and good family backgrounds, which are repeated in the lives of these lesser qualified individuals who are used of God? I believe there are, and I see them not only in the lives of people today, but I see the same ones in the individuals whose stories are told in the pages of the Old Testament. Not to leave you in suspense, I’ll give them to you and develop them on the commentary which follows this.

Quality #1: Unswerving obedience to the call of God.

Quality #2: Undivided commitment, giving God all that they have and allowing Him to use them in the lowly task.

Quality #3: Simple faith that God will honor the promises of His Word.

And in crossing these mountains of commitment they separated themselves from the multitudes who were willing to go so far and no farther, and there they found the power of God to do mighty exploits for Him.

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by Dr. Harold Sala

“But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all sons of the light and sons of the day.” -1 Thessalonians 5:4,5

A lot of intelligent, well meaning folks have been asking themselves just what part God plays in the affairs of life today. When they pick up a newspaper and read of what is happening in the Middle East, Moscow, Beijing or Washington, they wonder who is really running the world. At first glance, they are prone to think that God may have created the world and then left it to mortals to run.

George Bernard Shaw had something like that in mind when he said that he wasn’t sure whether or not there is life on other planets, but if there is, they must be using earth as their insane asylum. Yet, if you will take time to investigate the situation more carefully, comparing the historical record with the prophetic statements of Scripture, I think you will come to the conclusion that behind the affairs of earth is the divine power that guides the destinies of nations and the events of nature as well.

The Old Testament, particularly, shows the direct intervention of God in the affairs of the nations, which helps us to accept the fact that God hasn’t abdicated his responsibility today. Ancient history confirms the prophecies of old, such as the rise of Alexander and the subsequent division of his empire, the defeat of Babylon by the Medes and Persians, the rise of the Roman Empire, the eventual coming of Jesus Christ, and accurate details of His life, death and resurrection.

If you are one of those who just can’t see where God fits into the picture today, it may well be because you have missed several tell tale signs:

(1) You have missed the fact that God chooses to work through human beings to do His will.

The story of God’s dealing with the world is written in the biographies of people Moses, David, Elijah, Ruth, Mary, Paul and the twelve disciples. All of these are people who helped to shape the destiny of the world. Just as surely, God uses individuals today whether good or bad to fulfill His direction in the world.

(2) You have also missed the fact that God normally works through orderly process.

There have been times when God miraculously intervened in history. Such an event took place in 1588 when winds blew the Spanish Armada on the rocks, allowing the survival of a struggling little nation called England. Again, in 1941 when the fog descended at Dunkirk allowing the evacuation of the Allied Forces, God intervened, many believe.

When God intervenes in the affairs of men we say that it is an act of God; yet in most cases God works in nature through orderly process, which in itself is a great miracle. Consider the fact that the law of gravity keeps the planets in their elliptical orbits day after day.

Finally, if you are one of those who just can’t see how God is guiding the helm of planet earth, take a look at what has taken place in our generation: the establishment of the modern state of Israel, the thrust of the scientific world allowing the fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecies concerning knowledge and travel, and finally the prophecies of Peter and Paul regarding the moral and spiritual corruption which will precede the end of the age.

Pick up a modern translation of Scripture and begin to search out passages such as Matthew 24 and 25, 1 Thessalonians 4, and 1Timothy 4, which tell us what to expect as we draw to the close of our present age. You will be amazed as the prophets of old picture the events that are taking place in our generation.

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by Dr. Harold Sala

“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” -Matthew 24:36

Jim Warren, like thousands of other people, believed in God. In fact, he went to church–not every Sunday, but most Sundays. He was good man. He worked hard to support his family. He was faithful to his wife, Ruth, and occasionally took his boys fishing. Jim really didn’t need God. He had too many other good things going for him.

Then came the earthquake which shook Southern California in 1971. The next Sunday Jim Warren was back in church, but this time it was different. I was pastoring the church which the Warrens attended, and on that morning I spoke on the subject, “Listen to the earthquake!”

“You tried to scare people,” you might charge. Not really–the earthquake did that. I talked about what I still believe, that in every natural disaster, you can hear the voice of God saying, “Life is not forever. There is an end to life on earth, whether a person dies in bed at age 85, having lived a long and purposeful life, or whether he or she becomes a victim of an earthquake which suddenly and without warning brings down the curtain on life as we know it.”

That Sunday Jim, along with four other men, decided he wanted to know God personally, and placed His faith in Jesus Christ. His life was forever changed.

C. S. Lewis said that pain is God’s megaphone which gets our attention; but for you who live through the turbulence of seeing buildings come crashing down or face the terror of having the lights go out as the floor under you sways and the walls crack and the ceiling comes down, you know God doesn’t need a megaphone. He’s got your attention.

Towards the end of his ministry, Jesus took the disciples and went to the Mount of Olives, and there He prayed. As they sat on the slopes of the garden looking back towards the temple on Mt. Zion, the disciples began to ply Jesus with questions.

They wanted to know when He was going to return, and what would be the sign of His coming and the end of the age. Actually there were but two issues: When it would be, and how they would recognize the time of His coming.

In answering those questions Jesus described His return, and one issue which clearly is identified with the return of Jesus Christ is–are you ready for this?–earthquakes! No matter how they may disagree on other issues, Bible scholars the world over are in general agreement that the increase of earthquakes in our world is one of the certain signs pointing to His return.

A closing thought: It wasn’t the earthquake which changed Jim Warren’s life; it was His faith in God. But for Jim Warren the earthquake was a turning point which helped him see things in a different perspective, and until he died of cancer years later, he never regretted listening to the message of the earthquake.

The prophet Joel wrote, recording the message of God, “I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD” (Joel 2:30-31).

Listen to God’s voice–whether it is in earthquakes, in sickness, in the beauty of a sunrise, in the death of a friend, or the miracle of a baby’s birth. Sometimes His voice is quiet like a whisper, and, on occasion, He raises the volume to get your attention. God speaks clearly through His Word, but He gets our attention through the events of life. Yes, listen to His voice.

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by Dr. Harold Sala

“I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD.” -Joel 2:30,31, KJV

Following the terrible earthquake which shook the T’ang-shan area of China in 1976, scientists began taking the study of seismology very seriously. Each time the earth quakes with its destructive furor, people began thinking, “What if this had happened in the daytime when schools were filled, or what if people had been in the streets instead of asleep?” Or, “What if the earthquake had been centered in the heart a major city like Beijing, a city of some 12 million people, instead of 60 miles from T’ang-shan where some 4 million live?” It’s the old “What if…?” scenario. With the realization that things could indeed be worse, much worse, scientists have probed the question, “What really causes earthquakes?”

Chinese scientists have taken earthquakes very seriously for several good reasons: First–China is the most densely populated nation in the world with more than 1.3 billion people. Then, China is earthquake prone, with a long history of severe quakes dating way back. In 1556 a quake in Shensi Province took the lives of 830,000 people. The 1976 quake in China took perhaps as many if not more lives. Furthermore, buildings in China seldom withstand the force of a major quake.

Chinese scientists have found that the majority of earthquakes have taken place when there is an alignment of both the moon and the sun, or when the moon is at a 90 degree angle to the sun. They conclude that there is a definite relationship between earthquakes and the gravitational pull of the sun and the moon in alignment together.

For a long while scientists have known what happens when the earth quakes: the earth’s plates move, resulting in violent motions of the earth’s surface. Sometimes the motion comes in massive waves. Sometimes it comes in sharp jolts, and sometimes the movement of the earth’s surface is accompanied with noise which in indescribable.

The volcanic explosions deep within the earth erupt with a destructive force unlike anything known to mankind. Says the World Book Encyclopedia, “The energy released by a large earthquake may be equal to about 200 million tons of TNT, or 10,000 times more than the first atomic bomb.”

Scientists measure the power of earthquakes on a scale invented by Charles Richter, an American seismologist, who in 1935 developed the uniform measurement of an earthquake’s force. Based on his scale, the largest earthquakes thus recorded measuring 8.9 took place in the Pacific Ocean near the Colombia-Ecuador border in 1906 and again in Japan in 1933.

On the Richter scale each number represents a magnitude of ten times the previous number. For example, a 7.0 earthquake is ten times stronger than a 6.0 quake. Actually there are as many as 1,000 earthquakes taking place every day on a scale of 2.0, which are not strong enough to cause much damage. It’s the larger ones which cause headaches and major damage.

There are two primary areas in the world where quakes are taking place with greater intensity and frequency: One is described as the circle of fire–a ring which runs throughout the Pacific, touching Asia, the Aleutians, then down the coast of Alaska and California, past Mexico and the western side of South America.

The other runs down the Alps, then divides Africa from Asia. It includes Turkey, Iran and Iraq, and then splits with a finger running through the Jordan Valley extending into Egypt, and the other finger running through central Asia.

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by Dr. Harold Sala

“Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.” -Isaiah 46:4

You and your wife both work, but your mother needs care 24 hours a day. You have no choice but to place her in a retirement center. It’s a nice place, certainly not like the family home, but after Dad died, you really had no choice. From that point on, it has been all downhill.

Mother threw away nothing—absolutely nothing. Newspapers, plastic bags, Styrofoam containers, letters, old and older clothes. They are all there in the tiny apartment. Now, Mom can’t find anything. She forgets where the pearls are hidden and accuses the caregivers of stealing them. “The hard part,” said a son who faced this kind of a situation, “is that she doesn’t seem sick. It’s hard to believe she isn’t doing this deliberately.”

At the present time, in almost every nation with few exceptions, people are living longer and longer. Better nutrition and better medical care are pulling people through the illnesses that terminated their lives a generation ago. But, and it is here that the whole equation takes on a darker side. For about 20% of those who are living longer, the brain begins to wear out before the body does.

Mom is not being difficult. She absolutely can’t remember where she put her pearls. Yes, she remembers with clarity what happened 60 years ago. It’s yesterday which is blanked out like the TV broadcast of the football game that wasn’t a sell-out.

She is afflicted with a form of dementia which is defined as “a loss or impairment of mental powers.” The word comes from two Latin words, which mean away and mind.

In their book, The 36-Hour Day, Nancy Made and Peter Rabins, write, “The brain is an incredibly complex organ composed of billions of microscopic neurons or brain cells. All the tasks of the brain—thinking, talking, dreaming, walking, listening to music, and hundreds of others—are carried out when these cells communicate with one another.” Here’s the problem.

Communication between the cells of your brain is enabled by a chemical that connects the cells, and as one in five people grow old, the brain stops producing this chemical or simply doesn’t produce enough of it. Simply put, the brain short-circuits.

What do you do when Mom forgets where she puts the pearls? Telling her to stop being difficult doesn’t work. She is really convinced that funny things are happening. First, get proper medical diagnosis and treatment. Knowing that there is a physical or organic problem helps you to be more understanding. Then, try to simplify life—for Mom and for yourself as well.

Elderly individuals whose memories are impaired get overwhelmed by too many activities or too much noise—such as loud grandchildren. They just can’t cope. As tough as it may be for you, it is necessary to accept the reality that the situation is not reversible. Apart from a miracle from the hand of God, once the brain wears out, it doesn’t rejuvenate itself with guava juice or a diet supplement.

Don’t blame Mom for what she can’t do, or overload her system, or be irritated that she doesn’t want to go with you on that weekend trip.

When the parent becomes the child and the child becomes the parent, as happens with elderly folks, neither like it, but both can do a great deal in the transition of life. Someway, I was not quite prepared for the season of being a caregiver for elderly parents, but having gone through it and still going through the process, I’m learning that God’s grace is sufficient no matter what life’s season is.

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