i'm 24! and it sounds good...
it was just last year when the yfc core (also my closest friends) of iloilo came at my house at midnight to surprise,sing, greet me a happy birthday and eat the salad that is supposed to be served at the morning. haha.. i just turned 23 then and i feel so blessed that day to have found these friends of mine who continuously love and inspire me as i served God as a fulltime missionary. It was also the time when my parents and jolo would give me a big hug, kiss, and the words "happy birthday and we love you." That was a great and wonderful year.
now as i turned 24. i woke realizing that i am in a different place. i woke up without my family and without my closest friends. but one thing came into my mind... is that waking up knowing that you are a year older, and in a continent so far away from home but with only one companion. and that is Jesus. Waking up to be greeted by Jesus a happy birthday makes me the happiest person in the world that very minute. Worshipping the the east africa team, being prayed over by them makes my heart cry. As i am always sharing to all that i always desire to have a big heart, a big heart that is like Jesus to be able to love more people and put them where i could always remember and share to them the love of God to me. And this year, I continue to wish to have that big heart. To love more especially the people here in africa. To never be afraid to love and to give love. Like Jesus, He was never afraid to love. And like Mary, who is strong enough to give love.
And to the people who have big hearts, i thank you::
- To my parents who called up and greeted me. even though we are not physically together but my heart is with you and your hearts are in mine.
- To jolo, my dearest brother, who makes me smile every time i could hear his voice.
- julie, for calling. i did not expect that call. and i appreciated it the most. you are one of the bestest bestfriends i have... and thanks for waking me up also (haha)
- daber for attending mass and say a little prayer for me. you made me happy.
- to the people who texted: jeriel, daber, kuya deks (happy bday too), fr. julius, fr. felix, gaetan, tita mayle, tita weendyle, and to the ones i forgot... thank you so much.. you brought a smile in my heart.
- to the one who emailed: leah, kuya aaron, kristine,kuya caloy, jane, tita butchee and tito budz...and those i still forgot.. thank you...
- to ate day and kuya marthin who gave me coupons for nairobi park and nairobi museum.. thank you.. i will be awaiting for that day.. pictures pictures..
- to the mission house people .. all of you.. for the chocolate cake and caramel ice cream... salamat...
- to tito nani and tita bing almanza for the chocolates... you really know what i like.. hahaha =)
and i continue to pray that God will always give me a big heart... a heart to love more people.. a heart that continues to believe and trust in His will... a heart that will follow Him all the time... in times of difficulties and pains.. i will still have the heart to say yes..
One missionary from Sudan texted me asking me what is my last wish before the day ends... And i answered that i will hope to find the right person for me.. and world peace.. but then a thought came to mind... I wish that God will always make me a woman that He wants me to be.. A woman for God... =)
Jesus, thank you for another year.. for the blessings... for always leading me to where you are. and i pray that you will always be my strength and that you will continue to lead me to the right direction and path..the path that leads to you. Amen.
Saturday, April 22, 2006
11:29 AM
11:29 AM
..it's different.... hmmm.. changing me..
funny things but good realizations...
i've always been content of knowing how to cross the street. back in the philippines, i can just run or cross a street without thinking.. or just because i've already memorized the roads and the way cars just zoom in and out... but then here, i always caught myself close to be bumped by a car! imagine me! since it's right hand drive and you always have to look right (instead of left) before crossing the street... hmmmm i should be careful..
walking about 3-4km just to save money for fare.. and just to have internet connections... but it's a good walk.. thanks to kuya marthin for the suggestion and for walking with me.. haha at least we could get a good exercise.
swimming at a very cold water in paul's (sfc kenya) pool. me, day, and marthin... grrrr.... but again, a good exercise... and fellowship with the sfcs here...
again while walking home from paul's house, i again, was close to be bumped by a passing matatu while crossing the street... look right sky! look right! not left! hahaha
hmmm.... that's me... all those little things that i've encountered or done.. God is changing me.. every bit... every little thing,... every moment of my life here in africa... making me a whole new person... =) see, how God loves me?
let God changed your life.. let God move your life.. let God... allow Him to mold you... even if it just by crossing the street or by walking long miles... but He can change you... He will... and He can make you the person He wants you to be... every minute, every second... You will be anew.. and you'll be blessed... for we are all loved by our Almighty... =)
funny things but good realizations...
i've always been content of knowing how to cross the street. back in the philippines, i can just run or cross a street without thinking.. or just because i've already memorized the roads and the way cars just zoom in and out... but then here, i always caught myself close to be bumped by a car! imagine me! since it's right hand drive and you always have to look right (instead of left) before crossing the street... hmmmm i should be careful..
walking about 3-4km just to save money for fare.. and just to have internet connections... but it's a good walk.. thanks to kuya marthin for the suggestion and for walking with me.. haha at least we could get a good exercise.
swimming at a very cold water in paul's (sfc kenya) pool. me, day, and marthin... grrrr.... but again, a good exercise... and fellowship with the sfcs here...
again while walking home from paul's house, i again, was close to be bumped by a passing matatu while crossing the street... look right sky! look right! not left! hahaha
hmmm.... that's me... all those little things that i've encountered or done.. God is changing me.. every bit... every little thing,... every moment of my life here in africa... making me a whole new person... =) see, how God loves me?
let God changed your life.. let God move your life.. let God... allow Him to mold you... even if it just by crossing the street or by walking long miles... but He can change you... He will... and He can make you the person He wants you to be... every minute, every second... You will be anew.. and you'll be blessed... for we are all loved by our Almighty... =)
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
12:25 PM
12:25 PM
greeeeen... for all of you
check out the new east and central africa site!
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check out the new east and central africa site!
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- something new and green for all
- simplier i guess
- new musicbox too!
Sunday, April 16, 2006
3:34 PM
3:34 PM
HAPPY EASTER!
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
5:39 PM
5:39 PM
CAN YOU DRINK THE CUP?
(something for lent)
Just before i left Iloilo last January 4, 2006, fr. caloy gave me three books to take to africa. to read. to learn. to know more about God.. which is true. after reading one, it touched my heart and made me thank and appreciate what God is doing in my life... i am more grateful of where He is putting and using me..
i just want to share some quotes from the book "Can You Drink the Cup?" by Henri J.M. Nouwen. It talks about following Christ. about us having our own uniqueness and calling. about us having our own missions in life. about us drinking the cup of which is where Jesus is drinking.
The greatest joy as well as the greatest pain of living come not only from what we live but even more from how we think and feel about what we are living. Poverty and wealth, success and failure, beauty and ugliness aren't just the facts of life. They are realities that are lived very differently by different people, depending on the way they are placed in the larger scheme of things.
Our own cup is our own life. We have to hold and lift it to be able to drink it. by holding and lifting, it is our choice if we decide to live in it with joy or sorrow, with pains, and with the choices that we make.
This is my life, the life that is given to me, and it is this life that i have to live, as well as I can. My life is unique. Nobody else will ever live it. I have my own history, my own family, my own body, my own character, my own friends, my own way of thinking, speaking and acting - yes, i have my own life to live. No one else has the same challenge. I am alone, because i am unique. Many people can help me to live my life, but after all is said and done. I have to make my own choices about how to live.
Jesus' life has been well lived. He had chosen to follow the Father's will. Even if it is hard and painful. even if it contains a lot of sacrifices and sorrows.
Jesus' cup is the cup of sorrow, not just his own sorrow but the sorrow of the whole human race. It is a cup full of physical, mental, and spiritual anguish. It is the cup of starvation, torture, loneliness, rejection, abandonment, and immense anguish. It is the cup full of bitterness.
Knowing that this is the cup of Jesus, are we still ready to say yes and drink in His cup? And asking the question that why did Jesus kept on saying yes to the Father's will?
..except to say that beyond all the abandonment experienced in body and mind, Jesus still had a spiritual bond with the one He called Abba. He possessed a TRUST beyond betrayal, a SURRENDER beyond despair, and a LOVE beyond all fears. ..... This was a deep spiritual YES to Abba, the lover of His wounded heart.
And the cup of sorrow is also the cup of joy.
Only when we discover this (cup of joy) in our own life can we consider drinking it.
The joys of living were stronger than the sorrows of death.
There the body of Jesus is portrayed not as racked by flagellation and crucifixion but as a beautiful, luminous body with sacred wounds.
Lifting our cup entails us to lift up our lives and lift up others lives also. Encouraging others and helping others live.
Lifting our lives to others happens every time we speak or act in ways that make our lives for others.... A life well held is indeed a life for others. We stop wondering whether our life is better or worse than others and start seeing clearly that when we live our life for others we not only claim our individuality but also proclaim our unique place int the mosaic of the human family.
And the cup that we hold and lift, we should drink.
Drinking our cup is a hopeful, courageous, and self-confident way of living. It is standing in the world with head erect, solidly rooted in the knowledge of who we are, facing the reality that surrounds us and responding to it from our hearts.
Indeed, there is a mission emerging out of a life that is never pure sorrow or pure joy, a mission that makes us move far beyond our human limitations and reach out to total freedom, complete redemption, ultimate salvation.
Drinking the cup to the bottom means living a complete life.
Living a complete life is drinking our cup until it is empty, trusting that God will fill it with everlasting life.
Let us live our lives the way God wants us to live. Be unique. Be you.. discover the joys that God is giving you.. Following His will may bring us sorrows and pains... or sufferings... but following Him will bring us to joys that we never expected.. love that is beyond all our fears..
Share this lenten seaon with your family and friends. relive the dying for salvation of our Lord. Go to confession. God bless to you all.
(something for lent)
Just before i left Iloilo last January 4, 2006, fr. caloy gave me three books to take to africa. to read. to learn. to know more about God.. which is true. after reading one, it touched my heart and made me thank and appreciate what God is doing in my life... i am more grateful of where He is putting and using me..
i just want to share some quotes from the book "Can You Drink the Cup?" by Henri J.M. Nouwen. It talks about following Christ. about us having our own uniqueness and calling. about us having our own missions in life. about us drinking the cup of which is where Jesus is drinking.
The greatest joy as well as the greatest pain of living come not only from what we live but even more from how we think and feel about what we are living. Poverty and wealth, success and failure, beauty and ugliness aren't just the facts of life. They are realities that are lived very differently by different people, depending on the way they are placed in the larger scheme of things.
Our own cup is our own life. We have to hold and lift it to be able to drink it. by holding and lifting, it is our choice if we decide to live in it with joy or sorrow, with pains, and with the choices that we make.
This is my life, the life that is given to me, and it is this life that i have to live, as well as I can. My life is unique. Nobody else will ever live it. I have my own history, my own family, my own body, my own character, my own friends, my own way of thinking, speaking and acting - yes, i have my own life to live. No one else has the same challenge. I am alone, because i am unique. Many people can help me to live my life, but after all is said and done. I have to make my own choices about how to live.
Jesus' life has been well lived. He had chosen to follow the Father's will. Even if it is hard and painful. even if it contains a lot of sacrifices and sorrows.
Jesus' cup is the cup of sorrow, not just his own sorrow but the sorrow of the whole human race. It is a cup full of physical, mental, and spiritual anguish. It is the cup of starvation, torture, loneliness, rejection, abandonment, and immense anguish. It is the cup full of bitterness.
Knowing that this is the cup of Jesus, are we still ready to say yes and drink in His cup? And asking the question that why did Jesus kept on saying yes to the Father's will?
..except to say that beyond all the abandonment experienced in body and mind, Jesus still had a spiritual bond with the one He called Abba. He possessed a TRUST beyond betrayal, a SURRENDER beyond despair, and a LOVE beyond all fears. ..... This was a deep spiritual YES to Abba, the lover of His wounded heart.
And the cup of sorrow is also the cup of joy.
Only when we discover this (cup of joy) in our own life can we consider drinking it.
The joys of living were stronger than the sorrows of death.
There the body of Jesus is portrayed not as racked by flagellation and crucifixion but as a beautiful, luminous body with sacred wounds.
Lifting our cup entails us to lift up our lives and lift up others lives also. Encouraging others and helping others live.
Lifting our lives to others happens every time we speak or act in ways that make our lives for others.... A life well held is indeed a life for others. We stop wondering whether our life is better or worse than others and start seeing clearly that when we live our life for others we not only claim our individuality but also proclaim our unique place int the mosaic of the human family.
And the cup that we hold and lift, we should drink.
Drinking our cup is a hopeful, courageous, and self-confident way of living. It is standing in the world with head erect, solidly rooted in the knowledge of who we are, facing the reality that surrounds us and responding to it from our hearts.
Indeed, there is a mission emerging out of a life that is never pure sorrow or pure joy, a mission that makes us move far beyond our human limitations and reach out to total freedom, complete redemption, ultimate salvation.
Drinking the cup to the bottom means living a complete life.
Living a complete life is drinking our cup until it is empty, trusting that God will fill it with everlasting life.
Let us live our lives the way God wants us to live. Be unique. Be you.. discover the joys that God is giving you.. Following His will may bring us sorrows and pains... or sufferings... but following Him will bring us to joys that we never expected.. love that is beyond all our fears..
Share this lenten seaon with your family and friends. relive the dying for salvation of our Lord. Go to confession. God bless to you all.
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
4:27 PM
4:27 PM
bullets....
- it's getting colder and colder here in Kenya
- im getting bigger and bigger... i'm just blessed (with food)...
- avocados, peanuts, pineapples, cadbury... hmmmmm (stop!)
- my birthday is coming up.. this is my month!
- kiswahili lessons everyday.. im learning a lot.. got to learn the language before going to tanzania..
- reading books.. again and again... pinoy jokes makes me go to sleep
- worship every 8am.... then breakfast.. yummy!
- sfc household.. nourishment for all!
- Tobit's rally was great... the videos..hmmm.. thank you, Jesus!
- musicbox meanings???
- Everyday. God is just pouring His blessings everyday... little miracles that makes me smile...
- Muntik na kitang minahal. hmmmm.... don't ask me for whom.. i just love the song... if you really want to know, email me.. ill tell you! hahaha
- More. just want to experience the love of God more and more each day.. knowing Him in every person i meet and encounter... knowing Him more deeply.
- Ukay-ukay at Mitumba... ukay galore... clothes, shoes, etc.. so cheap.. and nice!!!
- missing the ilc.. but hey, im in africa!
- cooking.. i guess im starting to love it...
- going to mass... God is just so visible everywhere...
- i miss the Philippines... missing and loving it more...
- i miss home...
- i miss my family.. and loving them more...
- i love you
- i love you, Jesus!
