Centered

On Saturday while cleaning my car, there was a second learning for me. On Sunday, I had to preach at my church and more than once crossed my mind: "I must be to be studying, in retreat... I am a preacher... Other people should do this." And was at the end of the day, when God made me see the reason... After finishing washing the car, I went to my house with plans to calm and re-read my message... "You have to take the garbage out and remember you said you have to pump gas", Yokasta reminded me... After taking the garbage out, on my way to the gas station, I got a thought: "This ministry is also" ...

My wife loves to washing the car. Washing the car with her was ministering her life... I was ministering while having a happy family time... Everyone had a great time. Then, taking out the trash, my home was ministered by well managing it and keeping it free of bacteria... On Sunday, God moved and we had a lovely service... Many accepted a challenge through the message that God put in my heart... even my wife and me accepted it.

Many times we forget who works and how He works, and even more we forget who we really are. At such times, God gives us a Touch of Reality and necessarily brings us down to get in touch with our weaknesses.

Look at the incident that Samson, the strongest man that ever lived, had to go through:

Judges 15:15-19 (NASB)

"15 He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, so he reached out and took it and killed a thousand men with it. 16 Then Samson said, “With the jawbone of a donkey, heaps upon heaps, with the jawbone of a donkey I have killed a thousand men.” 17 When he had finished speaking, he threw the jawbone from his hand; and he named that place Ramath-lehi.18 Then he became very thirsty, and he called to the Lord and said, “You have given this great deliverance by the hand of Your servant, and now shall I die of thirst and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?” 19 But God split the hollow place that is in Lehi so that water came out of it. When he drank, his strength returned and he revived. Therefore he named it En-hakkore, which is in Lehi to this day."

After all the success that Samson was having against his enemies and the extraordinary way in which he was emerging as warrior... God gives him a Touch of Reality and softens  Samson's ego... Subtly, God reminds him that he was chosen and gifted by God and that by his own human hand he could do great wonders... but the most important thing... life... only came from God.

Do not complain if God let you get thirsty... He is only giving you a touch of reality. It doesn't mean that He won't use you again... It doesn't mean that you're defeated... He just wants to keep you CENTERED in Him...

JUST SAYING!!!

Dios te bendiga,

Pastor D

David Pimentel

http://www.thejustsaying.com
https://www.facebook.com/pastordavid.pimentel
davidforgiven@gmail.com
@thejustsaying
@adavidpimentel

1 por fuera - 5 por dentro

Este sábado se nos ocurrió la brillante idea de lavar nuestro carro. Con cierta regularidad llevamos el carro al "Car Wash", pero después de la última lavada, pasaron un par de incidentes dentro del carro, además de que en lavadas anteriores, no quitaron algunas manchas y rastros de comida.

Dentro de nuestro carro encontramos Cheerios, mentas, manchas de leche, dulces, envolturas de dulces, tierra, hojas secas, pedacitos de galletas, ganchitos de pelo, pinchos, brilla labios, pedacitos de algodón, una pequeña pieza negra de plástico que todavía no se que dónde es, juegos de Nintendo DS, papeles, correspondencias, pedazos de juguetes... En algunos lugares, parecía como que un zafacón había vomitado dentro de nuestro carro. Era un desastre.

Nos tomó 5 horas hacer una limpieza detallada y profunda del interior de nuestro carro. Cepillamos las alfombras, recogimos con la mano la basura grande y luego aspiramos todo el interior, pasamos toallas húmedas desinfectantes en todas las partes sólidas, en los asientos y partes de tela aplicamos un producto especial para remover manchas y proteger la tela, pasamos toallas húmedas con brillo protector para las partes sólidas y finalmente lavamos el asiento de Camila... durante 5 horas hicimos todo esto... 5 HORAS!!!

"Pero por fuera no se veía tan mal"... Claro, porque pasar por un lavado automático sólo toma 5 minutos y no es nada doloroso... sólo para Camila, quien llora descontroladamente durante los 45 segundos que dura pasar por el lavado automático. Por fuera siempre se veía bastante bien... Pero por dentro... Era un desastre... Y lo era porque mientras más ocupados estamos Yokasta y yo, menos atención ponemos al interior del carro.

Lavar el carro por fuera, nos tomó 1 hora porque cepillamos las gomas y además usamos un producto mal y tuvimos que volver a lavarla. Pudo haber sido menos tiempo. Sólo 1 hora por fuera, cuando por dentro nos tomó 5 horas.

Mi reflexión para hoy: Cuida el interior de tu vida. Las ocupaciones te van a impulsar a descuidar e invertir poco tiempo en el cuidado, mantenimiento y limpieza de tu interior. Te parecerá suficiente pasar por un lavado rápido y dar cuidado al exterior... porque a la larga, lo que las personas ven es el exterior y sin darnos cuenta, nos condenamos a una vida miserable, sucia, llena de basura, cosas podridas del pasado y una inmensa culpabilidad que nos abstendrá de invitar a personas a entrar en nuestra vida. Nos mantendremos con vergüenza de abrir las puertas... de que vean lo que hay dentro... El problema es que lo de dentro siempre llega al punto de rebosar... sea bueno o malo... y al final, todos se darán cuenta... El sábado sentía vergüenza al ver TODO lo que estaba dentro del carro y no debía estar allí... Los vecinos también los vieron... No importa cuanto lo escondí... Todo salió y todos lo vieron.

El sábado aprendí que no sólo hay que cuidar nuestro exterior. Por cada 1 hora que cuides tu exterior, usa 5 horas para atender a tu interior. Esto tendrás que hacerlo con cierta regularidad, hasta que aprendas a dedicar tiempo diario al cuidado de tu interior... mientras tanto: 1 por fuera y 5 por dentro...

JUST SAYING!!!

Dios te bendiga y te llene de Su presencia en esta semana... y que bendiga los "Car Wash"... Valen cada centavo...

Pastor D

David Pimentel

http://www.thejustsaying.com
https://www.facebook.com/pastordavid.pimentel
davidforgiven@gmail.com
@thejustsaying
@adavidpimentel

1 on the outside - 5 on the inside

This Saturday we had the bright idea to wash our car. We take the car to a car wash pretty often, but after the last wash, a couple of incidents happened in the car, and also, in previous car washings, they didn't remove some stains and traces of food.

In our car we found Cheerios, mints, milk stains, candy, candy packaging, dirt, dry leaves, bits of cookies, hair hooks, lip gloss, bits of cotton, a small black plastic piece that we still don't know where it belongs, Nintendo DS games, papers, envelopes, pieces of toys... In some places, it seemed like a trash can threw up in our car. It was a disaster.

It took 5 hours to make a detailed and deep cleaning of the inside of our car. We brushed the carpets, hand picked large debris and then vacuumed the carpets and seats, we disinfected all solid parts with wipes, on the seats and fabric parts we applied a special product to remove stains and protect the fabric, we wiped the solid parts with shine and protective wipes and finally wash Camila's seat... it took for 5 hours... 5 HOURS!

"But on the outside it didn't look so bad"... Of course, going through an automatic car wash takes only 5 minutes and it isn't painful... only to Camila, who cries uncontrollably during the 45 seconds of going through the automatic wash. On the outside always looked really nice... But inside... It was a disaster... And the cause is that the busier Yokasta and I got, the less attention we put on the inside of the car.

Washing our car on the outside, took 1 hour for we brushed the wheels and also use the wrong product and had to re-wash... It could've been less time... Only 1 hour outside, when it took 5 hours on the inside.

My reflexion for today: Take care of the "inside" of your life. The occupations are going to make you neglect and invest little time in caring, maintenance and cleaning the "inside". It'll seem enough to have a quick wash and take care of the "outside"... because ultimately, what people sees is the "outside" and without realizing it, we condemn ourselves to a miserable, dirty, full of garbage and rotten things of the past, and filled with guilt because you refrain from inviting people to join your life. We'll embarrassed to open the doors... because they'll see what's "inside"... The problem is that what's "inside" always reaches the point of overflowing... doesn't matter if is good or bad... and in the end, everyone will notice it... On Saturday I was ashamed to see EVERYTHING that was in the car and shouldn't be there... The neighbors also notice it... So it didn't matter how much I hide it... It all came out and everybody saw it.

On Saturday I learned that we're not to look only on the "outside". For every 1 hour you care your "outside", take 5 hours to care your "inside". This will need to be done with some regularity, until you learn to spend time daily in caring of your "inside"... in the meantime: 1 on the "outside" and 5 on the "inside".

JUST SAYING!!!

God bless you and fills you with His presence during this week... and God bless all Car Washes... They worth every penny...

Pastor D

David Pimentel

http://www.thejustsaying.com
https://www.facebook.com/pastordavid.pimentel
davidforgiven@gmail.com
@thejustsaying
@adavidpimentel