Brewed in the Love of the Lord

I enjoy drinking coffee, specially with friends.  'Having coffee' becomes a venue to catch up with each other's lives or discuss an interesting topic.

Surely, many would agree that brewed coffee is far better than the instant ones. The process of making a cup of coffee involves roasting of coffee beans, grinding of the beans, mixing the ground beans with hot water (brewing), and separating the liquid for a cup of freshly brewed coffee.  This process has some similarities to our Christian lives.

We are like the coffee beans, we inevitably experience  heat or challenges in our lives. Sometimes we feel like being roasted and even ground with our concerns. "We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair (2 Cor. 4:8)." But it is when we go through the roasting and grinding that we are brewed in the love of the Lord.  Even if the process is difficult and long, it is the way we can share to others the flavor of Christ in our lives. "For we who live are constantly being given up to death for the sake of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh (2 Cor. 4:11)"

Recall the "roasting and grinding" experiences of your life.  Share your Christ experience in these times.  Have these experiences made you bitter or sweet?

Finding Happiness in all of God's Creation

In 1226, St. Francis died while preaching Psalm141. I just find that amazing. He served the Lord until his last breath. What lead me to reflect on St. Francis is because of a statue of him that I saw in the venue of our planning in Bohol. He was among the different animals, particularly a hawk and a monkey. It was told that St. Francis preached even to birds and a particular wolf, calling them sister bird and brother wolf. " Francis preached the teaching of the Catholic Church, that the world was created good and beautiful by God but suffers a need for redemption because of the primordial sin of man. He preached to man and beast the universal ability and duty of all creatures to praise God (a common theme in the Psalms) and the duty of men to protect and enjoy nature as both the stewards of God's creation and as creatures ourselves (Wikipedia)."

Have you ever stood on an overlooking view of God's mighty creation? The scene just takes your breath away. Like St. Francis, we have to appreciate God in all His creation. By having this outlook we become grateful people. As I am writing this reflection, I am at sea on the way to Cebu from Bohol. I thank God for the vastness of the sea and the life that is in it.

Without a grateful heart, we become perenial complainers. The danger is when complaining becomes a habit for us. It's when we find fault in almost any situation or discontent with what we have been blessed. We have to develop an appreciation for God's everyday miracles. Francis' outlook was of joy and great appreciation for all of the life God created. He even referred to the sun and moon as Brother Sun and Sister Moon. There is nothing that can rob God's joy from this saint.

What makes you truly happy?

We realize that the things that give us real joy are given by God for free. For me, my heart bursts with joy when I am with my family. Happiness that is born out of greed or lust are temporary and are meant to lure and trap us. Francis found the ultimate happiness, the love of Christ. many of us have already found Christ, it is just a matter now of seeing Christ in all of God's creation.

In Condition to Face Life's Storms

After a long time, i played basketball again. I was pumped up, very excited to shoot those hoops again. In the first 10 minutes, I was 0 out of 5. I made several attempts, but my shots were either too strong or too weak. There are a number of reasons (excuses) why I did poorly. I was unfamiliar with court , it had been months since I last threw a shot, my legs were out of condition, and I was trying to catch my breath among other things.
This reminds me of something about facing our problems. Often, we pray intensively when we encounter life's problems. There can be two scenarios; a) one who faces a problem but has always prayed faithfully b) another is one who faces a problem but only prays at the time of the challenge.
Just as storms are a part of the natural course of the environment, so are the storms that naturally come in our lives. When our problems arrive, we have to be:
1. Familiar with God's voice
2. Conditioned with prayer
3. Filled with the breath of the Holy Spirit
This is experienced by those who have been already praying prior to the "storm." That is why when problems come they are calm and even at peace. I know of someone who found out that he had cancer symptoms and had to be operated on. He confessed that he was surprised that despite the shocking news, he was not afraid and he felt peace knowing that many of his friends will be praying for him. He exhibited a certain strength only manifested by the power of the Holy Spirit. This is a similar case when Jesus was sleeping during the storm. "Suddenly a violent storm came up on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by waves; but he was asleep. They came and woke him, saying, "Lord, save us! We are perishing!"He said to them, "Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?" Then he got up, rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was great calm (Matthew 8: 24-26)."
Let us start to condition ourselves in the Lord through consistent prayer. Let us not wait for problems to bring us down on our knees. So when it's 'game time' we can make the important shots and not make excuses of doing poorly in handling our problems. Surely God will help all those who call upon His Name even if we have only remembered him during the crisis. But by being faithful and ready, we can overcome problems with His strength and even be an instrument to help others in their storms.

The Eyes of Faith

"When the Israelites saw Goliath, they ran away in terror. "Look at him!", they said to each other.(1 Sam 17:24)

When the soldiers saw Goliath, they compared this giant to their own build and realized how puny they were. But when David saw Goliath, he compared him to the Living God and realized how puny Goliath was.

"After all, who is this heathen Philistine to defy the army of the living God?" (1 Sam 17:26b)

That is the difference between someone who sees through the eyes of fear and someone who sees through the eyes of faith.

Today, what is your "Goliath?" How do you see your Goliath? With fear or with faith?
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In Tune With God

I was asked to play the guitar for worship this morning.  I overlooked in testing if the strings were in tune and just went right into playing. I later noticed that the 2nd string was off key. It was impossible to adjust the strings in the middle of the song. In short, the songs went on while bearing with one string that was out of tune.

Just like in our Christian living.  We can go on following Christ, but many of us still have a part of our lives that is not attuned with the Lord.  We may go on serving Him while we have issues with purity or other sins that we find hard to surrender.  The result is a service that fails to reach its true potential. We can still do the usual things we do for the Lord, but the impact of a service derived from a life fully "in tune" with God is a far cry from a service born out of a compromised or "off key" Christian lifestyle.

The product of an off-key Christian lifestyle are:
Energy leak.  Our strength is being drained by this part of our lives that refuses to yield to God.  And when we are empty, we tend to "borrow strength" from hyping up or psyching up ourselves for the work ahead or a talk or sharing you have to give.  In the end we are tired, and will even seek strength in other vice-based "unwinding."
Loss of passion. We will tend to focus on our unworthiness more instead of a God who will love us and raise us up.
Eventual backsliding. When we feel drained, empty, and unworthy, the next is to withdraw.  The devil eventually wants us to get out of our commitment to Christ and will feed us "logical" excuses like, "Without my service, I can have more time for my family" or "The money I spend in the community can be better put in another investment."

 So, it starts with a compromised Christian living and ends up in Eventual Backsliding. So how do we combat this?  I have three suggestions:

1. Tune in to God daily. One day without prayer is enough for the devil to feed us with scheming thoughts. If we tune-in to God through faithful prayer, we will be strengthened and nourished.
2. Decide to Yield. Surrender to God that aspect of your life that compromises your Christianity. It is by the strength of the Spirit that we are to overcome.
3. Be accountable to somebody you trust. Have someone that will not hesitate to correct you and tune you back in harmony with the Lord.  People who refuse correction are most prone to compromise.  Humility will put our lives back in tune with God.

It takes time to tune a guitar and it is dependent on the sound of other strings to get that off-key string back in harmony. If you are a guitar player, you will only strum your guitar strings with gusto and passion when you know that each string is in tune.  Let us serve the Lord with maximum impact by living a life fully attuned to God. 

For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him (2 Chronicles 16:9).

Build On The Goodness God Has Gifted You

There is a self-imposed pressure people set on themselves in becoming like their predecessors, specially when the one before them was very gifted. Yes it is right to emulate the strengths of previous leaders, but to be burdened by becoming like them might not be God's purpose for you.  Build on the goodness God has gifted you. 

Things to remember when God calls you to lead:
1. God has called your predecessors for a specific purpose, for a specific time, matching their specific gift.  This means God wants to accomplish something else in your term. Something uniquely matched to your gifts as well.
2. Know your strengths, and build on them.  If you are an artist, build on your knack for design and expand from there.  If you are hardworking and persevering, then build on it and grow from that quality.  If you are a visionary, express what you see and let others gravitate to the bigger picture.
3. Let love be the reason for all that you do.  Any ordinary thing done out of love becomes extraordinary.  This, I believe should be felt to the ones you are leading.  And the rest of the details will just flow.

"I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another (Romans 15:14)." 

Words That Build

A priest said in his homily, "Words lose their meaning if they are not born out of silence."  Often we neglect the value of contemplation.  To set aside time to reflect and consult our thoughts to the Lord is very important amidst the busy world we live in today.  We have heard of the saying, "Silent waters run deep."

Some things to think about before speaking our minds:
1. Do my words add value to the other person?
2. Is it necessary for me to give my opinion?
3. Have I prayed about this statement I will make?
4. Am I reacting recklessly without understanding the situation?


If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal (1 Cor.13:1).

The words that come from our mouths should be able to build up, not destroy.  We have to speak in the language of love.  Just as the tongue is destructive, it can also be very upbuilding.  Words that build have a deep foundation.  The foundation of love.

Let us honor others as often as we can and be generous in praise.  Let our words be music to the ears of God and men.

Translating Vision Into Reality

I love this definition on leadership by Warren Bennis, an American scholar and pioneer of  the field of Leadership Studies. He says, "Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality."


When leading, many of us get caught up in the details.  And usually, our energies are drained in these details that we lose sight of the bigger vision.  We need to empower people who can manage these "details" and focus on making the vision into reality.  Thus, for us to be on track in leading, allow me to share my recent learning:

1. Draw a Road Map. Begin with drawing up the vision (which is the destination of the road map), then work backwards to where you are now.  Working backwards means to continually ask, "How can the vision be achieved?"

2. Look for People who can move you Forward.  We enlist the people who can best deliver the requirements to move us forward in the road map.  Many times we commit the mistake of getting the people first and trying to match the task.  We have to define the task first, then look for the people who can achieve it.

3.  Empower Your Team. It is important that your team embraces the vision and knows exactly how they are contributing towards it.  Teamwork and trust helps us move forward faster. As Covey would put it, "The Speed of Trust."

4. Apply Kaizen. Kaizen, a japanese word means "Change for the better."  As we strive towards our vision, we seek for continuous improvement. We can apply the PDCA cycle which is, "Plan-Do-Check-Adjust."  Using this cycle, we are able to enhance our methods and advance further towards our vision.  We do all these in prayer with the power of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus came from heaven to earth to save us from our sins, to set us free (Luke 4). This was His vision, His road map while on earth.  He called the 12 apostles and empowered them.  He died for our sins, and brought salvation to mankind. And before ascending into heaven, he tells His apostles, "Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will do the works that I do, and will do greater ones than these, because I am going to the Father (John 14:12). Jesus tells them that they will do greater things (like Kaizen) because the Father will send the Holy Spirit.


Christ has called us to lead with vision. Let us once again fall in love with the vision that we have and share this romance with those we lead.

What We Really Want to Happen in a Dialogue

I am privileged to have been part of conducting a Christian Life Program in the area of Saguing (pronounced as Sagayn) in Myanmar. The experience of crossing cultural and language borders to deliver Christ's message is something I won't forget. When speaking, one has to be very concise and clear since it will still be translated. There is much need to communicate non-verbally, since actions like hand gestures and facial expressions can help in driving a point.
In communicating with others, specially to our loved ones, are we clear and concise? Are we masking or postponing the things we have to say? There are many things we do non-verbally that speaks out loud, yet the words that come out are very different from our actions. The east and west have very opposite approaches to communication. The west is straightforward, while the east is more conservative about opinions.

But regardless of cultural background, we need to pursue a one-on-one dialogue. The goals being; to clarify issues, to forgive and reconcile, and to facilitate healing. Many dialogues do not end well because of pride and pre- conditions.

Let us ask the grace from God to speak clearly and concisely that will translate to healing and love. For at the end of the day, this is really what we want.

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Mother of All Virtues

October 29, 2011 (Saturday)
"Pride is the root of all evil and Humility is the mother of all virtues," a priest mentioned in his homily.
So, if there is one thing we can work on, then it is our humility. And if there is one thing we should avoid, it is pride. This approach sounds simple, yet true.

Test Your Limits

October 28, 2011(friday)
It was a mission-filled day here in Mandalay, Myanmar. We went to 7 homes and conducted Household Prayer Meetings. It was the first time for each of the families to experience a household. We started at 7:30am and ended at around 10:00pm doing a sort of a "household-marathon" around the city where the CFC members lived. I could say we were stretched to the limits of our physical strength, but the spirit is strong and alive.
I believe that in testing our limits, we will be able to achieve a breakthrough to a new level of strength. Just like how our muscles grow as we continually test the limits of the weight we can carry and the number of repetitions.
Pushing ourselves to love the seemingly unlovable, increasing our prayer time, reading more pages of a book in a sitting, and preparing extensively for a talk are but just some examples of testing our limits.
But we also realize that we are serving a God without limits. Impossible is a word unfamiliar to God. If we think we have done our best for God, there is still more strength and abilities that He has in store for us that we might just surprise ourselves.

What is God's Mission for you Today?

October 28 (friday)
The Lord chose His apostles for a purpose. Jesus wills that through them, His love and power will be known. He has set for us a mission. Let us ask ourselves, "What is God's mission for me today?."
Let us reflect on these three things that will help us in our mission today.
1. Do not forget that you are Chosen for mission.
Remember that the Lord calls each of us by name. Just like the apostles, they were called and they followed. "Remember I chose you..." The Lord anoints and equips the vessel He has chosen.
2. When Challenged, Be Faithful.
When we do things for the Lord, it will not be easy. There are challenges we have to face. Your mission might challenge you to ask for forgiveness or forgive somebody. You may be lead to be humiliated because of your mission. In some instances, you might just find the mission as impossible or beyond your capabilities. Jesus carried the challenge of the cross and was faithful until death. Our challenges will strengthen us because we will endure by faith.
3. Have Christ always in your heart.
Without the presence of Christ inside us, we will not bear fruit. We might have all the skills for mission but do not have the reason for the mission. Christ is the reason for mission. With Him in our hearts, love will overflow to the people we meet. Love is at the heart of every mission. Without love, our work is bound to fail. Only Christ brings us the true victory in our mission.

Daily, let us ask the Lord to reveal His mission. Keeping in mind that we are chosen by God to do His mission. Through our faithfulness we will overcome life's challenges and claim the victory with Christ in our hearts.

Faith is an Encounter with Jesus

October 28, 2011 (friday)
I went to a 6am mass in Mandalay and in the priest's homily he said,"Faith is not an ideology, not even a morality. Faith is life. Faith is an encounter with Jesus."
We can get caught up in the routine of service and lose the essence of why we serve or attend mass. In all we do, we are reminded to seek for an encounter with Jesus. This is what faith is all about, a relationship with our Lord.

Time to Serve

October 27 (thursday)
One of the brothers in the mission said, "There is no convenient time to serve the Lord." At any phase of our lives, we will always be busy. When we're young, we are busy with school. When we graduate, we're busy with work. When we retire, we're busy vacationing. And later at the final years of our lives we realized I should have spent time in knowing, loving, and serving God.

If you are reading this, now is the time to serve the Lord!

God of the City

Oct 27, 2011 (Thursday)
We are now in Mandalay City, Myanmar. Together with the Mission team. We went through a 9-hour bus trip from Yangon. We were humbled to have been met by the archbishop at 5:30am. On our first day, we conducted 2 prayer meetings with burmese members, a kids camp for 100 burmese kids, and met the filipino community. The whole time, we had priests translating our words. We could see the hunger of these people to know God more and have a personal relationship with him. Although we are in a Buddhist country, there is a great longing and thirst for the power of the Holy Spirit.
We've been listening to Chris Tomlin's song "God of the City."

One of the stanzas goes:
"You're the God of this City
You're the King of these people
You're the Lord of this nation..."
The chorus goes "Greater things are yet to come in this city. Greater things are still to be done in this city."
It is true that He is the God of all, and of this city where we are. I have a 3 point reflection on this.

1. We have a Great God who will do Great things through us.
To doubt our capacity as God workers is to doubt God's greatness through us. Most of us are hesitant to lead or take on a responsibility because we feel we are ill-equipped. By submitting to God, He will open the floodgates of His graces to flow through us. Just like how some simple fishermen have become the Church's pillars.
2. God has prepared the City
"The harvest is plenty and the workers are few. Pray to the Lord of the Harvest to send more workers." We need more people to go on mission. We need harvesters. I read in a Catholic Missions magazine, "Mission is the hallmark of the Holy Spirit." The Holy Spirit pushes our hearts to go to the end of the earth. I believe every Christian should experience mission.
3. Love is the ultimate language
When we give talks, we always have translators. But there are many instances during casual conversations with the locals that we have to act out what we want to say as if playing charades. But the eyes tell a lot, and they speak of love. We see the love in the eyes of others and we know what they mean to say. When we talk about God we use the language of love.
Yes greater things are yet to come! As we embark on day 2 of mission in Mandalay, we are excited of God's greatness to work through us.