His favor through side trips ( part one)

Taking a glance on the digital clock infront of us, ChrisDJ (my teammate) and I knew that we can never make it! The fast craft that would bring us to Cebu City (via Ormoc City) will depart at 7:55pm. Inside the van, we're both silent. It was already 7:30pm and we are still 30 kilometers away from Ormoc City.

I started to pray--
confessing to God my fault for not heeding to Chris' advice, i.e. we should have left Tacloban by 4pm to ensure that we arrive at the pier on-time or earlier;
explaining to God that we tarried because the fellowship over a 'halo-halo' was so sweet, with Him as the center of our conversation.
In silence, I told God: "Father, maybe it will be fun to stay overnight inside the ferry terminal--- unless you will do something!"

Chris, on the other hand was also praying, asking God to do something knowing that our time in Tacloban was really maximized and no second was wasted.

At 8:05pm, we were at the pier's gate. I wonder why the ferry terminal was filled with passengers. "Ah, maybe there are other fastcrafts on schedule. I was truly convinced that ours had left ten minutes ago."

Lo and behold, we learned that the fastcraft was delayed!
In fact, we were 25-minute early because the vessel arrived at 8:30pm. Hallelujah!
Yes, Chris and I were the last passengers to 'check-in'!
I could see restlessness among the passengers inside the terminal. Some have their eyes closed. Some are chatting while glancing their watches once in a while.
I told Chris "Hah, if they only knew who are the 'culprits' of the delay,"
and we began laughing out loud!

touching young lives...

October 18-21, 2006
Jasmin Beach Resort Marabut Samar, Leyte
Dubbed as 'Breakaway', this youth huddle is just one of the 12 Leadership Training Conferences organized by the Campus Crusade for Christ simultaneously done across the Philippines, during the month of October.

Along with two others from PCCC National Office, we came. I gave a lecture on love, courtship and marriage on top of 3 teaching assignments on discipleship.

Thank God for these opportunities through which I was able to share (and be refreshed with) timeless principles, such as:

- trusting on the absolute trustworthiness of God's word to be the sole basis of our every perspective and life decisions;
- pursuing purity as an expression of our love to God, to self, to family and friends, to future spouse and future kids (for singles);
- having the right priorities, e.g. 3Ms (master, mission, mate, the third 'M' comes as a bonus!)

WITNESSING BLITZ

On the third day of the 'breakaway', at exactly 3:30pm, we all went out to share the gospel to a nearby fishers village. All of us, including our plenary speaker and teaching staff joined the students in sharing the four spiritual laws, a gospel tract explaining God's plan for man-- i.e. to be reconcilled with Him through His Son Jesus Christ.

It was already past four o'clock in the afternoon when we passed by a national high school. I took the courage to approach a teacher in her early fifties. She gladly welcomed us offering a study area where we can conveniently talk. After much explanation, she decided to receive Christ as her personal savior and Lord.

Praise God for the harvest that afternoon, there were 81 who surrendered their lives to Jesus.

I THANK GOD FOR YOU---
my friends for being with me through your prayers and for being God's channel of His provision.

To God be the glory!

Come Away...

"Don't you be in such a hurry
'Cause it only leads to worry--
There's a time to work
and there's a time to pray;
Find a quiet place to rest,
Let your empty heart be filled,
Come and spend some time with Me--
Come away..."

One saturday morning, this song (by Maranatha) came to mind like a gentle rebuke from the Father. He knew that I was sooo preoccupied with work. Can't resist the temptation of reporting to office, even if it's my day off. The choleric me!. And yes, He saw my t0- dos- list as if blinking "red" in my thoughts as soon as I woke up that morning.

But then, the song got its way and captured my senses. I stopped and shifted my attention to every word it says. How could I refuse such impression when it has always been true to me all these years? There is no substitute to spending quiet moments worshiping God and meditating on His Word. Jesus Christ, Himself exemplified this.

As I sat beside my bed, my eyes gazed through the open window and saw one little bird joyfully chirping. Suddenly, there was surge of longing to be alone with God. To experience freedom in Him just like that chirping little creature. I knew, I must come-away with the King.

Only in solitude with the King of kings do I find rest and fulfillment alone---

where, in full surrender I can lay down all my cares, in exchange of peace and joy;

where, like a little child I can rest fully in His arms;

I relish in His unconditional love!

Why not, He is my Father who loves me for who I am-- here and now!

"...our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Thee." - St. Augustine

Fireseeds

No doubt about it--- I fell in love with Christian Koreans!
Here's an article written by a friend expressing the impact of Christian Koreans to us who attended the International Women Prayer Conference held at the OsanRi Prayer Mountain, South Korea last August 21-24, 2006. Read on:




We knew from the first few steps we took that South Korea is a nation blessed by our Heavenly Father. We ogled at the superhighways, the buildings, the tasty/spicy food, the prices of commodities (mahal!) and most of all, the way Koreans desperately cried out to God in prayer. Ang tindi nila! No wonder. How could God ignore their ear-splitting, decibel-record-breaking and round-the-clock outcry for their own personal and national revival?

Their passionate prayer & fasting shook us, to put it mildly.
Their fire for God and country burned our hearts.
Now, we carry spiritual fire seeds and trust the Lord to use these to impact our families, ministries and our beloved Philippines.

Revival is not only for South Korea.
It can happen for the Philippines!
And it can happen to the rest of the world.
Let us claim that by faith.
We pray that our generation will spark a consuming, holy fire that will cause national transformation—a transformation that the Lord will use to help reach other nations for His Kingdom’s sake.

We also pray for the unity of Christ’s Body, the Church, for the Lord has ordained us to fulfill the Great Commission TOGETHER.

We challenge you to take this fire seed that we have and let God stoke its flame. As individuals, let us commit to pray fervently and fast. Just like Esther, let us declare for the sake of Christ, “If I perish, I perish.”

May you be convinced, just as we and our Korean brethren are, that prayer with fasting is God’s chosen way to fan the fire seeds into a great, unstoppable blaze!
(Joan Penelope Caberte)

ESTHERS is a global fellowship of praying and fasting Christian women (and men) in all communities who are preparing the way for the coming of the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ.

I enjoin you to pray for the world's global giant problems: lostness, leadership, illiteracy, diseases and extreme poverty.

OUR PRAYER COVENANT

SUNDAYS:
Moral and spiritual awaking in our world.
(II Chronicles 7:14)

MONDAYS:
Leaders of my country and state or province. (I Timothy 2:1,2)
Africa

TUESDAYS:
Transforming among our young people and schools. (II Chronicles 17;9,10)
Asia

WEDNESDAYS:
Persecuted Christians all over the world (Hebrews 13:3)
Europe

THURSDAYS:
Our churches and their ministries (Ephesians 5:27)
Latin America

FRIDAYS:
Marriages and families. (Psalms 103:17)
North Africa/Middle East

SATURDAYS:
Spiritual development as believers. (Romans 12:1)
North America

"if i perish, i perish!"

Fatalism, so it seems!
When Queen Esther resolved to save her people, she knew that such a decision may cost her to give up all the comforts of the palace and lose her life to death. Yet she no longer cares. In her heart of hearts, she knew that she was called to rise up and fulfill God’s purpose for her life.
It was a statement uttered with much faith.

I got acquainted with this courageous queen since I was a child. My Sunday School teacher, no other than my mother boasts of how God orchestrated the life of Hadassah (Esther's Hebrew name); with emphasis on her obedience to Mordecai, her uncle who bade her to go and ask the King to amend the edict to kill all the Hebrews in the land. (The rest of the story is recorded in the book of Esther,Holy Bible)

Our teacher would then end the story with a prayer, mentioning our names to the Father-- asking Him to help us grow in obedience and reverence to Him; and to be brave like Esther in fulfilling God's purpose for us in this world. And then we eagerly respond "amen" even if we didn't really understand what her prayer means.:-)

Now that I have grown both in age and in the faith, I can't help but thank God how He has answered the prayers of my teacher. I knew that God has called me to fulfill the Great Commission of Jesus Christ. Like Esther, I have made a resolve to "help spread the love of God and the message of salvation to the unreached people groups (UPGs) in the world".


They are those who by culture, are prevented from knowing and experience the Father intimately. There are thousands of them, and are actually seeking for God earnestly--- through their religious rituals and traditions.

They need to know Jesus Christ being the "only way, the truth and the life". (John 14:1) They need to see a life changed by the Christ as a witness to the resurrection power of the Lord Jesus.

With this, I carry the passion of Esther when she said: "If I perish, I perish."

little heaven down here

Zero visibility in a seemingly never ending curves! My mind tells me not to go ahead as moonsoon rains kept pouring in this part of Northern Luzon.
We're heading to Atok, hometown of Densce, my friend. Atok is one of the municipalities of Benguet-- I began to ask myself why on earth I went ahead traversing this mountainous province when the weather bureau tells us otherwise. Maybe, it was the idea of travel in itself that thrilled me to say yes.
Nonetheless, as I was already seated not-so-comfortably inside the van, I finally rested on the thought that if I wanted to make this trip a meaningful one, I might as well start by trusting the driver who takes control of the wheel. "Surely, he's already mastered the terrain", I calmed myself. Shifting my gaze towards the top of towering mountains, I asked the Lord to help me see the beauty of fogs.

TRUE ENOUGH, I had the opportunity to worship God together with the Ibalois and Kankanais.
Even if I cannot understand their dialects, God’s love was clearly conveyed to me through their kindness and hospitability. The warmth of Christian fellowship was felt with their welcoming smiles.

The simplicity of life in Atok (and other rural areas in the countryside) beacons us to live our lives trouble-free. To get rid of the “if-onlys” and “what-ifs” that most often than not complicate our lives and to just allow God to shape and fit us into His mold. It's only then we can truly say that we've lived life to its fullest.