Tuesday, June 16, 2015
soar
...
May our faith carry what is written on these paper planes to God as we
surrender to His will and allow Him to take control over our lives...
Monday, May 25, 2015
"bahala kna Lord"
“it was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and
appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask
the Father in my name, he may give you.” – John 15:16
Cruise controls or auto pilot in cars and planes make it
easier to travel long distances.
Just like our journey through life, we can trust that our
cruise control – our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, will make our way smooth.
Reflection: Is your life messed up and too complicated?
Simplify it. Go to Jesus!
Prayer: Jesus, you are the wind beneath my wings that
make me sour over difficult situations.
The tagalog phrase
“bahala kna Lord” (it's all up to you) seems simple but when you think about it, it’s a prayer
of full trust isn't?
We put all
our troubles in God hands and trust that no matter the situation He will see
and help us through.
“bahala
kna Lord… take control over all our worries, anxieties, daily stress and
shortcomings, may we not let all these things put us down as we keep in mind
that these trials, hurts, rejections and persecutions help refine us and mold
us into a beautiful person who will be pleasing to You.Amen.
For all of this May God Be Praised!!!
to-do list
“yet I consider life of no importance to me, if only I
may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to
bear witness to the gospel of God” – Acts 20:24
If we can find it in ourselves to work extra hard to build
successful careers and lucrative businesses, I’d bet that, like the apostle
Paul who has traveled far and wide to spread the Gospel in spite of the
inconveniences and dangers, we too could put in extra time, effort and
creativity into being witnesses for the Gospel every day – in our country, community,
work places and homes. Wouldn’t it be great to be able to say we have run the
good race and fought the good fight?
Reflection: What is the number one on your to-do list
today? Is God in it?
Prayer: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, grant me the
boldness and perseverance to proclaim Your Gospel today and every day of my
life. Amen.
We are all missionaries called to spread the
word of God. We should preach and proclaim. How does preach differ from proclaim?
By preaching we use words and proclaiming means we live it.
May we live our lives in such a way that we proclaim God’s goodness and
victories in our lives. Let’s make Him number one on our To-Do list.
Friday, April 24, 2015
forever childlike
I love kids.
There is something about their
innocent, carefree and worry free demeanor that puts me more at ease in their
company.
With kids it is easier to forget
your worries.
With kids it is easier to let
loose and just enjoy yourself without fear of looking silly because with them -
the sillier, the better, which equates to more fun and laughter.
With kids it is easier to
appreciate and find joy in the simplest of things.
With kids creativity overflows -
with limits only to your imagination a box can be a ship or a castle and you
and me can be prince and princesses from far away kingdoms or aliens from
another planet.
It is not to say kids are just
for fun and games – their curiosity and thirst for knowledge keep you on your
toes as you should be of quick wit to answer seemingly simple but profound
questions regarding just about anything.
This year on my birthday, I was
blessed to have spent the day in service for Kids For Christ Camp.
It was specially challenging at first for
we were assigned to care for the youngest group in the batch, they all seemed
shy and remained huddled in their seats. I was not quite sure how to coax them to participate and just started asking simple questions like what
age they are, what color they like, commented on how cute their bags, head band
and dresses were.
Slowly they warmed up to us and I
specially bonded with 4-year old MJ who found me funny, always wanted to sit on
my lap and be close to me.
It was a day filled with fun
activities geared towards teaching kids about God’s love; Jesus being their
friend; the importance of praying and being obedient children at home and in
school.
The activities were brilliant in
their simplicity as it required attention and participation from the kids –
instilling in them the core values of being a Kid for Christ without them
feeling lectured. There were craft making and short presentations by the kids where we helped them compose short songs and simple dance steps.
I wanted to do something special
for the kids as a birthday treat, so I made marshmallow pops to share with
them. I wanted to discreetly give the pops while they were enjoying their
snacks but a dear CFC tita joyfully announced that it was my birthday and led
the kids in singing the birthday song for and it felt heartwarming.
It was truly a different kind of
birthday celebration. The physical exhaustion was nothing compared to the joy I
felt in being surrounded by carefree and cleverly amusing kids full or energy,
and with this I pray to be more like the children I was with that day – to not
let adult world worries consume me and weigh me down but always have a happy
disposition and thinks of problems as a tube of bubble soap
can’t not fix... may we always be a kid at heart...
... and for all of this May God Be Praised!!!
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
The Heart of it
It
is always a privilege to be tapped for service. I always think of it as
an opportunity to give back to the community – to have a sense of
purpose and live not just for yourself but for others as well.
In
our last SFC activity – our Covenant Orientation Weekend, I was tapped
to be part of the food committee tasked to prepare physical sustenance
for the confirmed 41 participants and 20 service team members. The
one day and a half activity required us to prepare 2 set of snacks,
breakfast, lunch and dinner.
I
was honestly overwhelmed by the task. The number of attendees and the
amount of food we are to prepare in such short window of time (as we all
have work) gave me the nerves. The wheels in my mind began turning
– thinking of possible suggestions at how we can tweak the menu a bit
to make the cooking easier without sacrificing taste and quality and
shorten the preparation process to fit into our timeframe so that we can
assist on other tasks and have time to listen
to the talks as well.
When
D-day came I was frazzled. I was anxious and asked my teammates what I
could do to have the preparations be well underway - they just told me
to relax and take the tasks one step at a time. It made me relax
and snap out of my anxiety. It was what I needed to remind me of what
service was all about and as I watched the tilapia fry with a sianse on
hand – I am reminded of the joy I feel whenever I cook and serve food
for my family and friends.
Often
times we get too focused on service that we forget that it is not an
opportunity to show off but to humbly make use of our talents to help
others…
… that it is a way for people to see Christ is us…
… that it is a chance for us to share His blessings and spread the goodness of our Lord…
… a chance to show and tell people how we are transformed by His love…
We
focus too much on delivering and exceeding people’s expectations that
we forget the very core – the very essence of service which is to give
back the glory and praises to God…
The
experience was quite humbling and I am thankful for the opportunity and
with this I pray that I may never be lost in the frenzy of it all, I
pray constant reminders and for purity of heart focused not on the
act but on the core of service.
... and for all of this May God be Praised!!!
Monday, January 26, 2015
Changes
“repent and believe in the Gospel” – Mark 1:15
The most important ingredient for change is the desire to change.
The word of God bears more fruit in people who are more open to change.
The word ‘repentance’ that was used in this passage came from the Greek word ‘metanoia’, which literally means a change of mind.
Once the mind is changed, the entire life follows.
Whether it’s a change of mind, heart or life, Jesus calls us to change for the better.
Reflection: What is God asking you to change in your life today?
Prayer: Change how I think, Lord, that I may be like You.
Today’s reading is very timely as our SFC Chapter had just concluded our Covenant Orientation Weekend.
A year over after I attended my first
COW what did it mean for
me?
The
Covenant Orientation Weekend reminds us of our calling to make changes
in our life – to make good our promise to God, to leave our old negative
habits behind
and make room for Christ to move and manifest Himself in our lives.
Change does not happen overnight –
It is not easy to be a part of the SFC
community but by making small changes in our prayer habits, in the way we deal with people around us, in our outlook in life, these
small adjustments
has become our way of life
J
I started making changes in my life because it was
‘required’ - we are always lovingly reminded of our
prayer time, to pray not just for ourselves but to intercede for other
people as well, to look at the positive side of every situation and
understand the message that God wants us to receive, to learn how to be
good stewards of God’s blessings, to participate
in community service, to live simply, to always give thanks in even the
smallest things, to tame our tongue and spread goodness instead of
gossip…
And in the long run these ‘requirements’ became an integral part of us –
over time we aren’t doing it because we are told to do so by the community but because we ourselves hunger for it.
Without realizing it, we have imbibed and made these ‘routines’ a part of our daily lives – a part of us.
Now, our day isn’t complete if we were not able to stop for our
prayer time – that
now our prayers are of a different tone – when before we only pray for
ourselves and just ask ask and ask, now we have learned
to pray and intercede for others and have learned to give thanks more
than we ask.
Now if we feel stressed and worn out – instead
of bursting out in anger,
we have learned to calm ourselves. If
we are going through some problems –
we now know to run first to God, ask for his help
and ‘lean not on our own understanding’ but ask for
Him to reveal his message and help us understand it.
We
still are nowhere close to being angels, human as we are we still have lapses and still make errors in judgement
– and in times like these
we just always have to remind ourselves of our covenant
– to never forget that desire that we have in our hearts to be better
Christians and be follower of Christ and pray for strength to overcome
the challenges
and temptations
that present themselves in our daily lives.
and for all of this May God Be Praised!!!
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