for NE26 - What is life?

have you ever thought of this?

everyday i look at life as something i should be facing with utmost preparedness. it is a continuous battle that we need to see to it we ain't caught off guard. there are so many instances, situations, events and circumstances in our lives that we thought are part of our destiny. we believe so much on destiny and rely on it. we have forgotten our role as participant of these big events in our lives. these things that are happening to us are not fated to us but are consequences of every decision we make. in other words, as an old adage goes "destiny is not a matter of chance, but a matter of choice."

should we just let that fatalistic spirit subdue our minds and hearts? we are not here in this big and chaotic world just to fulfill what has been fated for us like Oedipus who killed his own father and married his own mother...that despite having tried his best to evade from that prophecy still unknowingly fulfilled it? or was it ignorance?or simply his hardheartedness that has made these prophecies come to pass? or examine the life of Paris who was prophesied to bring about doom and fall of Troy...He was thrown away to the forest, far away from fulfilling what has been said to be his destiny...but didn't he cause the battle among Trojans and Greeks over one wrong decision? that hasty decision he made to elope...or abduct Helen?was that fate? or a choice?He didn't think of the possible consequences and sure there were... and Achilles who was fated to die in the Trojan war, disguised as a girl so as not to go to the battle field but eventually ended up in the battle despite his parents' disapproval...while his immortal mother Thetis made sure she dipped him in the river of immortality at the river Styx, (the river that separates Hades from the land of the living) to make him invulnerable from death's scythe...But even his invincibility didn't spare him from his own demise...was that a choice? or simply fate?

Let's take a look at the life of Moses...he was an Israelite who became one of the great rulers of Egypt and eventually the deliverer of the Israelites from the bondage of slavery in the hands of the Egyptians. He was prophesied to deliver God's people. He was prophesied to fulfill what God has planned for the Israelites...the task was hard especially dealing with hard-headed people! (non-believers, murmurers, doubters, and name it, there were really those kind of people in his leadership...) but why did he do it? was it fate so he had no choice? or was it a decision he opt to follow? What if Moses did not follow God's command? would that mean the Israelites would have still been Egypt's slaves up to this time? Nope. God would have used other people in lieu of Moses then...He never runs out of resources. Then why was moving out from Egypt still hard for Moses and the Israelites if God had ordained Moses and those days for deliverance?well, it wasn't God's fault..but the Israelites'...

so. the fulfillment of whatever prophecy requires participation of people involved. they do not only happen out of the blue. they happen out of decision...conscious decision and conscious actions...because we are not robots.. we are human beings endowed by God with human intellect, willpower and emotions...that's why we should always put into considerations whatever decisions we are about to make, they may make or unmake the beautiful life that God has prophesied, promised and purposed us to have. .

life is a play. God is the director, we are the actors. thus we should do the best and the greatest performance of our lives...like on a stage play, we give our best, our innermost self and our hearts to what we do...

life is a ship...we keep sailing in the ocean of beauty, uncertainty, problems, etc. but we keep sailing and should not lose track with our compass point...we shouldn't be afraid even if we are in the middle of a storm because HE IS OUR CAPTAIN...HE IS IN CONTROL OF EVERYTHING. No amount of storm can allow our ship to sink so long as the CAPTAIN IS THERE...

life is a battle too...God is the Commander-in-Chief, we are the soldiers...we only listen to what he tells us to do...as to a warrior's motto, it says, "no retreat, no surrender..."

life is beautiful...It is an art where God is the Artist. He paints beautiful colors in our lives to make it livelier and attractive, exciting and interesting...He adds hues to every detail of our lives because HE CARES AND LOVES US SO MUCH FROM THE VERY CROWN OF OUR HEAD DOWN TO THE VERY SOLE OF OUR FEET...AND EVEN TO THE VERY MINUTE CELL in our system...We are God's perfect MASTERPIECE...

Don't be afraid with life...let's take it light and easy with the Director of our life, Captain of our Soul, Commander-in-Chief and Greatest Artist, we shall enjoy life more beautifully and to the fullest...

Carpe Diem!!

Instruction: (for NE26)
1. post your 1 - paragraph comment about the article. what can you say about the topic? do you want to share something else about life? you have any suggestions or negative comments? write them down below by clicking COMMENT (then write your comment in the comment box)and pls don't forget your name, and click anonymous button before publishing. then lastly, click PUBLISH POST..that's it!
2. in a 1/2 crosswise, write your thesis statement and explain why it is so. submit on Tuesday, august 23, 2011, class time.
3. see you in the class on tuesday, august 23, 2011.