These Little Wonders

Years ago, I told Tito Ernie Maipid that for me, the two letter 'S' in the word MISSION stand for "serve" and "surrender."  Today, Fr. Benedict affirmed that when he shared about the Gospel and his new assignment. In the Gospel, Jesus was resolutely determined to go to Jerusalem. When they were not welcomed in a Samaritan Village, James and John asked Him if He'd like to call down fire from heaven to consume the people there, but Jesus rebuked them and journeyed to another village. He did not have time for that because He is focused on getting His mission done.  The mission is urgent. And just how Jesus did it, we really need to FOCUS... on the immense LOVE of God and on the intensity of the mission entrusted to us. The key is SURRENDER. After experiencing God's love, comes mission. There is an overwhelming voice of fear but more than that there is also an overwhelming sound of God's loving presence in our lives. Let's choos...

Today is Thursday but our priest celebrant during the noon mass was Fr. Benedict. He shared how the invitation came to him as a surprise and how he truly believes that God is a God of surprises.  I believe so, too. :)  Last night, God surprised me big time when I received an early birthday gift from my two brothers. LA bought me a new phone while AR bought the SIM. Since I won't be in Manila on the week of my birthday, they already gave me their presents. I was really overwhelmed at how the Lord answered my prayer through them. And His answer was way better than what I have asked for. Truly, God is a God of wonders. Great and wonderful is He! In awe, I asked the Lord, "What have I done to deserve this?"  He didn't say a word, but He smiled as He embraced me. And that was more than enough for me to realize that there is nothing I could do to ever deserve God's love. As Fr. Benedict said in one of his homilies, "Ang kagandahang loob ng Panginoon a...

Today's Gospel is an affirmation for me. And I truly believe that Fr. Ruper's homily is God's way of consoling me. :)  Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 9:1-6. Jesus summoned the Twelve and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases,  and he sent them to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.  He said to them, "Take nothing for the journey, neither walking stick, nor sack, nor food, nor money, and let no one take a second tunic. Whatever house you enter, stay there and leave from there.  And as for those who do not welcome you, when you leave that town, shake the dust from your feet in testimony against them." Then they set out and went from village to village proclaiming the good news and curing diseases everywhere.  From the homily of Fr. Ruper Solis:  There are three things that we learn from today's Gospel.  We are MESSENGERS . We are being sent to spread the M...

Things, like people, always come and go. Truly, nothing is permanent in this world. Whether we like it or not, we would always need to deal with a lot of "letting gos" and "moving ons." That's just the reality of life.  Just last night, I lost my phone to some teenager who must have needed it more than I do. My co-passengers advised me to report immediately to the nearby police officer because the suspect was just walking across the street (it happened in Anonas). So I got off the jeepney and started looking for a police officer or at least a barangay tanod. However, I did not find one. With legs shaking and a heart pounding so hard on my chest, I decided to just go home. Everything happened so fast but that incident taught me valuable lessons that I would carry for the rest of my life.  1. Nothing lasts forever. As I said, things, like people, come and go. So, first of all, don't get too attached to the temporary. Part of my presentation for...

"Ate, gising na. Late ka na!" I heard my brother say this morning, and with a heavy head, I got up and said, "Wag mong sabihin yan! There's power in words." I left the apartment quite early than usual and I was a bit confident that I won't be late. It was such a beautiful morning, the sun is up, and I enjoyed walking along Karangalan Drive all the way to Gate 1.  After 10 minutes of waiting, I finally got to ride a jeepney bound for Mc Do Marcos Highway. From there I rode a jeepney bound for LRT (that's after intense running after the jeep and pakikipagbalyahan ). When I reached LRT Santolan, I exercised by brisk walking and jogging just so I could catch the next train to Recto. I took the stairs because the escalator is jam-packed. Thank God I arrived at the platform just before the door of the train closes.  I rode the jeepney to the Global Mission Center and arrived a minute before the end of the grace period. In short, I wasn't lat...

Buti na lang Sabado bukas.  Buti na lang nakauwi pa ako kagabi at nakapaglaba bago bumuhos uli ang ulan. Buti na lang idineklara na walang pasok ngayon (dahil hindi talaga ako makakapasok gawa ng pinagsamang baha at dysmenorrhea). Buti na lang hindi nawalan ng kuryente. Buti na lang may load pa ang broadband stick ko. Buti na lang may signal kahit paano.  Buti na lang hindi pa ubos ang gasul at nakapagluto pa ako.  Buti na lang may iluluto pa akong ulam at isasaing na bigas. Buti na lang may tubig pa akong iinumin.  Buti na lang hindi nawalan ng tubig at nakaligo pa ako. Buti na lang mabait ang kapitbahay namin at ibinili ako ng Milo at itlog.  Buti na lang kahit nasa trabaho ang kapatid ko at nasa Iloilo ang mga magulang ko, hindi kami nawawalan ng balita sa isa't isa dahil sa teknolohiya.  Buti na lang nag-desisyon na ang organizers ng Blogapalooza na i-reschedule ito sa ibang araw. Buti na lang mas kaunti na ang mga gamit namin ngayon...

We have such a beautiful First Reading today which both serves as a reminder and a challenge for me.  Since Couples for Christ announced its theme for 2015, God has already started preparing me for it. Ever since I joined the community back in 2006, my journey had always been one with CFC's journey. From Lamentations when I had nothing left to do but just hope, to the call of loving one another especially one's enemies, to moving forward in Christ, to experiencing the fullness of life, to putting on the full armor of God as described in Ephesians, to proclaiming the greatness of the Lord, to obeying and witnessing, and now beholding and pondering... CFC's story has become my own story as well.  Next year, we are called to LOVE MORE inspired by John 21:15-17. And to me that means forgiving, sacrificing, and dying more ! But that would also mean living more ! As what Cardinal Tagle beautifully explained, "When we do not love we do not fully live because the d...