No ID, No Entry

“The LORD said to him: I will be with you…” – Judges 6:16

What’s the Pinoy security guards’ battle cry? It stands toe to toe with other great military mottos like the Air Force’s “No Guts, No Glory” and the Marines’ “No Retreat, No Surrender”.

You guessed it right if you said it’s “No ID, No Entry”. This is also a ubiquitous sign in the Philippine landscape together with other famous local signage like “God knows Hudas not pay”, “Post No Bell”, “Sorry, we’re close” and “Bawal mangutang ang may amnesia”.

“No ID, No Entry” is also the title of the first talk in the latest Feast series, TGIF (Thank God, I’m Filipino).  The TGIF talks are about “discovering the true pride of our roots”.  The joke about the military mottos that opened the talk is very typical of our Pinoy sense of humor. We have the ability to laugh about anything, even about ourselves and our flaws.

But what is hidden beneath that humor is a poor self-identity. We like to laugh and gripe about the negative things we find in our country. Take the second and third signage I used as examples. The photos were posted in the internet because of the grammatical error. True they were amusing, but the laughing point was the thing wrong about them.

Three hundred years plus of being under colonial rule has made us look down on ourselves and blind to the beauty of our race – our natural beautiful tan, our cute button noses and a physique that makes us look younger than we are. Because of that we enrich the glutathione manufacturers and cosmetic surgeons in the effort to look like our western ex-colonizers.

Talk 1 encourages us to see ourselves as God sees us, as God saw Gideon, a man of valor, even if this is how Gideon saw himself: “My family is the poorest in Manasseh, and I am the most insignificant in my father’s house”(Judges 6:15)

God’s vision for us is different because of two things:

1. God has X-ray vision. He looks beyond our outside failure and sees the champion within.
2. God has future vision. He knows that we are works-in-progress (WIP) and sees the finished objets d’art he originally designed us to be.

What struck me most about the talk was this thought: Because my ID says I am a COG (Child of God), I am given entry into God’s kingdom.

I have that privilege if I remain true to my identity. I am comforted by God’s promise to Gideon in Judges 6:16 that He will be with me as I go from being a wimpy WIP to being da Vinci’s Mona Lisa or make that the more nationalistic Amorsolo’s Dalagang Bukid or Bencab’s Sabel.

Knowing that my ID says I am a COG and therefore the offspring of “The One Who Owns This Establishment” makes me feel I have certain privileges. I feel confident that I can ask God for anything and He will listen.

Let me share a blessing I received last week. For several days, I noticed the car took longer to start. Friday morning dawned and my son couldn’t get it to start at all. I prayed it was just the battery. Anything else could be expensive. And getting the car to the repair shop would be a major problem.

Because I was talking to my Father God, I said a bratty prayer just as a spoiled child would. I am too embarrassed to write the whole prayer here but parts of it said, “O God…please have mercy on this poor widow, whose husband (the one who could have fixed this problem) You have taken away. Please let the trouble just be the battery that’s still under warranty.”

And God, my Father, answered by giving us a new battery and letting me spend only P300 for service charge and tips. That incident assured me of my privileges because God answers His children’s prayers, even bratty ones. 

*image from http://www.busyok.info/2013/02/guard.html

The Last Xcellent Straw

 

I started to write this blog in late April. I thought it was just the right article for talk 2, Xcel, of the Feast series X Factor (Unleash the Gift in You). But for some reason, I never got to post it.  I see now God had a better timing in mind. So here’s my long delayed but perfectly timed blog:

 

The “last straw” is usually associated with something bad or frustrating. It’s what causes someone to explode, usually with anger. It may be a small thing but the leaden weight that has built up before it, makes the experience unbearable. That triggers a major explosion.

 

Last week, I had a last straw experience of a different kind. Mine was brought on by an overflow of excellence. The resulting explosion shook me so much I just had to write this thank you letter to God:

 

April 27, 2015

 

Dear God,

 

I’m writing this letter to let you know you almost drowned me this morning – in a storm surge of gratitude.

 

These past 2 weeks, I’ve been managing the content for Light Magazine. Checking the submissions from my team was like watching you compose a symphony. The articles, the photos, the graphics and the layouts were notes you combined in harmony and built up until it reached a crescendo that moved me to tears. And I mean that literally. My contact lenses were in danger of floating out of my eyes and I was sniffling all the way to my dancercise session. 

 

Thank you for unleashing the talents of my team. I am truly blessed by them.

 

Love,

Lella

 

 

Here’s the wave upon wave of excellence that engulfed me:

 
• First, I was given a dedicated, supportive, creative and wacky Editorial Board. Did I mention they’re all funny? Our meetings not only produced imaginative input but also side stitches from laughing at the crazy ideas we came up with. And many times, the wackiness resulted into really great article ideas. They were also multi-taskers who can be roped in to do what needed to be done especially when the deadliest deadline was just a page or two away in my weekly planner.
• Then came the writers who looked for servants and attendees with testimonies about lives that were changed, healed and enriched , twisted their arms into agreeing to the interviews and wrote the inspiring stories.
• Next came the editors who went through the articles with a fine tooth comb and made the stories even better.
• Pile on top of that our dedicated photographers who chased the Pope, the Feast Builders and the subjects for good angles and who were coerced into making the staff look great. (Photoshop those love handles and make us look like celebrities!)
• Like the flourish in a music piece or the strawberries and cream on a waffle, our graphic & layout artists beautified the magazine with the finishing touches. They must be part-magicians because they conjured whatever image I asked them to come up with.

When I first held a copy of Light Magazine’s second issue, I felt like I was handed an Oscar or an Emmy. And like the awardees who go up on stage, I have this list of people I want to thank. When you grab your copy of Light, check out the names of the Editorial Board and staff who shared their excellent gifts and unleashed a dream. And at the top and at the end of that list are our leaders – our builder and pillars – who propelled and helped us make Light Magazine’s second issue a reality.



Open Yourself to God’s Embrace

“Come to me…and I will give you rest.” – Matthew 11:28

It was my younger son’s birthday yesterday. It’s customary for me to hear mass when a member of my family celebrates a birth anniversary – whether with them or without them as sometimes they have to be at work when I go.

I hear mass to thank God for the gift of my son or parent, for the many years of blessings they have received and the joy they have given me. Most importantly, I pray for a bright, healthy and abundant future for them.

But two days ago, I was downed by a combination of severe cough, fever and a runny tummy. I was supposed to attend the 6:45 a.m. mass yesterday but with my condition, I told God, I’ll just see him this morning.

Morning dawned and my alarm rang to tell me to prepare for mass, but the weakness and the rumble in my tummy kept me from going. I felt so bad I wouldn’t be able to hear mass for my son. Then an inspiration hit me. Why not search for “daily mass” on the internet. Since I’m sick, that would be the next best thing to being in church.

I felt so blessed to find one on Youtube. And best of all, the first thing that flashed on screen was the mass for yesterday, the one that I missed. And so with my little car crucifix in front of me, I heard mass.

But as the mass went on, I still felt incomplete. I wouldn’t be able to receive communion and it’s still not the same as being in church.

Then during the homily, the priest said, “To be close to God, you don’t need to go to Mt. Sinai or Mt. Carmel. You can start to be close to God right now where you are. Maybe sitting on the couch, sitting on the chair, maybe still in bed, as I hear some of you watch mass in bed. Wherever you are, open yourself to God’s embrace. Welcome him. Let him walk beside you. Trust him. Because when you do that, you too, like Moses, can have an intimate relationship with God.”

His words soothed my guilty heart and put it to rest. God is present with me through my little crucifix and the mass via the internet. I felt the intimacy of His embrace. Our hearts were in communion. And because we are intimate, I trust He was close enough to hear my prayers for my son on his birthday.

So friends, open yourself to God’s embrace wherever you are, in whatever condition you’re in. You may be in your sickbed, you may be buried under work, you may be in a dark place with financial troubles or relationship woes or you may be in a happy place where you forget you need God. Wherever you are, trust God to embrace you with healing, rest, provision and joy.

Stone Rollers

At 4:59 in the morning of April 4, Black Saturday, I got this message from Abbie, one my members in our Media Ministry: "Hi sis. Just wanna let you know that your  Didache reflection for today inspired me (heart, thumbs up, smiley) now I have other names for my hubby and my mom - stone rollers (another heart)." 

So lovely of her to take the time to send me that message.  That made me realize I haven't thanked my stone rollers. I was rushing to make it to our 6:00 a.m. call time for the last day of Feast Alabang's Holy Week Recollection and didn't even have time to read the day's bible passage let alone open my copy of Didache. 

Let me thank my stone rollers now. They're my family, friends, especially those from my Caring Groups (or whatever name it has morphed into - the thing is, they care for me). Thank you for always being there to turn my Good Fridays into Easter.

Here's my Didache reflection:

STONE ROLLERS

"When they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back; it was very large." 
– Mark 16:3-4

       I tell people my driver’s license has a restriction: I’m only allowed to drive up to Alabang. That’s just my excuse for not driving far. It becomes a stone block when we have events in distant places. My usual stone roller is Emy, who’s so generous in driving for our group.
       There are many stones that hinder our path. Most are small like my “driving disability.” Some are medium-sized like the difficulty of my co-servant in carrying around her son with cerebral palsy. Her stone roller was a Caring Group mate who bought the boy a wheelchair.
       Others are extremely large that they seem immovable. James Ward is a homeless youth who got accepted to Howard University but couldn’t afford the tuition. His stone roller was Jessica Sutherland, a volunteer at the homeless shelter, who launched an online movement to raise his tuition money. The campaign spread like wildfire. It was picked up by the Ellen DeGeneres show where James was given a $25,000 check and a $10,000 gift certificate.
       Like the women who visited Jesus’ tomb, we wonder how we can move the obstacles that face us. Trust that God always sends angels to roll away those stones.

Reflection: Who are your stone rollers? Thank God for sending them to you.

Lord, thank You for the people You send to help carry my load.

*Image from bibleencyclopedia.com

Bold Prayer: My Papal Encounter

“It was then… that Joshua prayed to the LORD, and said in the presence of Israel: Sun, stand still at Gibeon, Moon, in the valley of Aijalon! The sun stood still, the moon stayed…” – Joshua 10:12-13

To see the pope up close, to be blessed by him and kiss the ring on his finger. That was my bold prayer, my dream, uttered in the last week before Pope Francis arrived. But I didn’t have the slightest clue how I can accomplish that.

It was like asking the sun and moon to stand still because there was a wide, unbridgeable chasm that stood between my reality and my dream. Actually that seems to be true for most of my dreams: reality, chasm, dream. With some realities, there are already pieces of a bridge forming but not yet long enough to span the chasm and reach my dreams. So I thought this papal encounter prayer would also get “No” or “Wait” stamped on it.

As my friends and I talked about his coming visit, we discussed possibilities of where to position ourselves. One friend even thought of parking her container van truck along the route so she can clamber on top to get a vantage view. Some of us, daunted by the expected massive crowd, the traffic and the long walk, considered just watching him on television.

Then on January 9, I received a text message from Dee, my Evangelism Pillar head. The Feast Alabang was allocated tickets for seats in the Mall of Asia open parking area where the pope will pass on January 16 for his “Encounter with Families”. Her text further said: “Entry to the venue starts at 4:00 a.m. but the pope is set to arrive at 5:00 p.m. We’ve been allocated a limited number of tickets so please advise if you’re interested and willing to wait. Invitation is extended to ministry and team heads for now.”

My first reaction was, “Wow, what a privilege! Numbered seats – no waiting along the streets and risk being trampled by the crowd!” Then my next reaction was. “Wow again, that’s a 13 hour wait!”

I began to plan the long wait:

1. Bring food enough for breakfast, lunch, 2 snacks and even dinner.
2. Bring my laptab so I can transcribe my interviews.
3. Bring umbrella to keep from getting sunburned or rained on.
4. Bring small pillow so I can nap in between.

Then I got the email with the guidelines. No food and drinks allowed. No big backpacks. No umbrellas. Roads will close at 6:00 a.m. so parking will be far from the venue. I began to have second thoughts especially about the long walk.

Then my son asked, “So, you’re also going to wear diapers?” I said, “Diapers? Why will I wear diapers?” He told me that the cops guarding the route were advised to wear them because they can’t break rank. Portalets might be limited, so that would be a good idea to follow.

That was the final straw. My tiny bladder forces me to use the rest room quite often. So often that, on trips, friends threaten to put a catheter on me. Thus, I offered my ticket and the remaining slots to other Media members. I texted Dee: “Pass on the papal visit. The spirit is willing but the bladder is weak. I’ll see him in Rome. I believe in miracles. J”

It was also around that time I learned my cousin, Belle, was given the great blessing of a ticket to the MOA Arena – inside. Imagine me turning emerald green with envy! Hers wasn’t even a fervent prayer, just a wish expressed to a client who happened to have tickets. It was a struggle for me to stop throwing a tantrum at the feet of my heavenly Father. That was my bold prayer!

Bratty me was comforted by the thought maybe God’s better plan was for me to see the pope in Rome. My heart simmered down as I accepted it’s not yet time for my prayer to be answered.

Then my Caring Group mates urged me to come with them. There was an extra ticket for me.  ETD was at 8:30 so the wait would not be so long. I figured I can battle my three other concerns – the traffic, the long walk and the rest room – by patience and prayer, by wearing rubber shoes and by dehydrating myself.

I got my battle gear ready the night before but I wasn’t a hundred percent sure I’d go. If I changed my mind, I planned to give my ticket to a friend who told me she really wanted to go. That was the second ticket I’d be giving away.

I was up bright and early the next morning hurriedly preparing breakfast and lunch for my family, when Belle called. She wasn’t feeling well and her ticket benefactor had the flu. I said, “Don’t tell me you’re not going! This is too great an opportunity to miss!” Her daughter had convinced her to go but now she had an extra ticket. Would I like to come with her?

I almost did cartwheels of joy and promptly ran to my room to change my gear. I chucked the rubber shoes, the jacket and the raincoat and changed into something more appropriate for sitting at the FIFTH ROW OF THE LOWER BOX INSIDE the Arena.

My bold prayer to see the pope in close quarters was not just answered but my other concerns as well. When we left around 10:30 a.m., there were hardly any cars on the road so we got there in under 30 minutes. The car was allowed in as far as the Arena where Belle’s husband dropped us off. And Glory Be! I didn’t have to use any stinky portalet but a clean restroom with toilet paper and hand soap. Plus, we didn’t go hungry because food sellers were going around. And I got to work while waiting for the pope.

When the pope arrived, I was able to take his picture. Although the pictures I took with my cellphone were not that clear (next bold prayer: nice camera with zoom lens), I still felt blessed to be able to take a close shot.

The feeling of being there and seeing him was indescribable. And he didn’t just whiz by on a motorcade. I heard him speak, too, in his gentle and loving way. I felt I was being embraced by God. So this is what it feels like when God stops the sun and the moon for you. And all I had to do was say a bold prayer.

My bold prayer has not been completely answered, only one-third. Being blessed by him and kissing the ring on his finger is still pending. So Rome, here I come. I continue to dream because as Pope Francis said in his message to families, “It is important to dream…”

Even if I can’t see any way for this dream and my other bold prayers to be answered, my papal encounter will always remind me that God is working around the impossibilities.

Solo Parents...Twice the Love…Triple the Blessings

This poster on the Feast Alabang Solo Ministry Facebook wall sums up what it’s like to be a solo parent. We carry the burden alone so the rewards of raising our children are returned to us in double portions.

It’s stressful and tiring to be a solo parent. But not a trace of that was seen on the faces of 78 happy moms (including 10 from Feast Bataan) who gathered for the Solo Parents Retreat on October 18 and 19, 2014 at the Angels’ Hills Retreat and Formation Center in Tagaytay.

It was a cool weekend and it rained – with an abundance of blessings.

Blessing #1

The people who organized and conducted the retreat.

They made the experience something we will remember as a rejuvenating break in our hectic solo mom schedules:

• Juvy Ramirez, Solo Ministry head, and her Core Group
• Cris & Lani de Guzman, Discipleship Pillar heads
• Fr. GC Carandang, retreat master
• Bro Arun Gogna, guest speaker

Blessing #2

The fun, the laughter and the new friends.

It’s an all-female retreat, so tears were expected. We had trials to share and insights to reflect on. But the laughter, the singing, the dancing and the camaraderie overshadowed everything else.

We rollicked with glee during group activities like the alien invasion – an exercise that showed just how confused the picture gets when we don’t communicate.

We danced with abandon – during worship, during the retreat proper and during the impromptu Sunday morning exercise. We zumba-ed and swayed like the Atomic Bomb Dancers that we felt we were.  

And, we found sisters to share our lives with. Some have taken the solo journey before us while others are just taking the first steps.

Blessing #3

This last one is personal – the anointing to lead a spirit-filled worship.

It was a wish whispered by my heart that was granted, not a privilege I asked for but was freely given. I was honored yet anxious about it because I didn’t know the arrangements about the music. I didn’t want to assault the attendees’ ears with my solo singing so I prayed to the Lord for angels who will sing with me – heavenly or earthly, I left it up to Him.  I got my angels: the keyboardist and 2 music ministers. Not only that, God gave me a bonus, a dance minister, to rev up the worship.    

The retreat’s blessings are God’s reminders that we have a special place in His heart. We may stand solo but we get double the love and a host (many times not just three) of God’s graces.

*Photos courtesy of Annabelle Ignacio 

TCOGB: Taking Care of God’s Business

“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this…and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.” – Malachi 3:10

The manual for new recruits I was writing has been stuck on Step 3 for weeks. The prospects list I had been planning to fill up has remained an untitled Excel file. This week, I thought I’d finally have time to input the data needed for my business. All the family and community events I had to organize were done.

Then a rush project for the Media Ministry landed on my lap – the Tithing Bulletin. It was needed this Sunday to cap the Tithing Challenge issued at The Feast. The thing was, only 2 testimonies were submitted on the deadliest deadline I gave. That was not enough, so everybody was pressured to search out people with stories to tell. We were deluged with 8 more testimonies. I even had to reject two because of time constraints.

I was tasked to interview a couple of sharers and write the articles. I also had to rewrite or edit the other submissions. It was crunch time and I didn’t want to waste time hunting down my members I can delegate the tasks to. I only roped in my trusty Associate Editor, Bern, to help me proof and do additional edits. 

“There goes the manual and my prospects list again,” I thought. My business mentors have always stressed we need to do something every day or at least every week to take a step towards success. I’ll be missing that chance this week. Or so I thought.

Bro Arun Gogna, our Senior Feast Builder, says this prayer every time we have a Servants’ Assembly: “Lord, bless your servants. Please take care of their business because they are taking care of yours.” Many times in the past, I could only sigh and add my supplication to his prayer. Last Wednesday, this prayer was very clearly answered.

In the midst of all the rush, I got a call from one of my prospects. She said she was ready to purchase the products we were selling and asked if I can meet her in the office. It was unexpected. I didn’t even have time to follow-up on her yet. Of course, I agreed and hurriedly texted JB, my upline and mentor, to ask if he can go to the office for 2 things: for the interview for the Tithing Bulletin and for support with this prospect. By God’s grace, his very busy schedule was open. 

But I hit a snag. JB was delayed and my prospect just wanted to buy on retail instead of signing up as distributor and getting a complete package. I tried to convince her because there was just a small difference in price but she said she had no use for the other items in the package. Being a greenhorn in the business, I failed to convince her otherwise. 

Downhearted, I lined up at the counter to purchase her items. Then out of the corner of my eye, I saw JB at the door. My hope leaped and I was amazed by God’s perfect timing. I hurriedly introduced him to my prospect. And, to make a long story short, he found a way to convince her to sign up as an independent distributor instead. 

After my new recruit left, I interviewed JB. His story and mine where one: when you give your time, talent and treasure, God will always out-give you. When you take care of God’s business, He will take care of yours.