Monday, December 25, 2006

The One True Light

Rejoice! A blessed Christmas to all :-)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning with God;
all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.
In him was life, and the life was the light of men.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
He came for testimony, to bear witness to the light, that all might believe through him.
He was not the light, but came to bear witness to the light.
The true light that enlightens every man was coming into the world.
He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world knew him not.
He came to his own home, and his own people received him not.
But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God;
who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father.
(John bore witness to him, and cried, "This was he of whom I said, `He who comes after me ranks before me, for he was before me.'")
And from his fullness have we all received, grace upon grace.
For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known.
(John 1:1-18)

Monday, December 18, 2006

A New Space

My Christmas gift to myself is *tadah* a new space. I was creating one in Baguio City when life stopped "happening" to me and I started to make it "happen," and now it looks like I've made it happen at new digs in Mandaluyong. What it's going to eventually look like is something still in my head, but bits and pieces are starting to get put together. Worst case would be a sleeping mat in the middle of the condo floor, but that's a little too sad to imagine (I'd probably be better off crashing over at Rhia's, Ney's, or Miles'!).

The great thing is that almost everything important to me is within the perimeter - my best friends, both my offices, my training program. Home, He Cares, and the kitchen are still not too far away, and it'll save me a huge chunk of travel time to be centrally located. An added bonus is that an old sorority sister lives only three stories up - so there'll always be someone to borrow a cup of sugar from (as if I'll be doing anything that needs sugar).

So it's an exciting new phase in my life. Come to think of it, it's actually God's little gift to me, just like JJ Phad in BC, and I'm looking forward to what the New Year in the new digs will bring, sleeping mat and all. :-)

Monday, December 11, 2006

Failing Forward...and Into His Arms

Breakdown, major one. I never expected that one coming; and it was dark and ugly while it lasted. Thank God it took only a few hours out of my life for me to see His hand pull me out of that place and set me back on my feet.

We're not meant to wallow - although at times our humanity requires us to. In self-centered misery, there's a denial of the light at the end of the tunnel, the dancing after the mourning, the Easter morning. He will always pull us through, and in this case, He had me rejoicing in a matter of relative moments.

It's times like these when being Christian is most powerful: when the ground beneath us seems to crumble, we are assured of the steady foundation of His promises. He is the only One who walks with us in the lonely valley, when we cannot trust even our own footing; He sees us not for our many failures but lovingly acknowledges our possibility. The future we are living in truly calls us powerfully into being who we are today - after all, He who is Integrity Himself promised us a future full of hope, He who has plans for our welfare, not our woe (Jeremiah 29:11-16). And truly, all things work for those who love Him and are called according to His purposes (Romans 8:28).

Praise be the God of our salvation, in whom all things are possible :-)

Sunday, December 03, 2006

Welcome Home Kuya, and A Bientot, Roy!

Kuya JD's back home after a month of evangelization seminars (and Hainanese chicken!) in Singapore, and our good friend Roy from Canada is on his way home tomorrow after a much too brief visit. Tonight we had a welcome home/farewell dinner for them, with food, beer, and lots of possibilities created. Praise be to God! Love and blessings all around :-)

Related

Today I just got present to the miracle of being related to another human being in terms of friendship. My definition of a "good friend" may be different from that of another, and it's all good. What's important is the blessing of friendship: the good friends I have in my life, and those who consider me a good friend. And I'm creating the possibility of being related fully to all of them, whoever they may be, and however long I've known them. :-) Amazing :-)

Thursday, November 23, 2006

Faithful In The Little Things

Less than a month ago, I put together a little venture for the urban poor mothers of the He Cares Foundation - a kitchen cooperative to engage in the business of cooking and distributing packed lunches, merienda, and dinner (the call centers!) to offices and other establishments in the city. From a business point of view, the market is huge and the potential is immense; goodness knows that my own office building alone demands more than what is being supplied. But this enterprise is rooted in something more important than that: the empowerment of these women to become not just recipients of God's grace and blessings but channels of these blessings themselves. Which is exactly the essence of He Cares' mission.

The old proverb "Give a man a fish, you have fed him for today; teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime" applies particularly to the HCF Mothers' Kitchen Coop, and to other such HCF cooperatives I'd like to establish in the near future. Our counterpart of acting for ourselves upon God's providence aside from merely asking is essentially scriptural: Matthew 7:7 does not end with "Ask and it will be given to you," although it is surprising that many believers (myself previously included) seem to remember otherwise. The rest of the verse reads (to 7:8), "seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened." The Bible is replete with references on how His people powerfully went into action upon His grace and received miracles upon miracles. Moses leading Israel out of Egypt. Rahab lowering down Joshua's spies, and the red cord out her window. The widow giving her last meal to Elijah. The diseased Roman centurion who bathed in the river Jordan. The faithful friends who broke through the roof to lower a paralytic down to where the Lord was. The hemorraging woman who touched His cloak...I could go on and on. The point is, they not only asked; they acted, and they received.

God has given us talent, resources, skills, intelligence, and the most wonderful gift of free will, all of which are wasted when we sit back on our heels and expect Him to do all the work. And then, more often than not, when our prayers are "not being answered," we tend to blame Him or otherwise justify our circumstances by saying "He said 'no.'" Our inaction, which invariably results in resignation and cynicism, has absolutely no place in the Good News of our salvation; otherwise, we would never be celebrating the ebullience of Easter morning.

Back to "my" mothers. Over the last two and a half years, I've seen them receive so many of His blessings, and still revert to being resigned and cynical. I've preached the Gospel to them, shared how God has been acting in my life and in the life of others, and frequently reminded them how good and faithful He is. But I never quite witnessed the rapt expressions on their faces as when I first told them, only four weeks ago, that God's providence becomes truly real when they act upon it in their own lives. When they actually become responsible and accountable for everything He has given them - and how, acting upon those gifts, that can translate to unimaginable blessings in their lives, and the lives of those around them. That they can actually be greater than what they presently make themselves out to be, and that God is glorified even more in achieving that greatness.

From six mothers on that first day, the coop swelled to 20 seven days later. Now they even want to bring their husbands in. I can't describe the impact of their transformation - from crippling despair wrought by poverty to hope - had on me. It was just a dream, an inspiration; but with faith in God's power, we remain anchored on the promise that in Him, "all things are possible!" (Matthew 19:26). Through His grace and providence, things are now moving swiftly to make the dream a reality. And the women are now truly empowered: no longer are they mere beneficiaries of "hand-outs," but they are actually taking active part in how they want their lives to become. Since the enterprise is a cooperative, they, under the guidance and auspices of the Foundation, are ultimately responsible for the operations and profit of their work. How small or how big they can make their profits grow, and how they will lift their neighbors from envy to contribution and transformation is entirely up to them. And it's simply miraculous how God's power is working in them, with this newfound hope. They are actually acting, instead of always just asking. Praise be to God!

Today's penultimate meeting of commitment before we begin full operations on the first week of December was empowering, not just for them, but for myself. As I advised them on business and money matters, particularly in handling their personal finances (who would have known I had that in me; thank you Lord for the continuing surprises!), He inspired me to draw upon His word. "The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones. (Luke 16:10)" Kapag pinagkatiwalaan ka sa maliit na bagay, maaasahan ka sa mas malaki. A striking verse that applies not only to how one controls one's money, resources, and business, but also to everything in life that comes from the Creator. Skills, talents, relationships...everything that is entrusted to us by Him. Mindblowing - I got much out of that just by speaking it. And so did they.

It definitely was no coincidence that one of the mothers informed me that Luke 16: 1-10, was today's (more accurately, yesterday's) Gospel - and I was not aware of it (my story of not having time lately to go through my daily Mass readings). And to put God's word into action through this transformative Kitchen Cooperative, now a little thing, and through faithfulness, will be something really big, is indeed a blessing, and a privilege. All glory belongs to Him. :-)

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

The Time Has Come

Just got in from Hillsong United's concert at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium. I loved the energy and self-expression of all the many thousands of young people (myself included, hehe...) who gathered together to unabashedly sing, dance, and rock their praises to the King.

While I'm admittedly partial to Hillsong's Reuben Morgan, and to a lesser extent, Darlene Zschech, I can't help but get caught up in the contagion of United's powerful performances. The first one - a new song from their most recent album (United We Stand, 2006), is particularly apt at this point of my life: I've always said that my "medium" setting is busted, and I can only operate on "high" and "low." And, these days, I've come to realize that my "low" button is busted as well. :-)

The Time Has Come
by Hillsong United

Found love beyond all reason
You gave Your life Your all for me
And called me Yours forever
Caught in the mercy fallout
I found hope, found life
Found all I need - You're all I need

The time has come
To stand for all we believe in
So I for one am gonna
Give my praise to You

Today, today it's all or nothing
All the way, the praise goes out to You
Yeah all the praise goes out to You
Today, today I live for one thing
To give You praise in everything I do
Yeah all the praise goes out to You



All we are is Yours
And all we're living for is all You are
Is all that You are Lord


Praise Him to the Highest Heavens for a truly powerful evening of praise and worship. United rocks! Even for an "old-timer" like myself :-)

Tuesday, November 07, 2006

Full-Speed Ahead!

Haven't had much time to write lately, mainly because I've been living life to the max and playing full-out. I am profoundly grateful for the grace to be able to do so.

In the last 10 days I:

- Went back to Boracay (a breakthrough in my relationship with the island, which I'd sworn off forever), and experienced the most perfect vacation ever (breakthroughs in my travel OC'ness, relationships with people - including men, and the Bora bar scene), with a great friend and sister I only met in September (a breakthrough in friendship and choice of traveling companions!).

- Had a ton of fun at an awesome Halloween party (only a few hours off the plane, in full costume, no holds barred!)

- Reconnected with old friends and connected them with new ones

- Attended Mass at 6:00 am (major breakthrough); on another day, got home at 6:00 am and lived to tell about it...

- Went back to Cali! (always a great idea)

- Created a kitchen cooperative with the He Cares mothers, to supply cooked food to offices, run a carinderia/s

- Got Third-World Traveler Publishing Co. up, running, and in action!

- Got in action towards the December 1 deadline of setting up HBO & Associates' new office - a big, big game I love playing

- Booked more clients for C+C Personal Caterers

- Etc. and so much more!

So this is what life feels like, at full-throttle. Barely 10 days, and I feel like I've accomplished more than I ever had in 10 years! And I have absolutely no stress, even with all these things going on...although a massage right now would be absolutely lovely (running hard, but not yet tired).

God's grace be praised!

Sunday, October 22, 2006

Amazing Praise

Today I found myself, upon the invitation of a dearest sister-in-Christ, at a worship workshop. What better way to spend a Sunday afternoon...and who better else to spend it with (referring of course to the aforementioned sister, her future bridegroom, and several dozen worshippers! Plus a couple of dear familiar faces from my old worship ministry as an added bonus). Anyway, I was excited to come into communal worship after the last major space-clearing, and man, was I blown away!

Mela reminded me of how, once upon a time, I described my connection to my God as on a "broadband" level, an upgrade from "dial-up." But today, whoa, the network connection went off the scale - I was totally hooked, wired, fully connected! Rissa Singson, in her talk, also confirmed something I've only recently been experiencing in my prayer time: ever since the clearing of my relationship with Him, my early morning worship and prayer time has been much more profound and intense, albeit much shorter in length. Sometimes it takes only five minutes (from my usual 30-45 minutes), and my Lord and I "get" each other more powerfully and distinctly than if I'd spent an hour trying to get to Him.

And worship, finally, became really and truly about Him. When I used to lead worship, I'd be overly concerned about cues and appearance and melody and what to say, that I'd almost lose sight of Who worship is really about. But now I finally got it. Praise God! Woohoo!

Thursday, October 19, 2006

Grace In My Space

What's in my space today?

I'm grateful for a little quiet time to myself and my laptop. This Space Mountain of a ride has had me swept off my feet the last several days that I usually get home in the wee hours and way too tired to do anything else. Tonight, we called it an "early" one after eating too much (again); but Bakang seems to have other plans and is enticing me to jam awhile - I don't think so. Just sent in my "kids'" final grades; have an early day tomorrow to do catering stuff and chorva.

*An hour and a half later* Just got off the phone - haven't used the landline so much since high school; my mobile phone bill must be horrendous (the family company pays for it, and I usually get flak from my Mom when my bill goes even slightly off the charts, but lately she's noticeably nonplussed about the whole thing).

What's in one particular space in the garage today was the former love-of-my-life, the symbol of freedom and independence and my one-way ticket out of "bad" situations. My beloved Toyota is crushed beyond recognition, its hood and engine crumpled like a used tissue. I'm now dependent on friends and my father to get where I need to be, and, starting Saturday, on a hired driver to ferry me safely back and forth, especially when I'm tired and sleepy (I fell asleep at the wheel on Sunday morning; H will probably make good on his long-time promise to come over to personally kick my a$$ since the worse has happened - good enough reason to finally get jerky to come over, just kidding jerky! :-) ) But that crash created a huge space to realize many things: that I am not Superwoman and my act of "being able to do everything" is disappearing, with the ability to sleep normally taking its place; that you can actually get out of that traumatic loss of the symbol of life, liberty, and very expensive property with detachment; that you need to do what you need to do not someday, but NOW NOW and NOW, because you might not come out of the next car crash. And that God truly loves me and watches over me, and makes all things - even a potentially fatal accident (the airbags did not deploy) work for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purposes (Romans 8:28). I got out with just a split lip that hurt only when I laughed, a broken molar, and a greater sense of urgency to live life in this world in preparation for the next - in all its exceeding abundance!

And that's what in my space. What's in yours?

Friday, October 13, 2006

Tabula Rasa

...and oh so many colors to paint with. I figured that this new life should go with a new blog.

The old life and all its drama is now archived here.

Bring it on, the new life is beginning now, and now, and now, and now, and now...

God truly makes all things new :-)