Love Someone Today Lesson 1

God Has a Great Purpose for Your Life

I spent the better part of my morning rummaging through old issues of Kerygma Magazine. There’s this story about a disabled girl I was looking for. 


I can’t recall what her disability was. All I remember is that she can’t move around like a normal person does. What was remarkable about her was that she blesses so many people from her bed. She is a prayer warrior. People text her their petitions and she prays for them. That’s what she spends most of her waking time on.


I wasn’t able to find the article. It’s a good thing this month’s (May 2012) issue of Kerygma featured another amazing girl with a disability, Jessica Cox. Jessica was born without any arms but she can do everything a person with hands can do. More than that, she plays the piano, has 2 black belts in Taekwondo and is listed in Guinness as the first armless person to get a pilot’s certification.  (I have two hands and forearms and triceps and biceps and I can’t do any of that.)


In the KMag article by Tess Atienza, Jessica admitted she did go through times when she questioned God and pitied herself. If I remember right, the other girl did too. But they did not waste their time whining about their lot, throwing tantrums when they can’t have their way (read in the article how Jessica dealt creatively with her desire to have a TV) and cursing the womb that bore them. Instead they rose above their disabilities to serve as inspiration to others.


Lesson 1 of Bo Sanchez’s book Love Someone Today is “God Has a Great Purpose for Your Life.” God has a plan for you no matter what shape or form or color or status you were brought into this world. Just look at these two girls. 


Bo said: “I believe your most important purpose is to be one with God – because from your oneness with God, you’ll be able to share His love to the world through the gifts and talents He has given you.” No matter how physically, economically, emotionally challenged you are, YOU HAVE A GIFT AND A PURPOSE. 


Some friends and I faced a challenge this week via a barrage of text messages. I’ve said it before and I say it again: God uses ingenious ways (yes, even exasperation) to inspire my blogs. These are some thoughts He prodded me to write:

The acceptance of your disability, character flaw or misfortune in life is the start of accepting yourself. Once you learn to accept yourself, you can start “fulfilling God’s design for your life.” The feeling of rejection comes from focusing on your neediness for other people’s acceptance. 

When you look beyond yourself and serve others with joy, other people will naturally gravitate to you. A person who exudes love for others is easy to like and difficult to reject. Looking outward (what can I do to make other people happy) instead of looking inward (what should other people do to make me happy) is the key to acceptance and the antidote to rejection. 

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For my cyber-friends to whom I dedicate this LST series to, let me share this tip from the book: “As you begin your relationship with Jesus, start with J.O.Y.


Join a weekly Prayer Meeting (such as The Feast) and Small Groups for personal discipleship.


Obey God’s Word by reading the Bible every day. You may use the assigned Mass Readings of the day or read 3 chapters of the Bible daily.


Yield to the Holy Spirit so you can share Jesus to others.”

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By the way, thank you Jennet (one of the cyber-friends I mentioned in my last blog) . I made this Strawberry Cheesecake with the luscious strawberries you sent.

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Postscript:


I found the KMag article (April 2007) I was looking for thanks to Tess who also wrote it. The  differently-abled girl's name is Ann Martha Padilla and she has cerebral palsy. She is “a prayer warrior of the Regina Rosarii Contemplative Association.” 


Like Jessica, she uses her toes to do things particularly texting her advice to the many people who send her messages. She said, “I would ask God what he wanted me to do given my condition.” Through her disability, she is performing God’s great purpose for her life – to “offer encouragement and prayer for His troubled people.”



Photo of Jessica from Jessica Cox Motivational Services http://rightfooted.com/photos/

Bearers of the Cross, the Bible and the Virgin Mary

A Refreshing Dose of Spirituality at The SFA

I was washing breakfast dishes when the impression from the Lord hit me. I felt ridiculous trying to wipe away my tears with soapy, rubber-gloved hands but I couldn’t control the overwhelming feeling.

We had to do something special for the launch of the Saturday Feast Alabang or what we half-jokingly call The SFA (pronounced like spa but with F instead). The enthronement was a tradition. It was done for the center’s inauguration and for the Wednesday Feast launch.

We were going to do it again. But how do we make it different? For one thing we had nothing to enthrone that had not been enthroned before.

When the inspiration struck, I was awed by the significance. The Lord impressed on me that the people we should ask to be the bearers of the Bible, the image of the Virgin Mary and the Cross should be families whose lives and spirituality were dramatically changed at the Feast.

Two people and their families came to mind quickly.

Lilibeth started attending the Feast Alabang with her family shortly after it was launched. Her husband died of cancer and she was left to care for 2 young sons. Her elder son, Junpol has cerebral palsy and epilepsy. I used to see her husband carrying him as they dropped their love offering in the basket.

She stopped attending for a while because of her burdens but came back and joined a Caring Group. She happened to mention to her CG mates her dearest wish to buy a wheelchair for Junpol so that he can attend the Feast with them. One generous sister immediately bought him one. Lilibeth shared in our website and bulletin about the great love she experienced at the Feast.

Nina is a girl in her early teens who used to attend the Feast in a wheel chair. She had End Stage Renal Disease. In the beginning, she looked so sad and would just sit quietly with her parents and brother through the sessions. Many of us were pleased to see her get better over time. She now attends minus the wheelchair looking perky in her trendy outfits. (Watch out for her mother’s testimony in Kerygma Magazine’s May issue).

Two down one to go. Then I remembered Jun whom my cousin, Belle, had to cajole and badger into attending. He made a 180-degree turnaround from being a reluctant Feast attendee.

Thinking about these three families brought home the point that the Feast was really blessing lives and refreshing troubled souls. Their lives changed because of the healing and love they experienced.

Not only that, members of these families are now happy servants at the Feast Alabang: Lilibeth and Junpol (when he feels up to it) serve with the Warmth Ministry; Nina is one of our social networkers in Media, her mom Winnie is with the Warmth and Food Ministries, and I know her brother Earl volunteered for Tech; and Jun sings with the Music Ministry – not just for the Sunday Feast sessions but also the WFA (our Wednesday session), now the SFA and also supports Feast Sucat.

I felt they were the perfect people to bear the symbols of our Faith. The tears still flowed as I watched them during the enthronement. A sister shared she got goose bumps. The Spirit’s presence that we felt affirmed the impression that the Lord wanted these families to take part in the enthronement. The Lord moved people to give us a memorable launch.

Just as our Feast Builder for SFA, Randy Borromeo, said, “If it is the Lord’s will for this session to happen we will have the anointing of ease and things will just come together.” And they did. All the ministries who worked for the launch were excited and it showed in the wonderful service they gave.

Our Creatives and Food Ministries gave the SFA a relaxing ambiance to enhance the feeling that this is the harassed Christian’s weekend getaway with the Lord. We hope and pray that many souls will be refreshed in this spiritual spa.

The Saturday Feast Alabang is held at the Feast Alabang Center, 2nd Level, X-site Entrance, Festival Mall (right above National Bookstore). Session starts at 6:00 pm with anticipated mass at 7:30 pm.

Photos by Mike & Mai Togle, IC de Guzman & ReyMark Cristobal. Thanks FAMMily!

Prayer for a Balanced Life

To my family and friends and to all those who are blessed by this blog even in a small way: A Grace-filled and Prosperous New Year! Thank you for sparing time to read my thoughts and reflections about the crazy, wonderful, sometimes frustrating, oftentimes enlightening events in my life.

Here I am at the start of the year feeling like I have two pairs of eyes. One pair at the back of my head looking back to the year that was. With gratefulness I see the Lord’s abundant blessings to me, my family and my Feast family.

He has given us good health and provisions. He even gifted us last year with special treats. My elder son landed in the top ten in his licensure exam. My younger son got a new job just as the year was about to close. And I began writing for a magazine that recently won a Catholic Mass Media Award. (Yey for Kerygma! I have a reflection about that just bursting to be written.)

And the other pair is where they normally are gazing ahead to the coming year with hope that more dreams will come true. They are also looking at ways to apply the lessons learned in the past year.

One challenge that I grappled with last year was how to cram everything into a 24 hour day. I wish there was a 48 hour version of those days. It seemed like many things on my to-do list were all needed yesterday.

Often, time for my family and my health regimen were sacrificed. Even work schedules were sometimes shredded to itsy-bitsy pieces. So this year I’m praying for a balanced life so that each area will get equal or equitable attention.

If you feel that your timetable is as chaotic as mine, pray this with me:

When my schedule gets roiled in a turbulent sea,

I must stay afloat to get where I want to be.

Help me Lord to keep my life on an even keel.

All areas steered by your steady hand on the wheel.

My family I put at the top of my list.

When more pressing things beckon help me to resist.

My body is your temple, a gift you have knit.

Grant me a firmer resolve to keep myself fit.

My work is your way to shower me with treasures.

Keep me diligent and far from useless pleasures.

My service is how I bring others to know you.

Give me a loving heart for this task to pursue.

Throw in friends and some hobbies to this scale I must balance.

Now you see why I need you Lord to give me your guidance.

I pray that you’ll help me end this year with joy and success

‘Cause I breezed through my myriad of roles with minimal stress.

Third Row Season

‘Tis the season for Kerygma Conference again. For the third time I’m joining the KCon choir for the Grand Feast. And for the third time I am relegated to the nether world of choirdom. You know that spot on the third row where without risers, you cannot be seen just heard?

During rehearsals we were told to “find your height” for blocking purposes. This must be the most difficult directive to follow. There’s that first part where smaller people are supposed to be in front of us. And then there’s that part where taller people are supposed to be behind us.

So difficult and confusing in fact that I found myself on the third row peeping through the shoulders of taller members. But the marvelous thing about this experience is that it teaches you serenity and humility.

This time around I wasn’t bothered about it. Why? Because for the past two years I have seen God’s hand in this arrangement.

My experience in 2009 when only a fourth of my face was seen in the official photos gave birth to a Didache reflection used in this year’s edition. Not only that, an amazing coincidence related to that reflection happened just last month. This, I believe, was used by God to also bless Feast Alabang attendees.

In KCon 2010, it wasn’t just about this blocking confusion but about the venue assignment. Since all the attendees could not be accommodated in one venue for the Grand Feast, the choir had to be divided into two. Group A was to go to PICC Plenary Hall and Group B to the hot and noisy Forum tent outside.

Whoops of delight greeted Group A assignments. Several of us from the Feast Alabang choir somberly listened as our names were called for Group B.

Friends in Group A egged us to appeal for transfer. But I felt we needed to be obedient to God’s will. The others in Group B felt the same way. And so we stayed.

You know how God rewarded our obedience? Right before the event, we were told that the Forum tent venue was scrapped. Group B will instead sing at the Reception Hall. So there we were in the same air-conditioned, chandeliered grandeur as Group A.

But as we waited for our cues to sing, Group A sat on the stairs of the Plenary Hall while we lounged on comfortable chairs in the spacious Reception Hall. We even had access to the luxurious dressing room nearby. Group A, on the other hand, had to make do with the public rest rooms (as I love to tease my friends in that group).

So this year, instead of fretting about my third row perch I am actually quite excited. I’m excited to see how God will surprise and delight and bless me in that spot He has picked out especially for me.

Thank you to my son, Buddy, for the cartoon :)

I Am…Blessed

Fatima Soriano's laughter tinkled like the chimes in my lanai stirred by a gentle breeze of hope. Her joy resonated at the slightest hint of humor or an "alleluia" moment. How could she exude so much joy when she wouldn't be able to do as other soon-to-be debutantes like her would? She wouldn't be able to marvel at the colors of her gown, behold a frothy birthday cake or pirouette at her cotillion. She is blind and had endured end stage renal disease with its attendant 5-a-day dialysis. But there she was - a charming bundle of serenity though afflicted with a condition that would make many people bitter. (I felt shame as I remember the many times I've complained over lesser things.) Even the fact that she couldn't accept the corneas of AJ Perez did not dampen her spirit (it was retinas she needed you see). She also graciously posed for pictures with fans even if she was already tired from praying over the sick and the troubled.

And the girl could sing. Multiply her about a dozen or so times and one can imagine what a choir of angels would sound like. Our guest speaker, Fr. Jerry Orbos, brought Fatima with him on Black Saturday, Day 3 of I Am…Jesus, the Way, the Truth and the Life, Feast Alabang's Lenten Recollection. Listening to her was a privilege. Serving as her and Fr. Jerry's PA (program assistant, personal assistant or parang alalay ) was a blessing.

Being their PA was as much of a privilege as being one of the emcees on Holy Thursday. That was a blessing too - I did not fall, trip, faint, embarrass myself or even get the jitters in front of a crowd of more than 1,500 that filled the San Beda Alabang Chapel to overflowing. Our pre-event anointing and the prayers of our Intercessory Ministry must've been so powerful, my co-host, Israel, and I survived unscathed. Day 1 of the recollection also blessed us with deep reflections sandwiched between slices of hilarity given by our Feast builder, Arun Gogna, and Fr. Erick Santos.

I regret that I missed Day 2 of the recollection on Good Friday with Kerygma preacher Jon Escoto and Fr. Jade Licuanan. But I did not want to break a family tradition that we've practiced for 25 years - Visita Iglesia. It was a blessing to tick off another year. The ritual started with just my late husband and me when I was heavy with our first child. Then our babies in strollers, their yayas and my parents joined us. The tradition remained anchored amidst waves of change - the loss of my husband, the yayas gone with the wind and my sons going from toddlers running around the Stations of the Cross to young boys leading the prayers to grown-ups driving for us to 7 churches.

I ended the Lenten season with a rousing Easter Sunday together with my Light of Jesus (LOJ) Family. All the Feasts in Metro Manila and neighboring provinces gathered for "Full Life", LOJ's Grand Easter Celebration in SMX. Bo Sanchez declared, "You will not stay in Good Friday forever. Sunday is coming!" That, I claim, as I feel I am already experiencing Saturday with the many blessings knocking at my door. They just need to step in so I can proclaim, "Sunday is here!"

My Little Big Artifact

Like ants in a sugar bowl, Proudly Filipina members swarmed around the registration table at the posh entrance of The Spa at the Fort. They each grabbed a token and tied it around their wrists. The less staid Ka-Pinays tied it around their ankles. Each component of the bracelet/anklet was a symbol of our race – a nacre sampaguita, pearls, coconut shell and carabao horn beads. All the lady guests wanted one including celebrity host Christine Bersola-Babao. I felt a pinch of pride. The trinket was something I spent several cross-eyed-from-lack-of-sleep nights crafting for our launch Spa-rty.

That was two years and many articles ago. I brought the bracelet to the writer’s workshop, “Write Now,” that I attended on Jan. 15, 2011, Rissa Singson-Kawpeng, our writing coach, asked us to bring an artifact. It was a tool we can use to introduce ourselves. Also a mental post-it to make the memory about the participants stick.

My artifact chronicles a short story. It tells how I like to make things with my hands – fashion accessories for one. It is also a memento of the first time I had the audacity to write for public consumption through the online magazine of Proudly Filipina.com. Inserted in its pages are the interesting and accomplished Filipinas I met, interviewed and wrote about.

This trinket also linked each chapter in my new profession. My two gifts that the bracelet represented – crafting and writing – were keys that opened the double-locked door to the world of writing for Insight Magazine and Didache. (I have blogged about how long I’ve wanted to write for Didache and how I met Rissa through my accessories.)

Because I wrote a reflection for Didache about an old blog, I was pushed (forced by embarrassment actually) to resurrect it before the reflection was due to come out. Didache readers might look for the blog and find articles as old and outmoded as last season’s fashion bling. I wanted them to read something new and sparkling.

From this blog, another link was created. An article I submitted to Bo Sanchez’s Facebook page was chosen Blog of the Week. It also caught the eye of Kerygma Magazine’s managing editor, Tess Atienza. At that time, she needed a testimony for their January issue. My story was exactly what she was looking for. A new chapter began when Tess asked me to be a contributing writer for Kerygma – another dream inscribed in my heart for many years.

These are the links so far in my story bracelet. Links that show big opportunities can come from little things. You never know where a blessing will start. It can begin from something as trivial as my trinket.

Creative House's Rissa Singson-Kawpeng, Arun & Lallaine Gogna (third to fifth from the left) with "Write Now" participants from Feast Alabang Osy Erica, Lella Santiago, Desi Tomas & Jo Ann Fauni

Thanks to Osy for this photo.

A Personal Worship

It was casually mentioned on our way home from the Kerygma Conference last Sunday that Belle, Josie and I were going to lead the worship for our Feast Alabang Servants’ Christmas party. I thought it was a big joke. “Hmmm,” I said to myself, “Cercado Sisters* minus 1, tander version. "Tander as in matanda, get it? Better yet, translate that to the more politically correct term – “mature”.

Although being a worship leader has been flitting around the fringes of my dreams, it was not something that really called me with a passion. Unlike Niko, our youngest worship leader, who clearly heard God’s promise that he will lead worship in the Feast, there was not even a whisper to me.

Besides, I was afraid I wouldn’t be porous enough for the Spirit to fill me. I have observed the really good worship leaders to be so soaked in the Holy Spirit that it just radiates from them to the whole congregation. As for me, I can be hard-hearted and hard-headed at times.

Then I remembered the prayer I say before I write anything – for my blog or for Didache or for Halo-Halong Hālo: “Lord, let me be a straw through which your blessings or message will flow to the people who need it today.” A straw is not porous. It just needs an entry and an exit point. My entry point is my mind which God enlightens and fills with wisdom. My exit points are my hands that write. All I do is open myself up for the Holy Spirit to use me as a channel – hard head and hard heart pushed to the sides to clear the flow.

That worship leader thing was just the joke that I thought it was after all. An idea miscommunicated along the way. But God woke me up at 5:00 a.m. that following Monday (it’s a holiday, Lord!!!) prodding me to write my worship. So here’s a writer’s personal worship – written not spoken, read not heard:

To end this year, I want to praise and thank God for the many blessings He has given me, my family and my Feast Alabang family.

When I started serving at the South Feast, my life was going nowhere. You know that saying, “When God closes a door, He opens a window”? I could not relate. My prayers were unanswered for so many years. I felt that after all the doors closed there was very little light coming in – only slivers of light from under a closed door or a glow at the very far end of a tunnel.

But I kept serving through harassments and financially lean times. When I was asked to join the igive.club, I jokingly said to Becky, “Pwede ba recibo na lang ng gastos ko sa Feast ang ilagay sa envelop?” (“Can I put receipts for expenses I incurred for the Feast inside the envelop instead?")

But God is a God who cannot be out-given. This year He has thrown open many doors and windows all at the same time:

This year my elder son graduated from college and got a job.

This year my younger son’s thesis won multiple awards (yup, he just won another award for his category in Animahenasyon, the Philippine Animation Festival, and was even in contention for the grand prize).

This year my father survived a medical emergency. This year both my parents celebrated their 80th birthdays.

This year my calling as a writer began to bear fruit: I now have a blog, My B.A.G. of Miracles. I was named feature editor of the magazine I write for, I became a Didache writer. And just last month, I was also asked to write for Kerygma Magazine. As a matter of fact, the January 2011 issue features an article I wrote.

This year the Feast Alabang Center was built blessing around 1,400 people each week. We have our own place. A place we call home.

This year the number of servants grew from the twenty-four that started South Feast to almost two hundred. We now know more people to love and to be loved by.

I, personally, and we as the Feast Alabang family have many, many things to thank God for. No one deserves all our praises more than You, Jesus. Lord, receive the honor that You’re due. Receive my offering of worship.

The sun cannot compare

To the glory of Your love

There is no shadow in Your presence

No mortal man would dare

To stand before Your throne

Before the Holy One of heaven

It's only by Your blood

And it's only through Your mercy

Lord I come

I bring an offering of worship to my King

No one on earth deserves the praises that I sing

Jesus may You receive the honor that You're due

O Lord I bring an offering to You

O Lord I bring an offering to You

– Offering , Paul Baloche

To my fellow servants, I exhort you to pursue your dreams. But keep serving the Lord and see the surprises He has in store for you because He is a loving, wonderful God. He is magnificent and glorious.

Who compares to You?

Who set the stars in their place?

You who calmed the raging seas

That came crashing over me

Who compares to You?

You who bring the morning light

The hope of all the earth

Is rest assured in Your great love

When the evening fades

You call forth songs of joy

As the morning wakes

We Your children give You praise

You are magnificent, eternally

Wonderful, glorious, Jesus

No one ever will compare to You Jesus

– Magnificent, Hillsong

You O Lord are truly wonderful and glorious and you deserve all the praises because You are our king, You are our savior, You are Emmanuel, You are God who is with us. And we praise you and we glorify you.

Here I am, I've come to thank You

Here I am, a life You've changed

Because You gave Your life for me, You were crucified for me

How can I do anything but praise, I praise

You, You are God, You are Lord

You are all I'm living for

You are King of everything

I want my life to praise You

You are God, You are Lord

You are all I'm living for

You are King of everything

I want my life to praise You

– You, You are God

Thank you for this year Lord and thank you for the avalanche of blessings that are coming next year. I worship you my God.

*The Cercado Sisters are talented young women who won 16 gold medals in the 10th World Championship of Performing Arts in 2006. The sisters shared their touching story and talent at the recently concluded Kerygma Conference. If I’m not mistaken they serve with the Feast Quezon City.

The Third Wish

My dream No. 3.a.1 in my Novena to God’s Love is to become a writer. Dream No. 3c is to have what I do bless others and inspire them to improve their lives.

Yesterday, something awesome happened that made me realize that this third wish is slowly coming true. (There’s still 3.a.2, 3.a.3, 3b and 3d, you see.)

Allow me to flashback a bit to how this all started. A couple of years ago, when I was still in the religious gifts business, I offered to make accessories for Rissa Singson-Kawpeng, Kerygma mag editor-in-chief. She was hosting Kerygma TV. I gave her necklaces and earrings to wear on cam. At that time it was the only thing I could contribute to their mission in spreading God’s

word. Rissa was appreciative, even asked me to make her tiara for her wedding.

When I got involved in Proudly Filipina.com, an online magazine and social network for Filipinas, I was clueless about what an editor does. I asked Rissa for some tips and sent her the link to some of my articles to get a critique. I guess she liked them because she asked me to write for Didache 2010. Wow me, a Didache writer! It was a twelve year old dream that finally came true. (I wrote about this for Didache 2011. Just watch for it there.)

My reflection for Sept. 20, 2010 was about a principle we were taught when I was taking up my Masters in Entrepreneurship. In that piece I included a prayer I composed as an entrepreneur. It’s a quirky little prayer borne out of my business frustrations but written with great faith:

When business dips and sales are few, O Lord, sustain me. When the BIR comes and finds non-existent income, O Lord, defend me. When strategies and ideas run dry, O Lord, inspire me. When opportunities knock and the risk is scary, O Lord, encourage me. When money is scarce and the SSS and Philhealth checks need to be signed, O Lord, empower me. When you finally bless us with abundance and loyal employees need a raise, O Lord, remind me.

The next day, I received some emails thanking me for the reflection. It warmed my heart that my simple little prayer touched these people. One email in particular floored me. It said:

“don't know you but I would like to thank you for your "prayer" sa Didache reflection yesterday.

"When money is scarce and checks need to be signed, O Lord, empower me."

I really like this sis. It became my inspiration since yesterday and I want to make it my personal prayer from now on. I actually posted it in my FB account. You see, I needed to fund a check worth 35k today and since yesterday, been worrying how to produce that amount since funds are low. Praise be to God, before 3pm today, I was able to produce exactly that amount... The Lord empowered me… and thank you so much. May the Lord continue to use you. God bless you.”

So this is what it feels like to be the straw through which God’s blessings flow. I was amazed, awed and humbled.