My Journal |

Today is Daniel’s 2nd Birthday! Daniel is a very sweet and loving child. He is a jolly kid and now that he is one year older we’re expecting to discover more wonderful things about him. He is our only child who was born here in Riyadh. I believe that He is God’s gift to us as well as Micaella and Kyle. Often times his siblings would fight because they want to get the attention of Daniel. Daniel really brings joy to our family and friends. I  hope that someday he will be able to meet his other cousins. We’re grateful to God for giving us Daniel. We love you Daniel. God bless you in Jesus Name

HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!

I was able to watch the feeding sessions in Metro Manila. I was so amazed that there are many people and churches who help people who are needy and don’t have food to eat. Not only that, they also share the words of God. So in that way stomaches are filled as well as their spirit. In some cases the main concern of the people are the food and not the word of God. But some felt the goodness of God in their lives because they feel that they are part of the family .

I am blessed to see Christian Koreans and share their love to our fellow Filipinos. I also heard them sing one Filipino Christian song. They offer free services like haircut, spa, massage, they attend on the needs of the sick people and those who are wounded, they give gifts to those who celebrate their birthday and many others. Some say that the food is not very good in taste but what makes them come back is the joy that they feel everytime they attend to these kind of service.

There are some churches who allow the street people to take a bath in their church before worshipping God. And after the service which is the Praise and Worship Service they also distribute food to the people.

Life is really not that easy in Manila but I was so surprised that there are people who share their blessings. There may be some negative effects on some of these poor people because they tend to depend on these feeding sessions making them unproductive and focusing their attention only on the food and not the words of God.

But we cannot judge them individually. From what we heard from them that they felt like part of the family through these feeding sessions, we can only pray that  someday they will realize the goodness of God in their lives and bring back all the Glory to God.

Life on earth is just our testing ground. There are only two choices to eternal life. Heaven or Hell.  We are here to past the tests  that we encounter in everyday of our lives. We are trained here on earth for us be like Jesus and to live life the way Jesus lived here on earth. We should realize that as we walk in the way God wants us to, our lives will never be the same. The problems that we thought are very hard to imagine will become lighter because God will never leave and He will help us along the.  We just have to be obedient and be submissive to His will.

How are we able to past the test. First we must be obedient and open-hearted in listening and reading His words. The words of God are sometimes difficult to follow and are sometimes hurtful to us. It hurts because truth hurts. We just have to accept the truth. When our loved ones correct us, let us not get mad easily. We must first pray to God and reflect on your arguments and be humble enough to accept your fault.

Let us always be reminded of the fruits of the Holy Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is: love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, meekness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” For us to be able to past one of the many tests to be able enter the gates of heaven.

We don’t want to be thrown in the lake of fire which is hell. And so it was written in Galatians 5:19-21 Now the works of the flesh are clearly revealed, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lustfulness,idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, fightings, jealousies, angers, rivalries, divisions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkennesses, revelings, and things like these; of which I tell you before, as I also said before, that they who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Galatians 5:19-21 “At hayag ang mga gawa ng laman, sa makatuwid ay ang mga ito: pakikiapid, karumihan, kalibugan,
Pagsamba sa diosdiosan, pangkukulam, mga pagtataniman, mga pagtatalo, mga paninibugho, mga pagkakaalitan, mga pagkakampikampi, mga pagkakabahabahagi, mga hidwang pananampalataya, Mga kapanaghilian, mga paglalasing, mga kalayawan, at ang mga katulad nito; tungkol sa mga bagay na ito ay aking ipinagpapaunang ipaalaala sa inyo, tulad sa aking pagpapaalaala nang una sa inyo, na ang mga nagsisigawa ng gayong mga bagay ay hindi magsisipagmana ng kaharian ng Dios. "

Galatians 5:22-23 “Datapuwa’t ang bunga ng Espiritu ay pagibig, katuwaan, kapayapaan, pagpapahinuhod, kagandahang-loob, kabutihan, pagtatapat,  Kaamuan, pagpipigil; laban sa mga gayong bagay ay walang kautusan.”

If there is eternal life in Heaven where the joy is everlasting, there is also eternal life in hell where sufferings are never ending. So, while we are still living on earth, we still have the chance to change for the better and come back to God and confess our sins

“Lord guide us so that we may be able to past the tests here on earth so that we may be able to enter your Kingdom and stay with you forever.”

As a mother and wife, I want to do many things to satisfy the needs of my  family. But I have learned that my first priority should be how will I be able to have time for the Lord. I have so many things in my mind that I have always wanted to do. But at the end of the day. It turns out that I have accomplished nothing.

I have learned that for us to be able to do things, we should learn how to manage our time. Below are some of the guidelines.

1. Analyze your lifestyle. Be reminded of the things you did last week  or maybe yesterday and write it down. Keeping the record of what you did will help you save time.
2. Make use of your present time. Use your present time wisely. Don’t waste time on things which are unimportant or unnecessary.
3. Prioritize what’s important. Weigh the things you want to do. In your schedule, you must do first the things that you think are of more importance than the others.

So be careful how you live, not as fools but as those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity for doing good in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but try to understand what the Lord wants you to do. Ephesians 5:15-17 (NLT)

Source: Purpose Driven Life

Luk 4:4  And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written that "man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word of God."

As human beings we nurture ourselves with nutritious food to make our body strong, healthy and beautiful. We sometimes forget that our spirit also needs nourishment. How? By reading the words of God thru the Bible and reflect on it. Hearing Christian songs also reminds us of the promise of God to us.

Being a housewife is not an easy job. I have so many chores to do at home and at the same time take care of the kids’ and my husband’s needs. Because of these, i sometimes forget to have time to dsread the Bible. This made my spirit malnourished the past few days. I got busy with other things which are not very important. It made me feel alone and not contented with the things I have. I forgot that i should be grateful for so many things. Ignoring the words of God makes us turn away from him little by little without our knowledge.

If we are very busy at home or in the office, there are ways in which we can hear and literally mean HEAR the word of God thru the AUDIO BIBLE. This way we have no excuse that we can’t read the word of the God because it is easier to HEAR them.

"Lord, I humbly come to you and ask for forgiveness in ignoring your words. Give me the joy to crave for your words everyday. Make me thirst for it. Give me physical strength to do my task, and guide me to read and hear your words. Give me the joy to share them with other people. Reveal to me Lord your words everyday. In Jesus Name I  pray. Amen."

"Truly, truly, I say to you, He who believes on Me, the works that I do he shall do also, and greater works than these he shall do, because I go to My Father." – John 14:12

"Katotohanan, katotohanang sinasabi ko sa inyo, Ang sa akin ay sumasampalataya, ay gagawin din naman niya ang mga gawang aking ginagawa; at lalong dakilang mga gawa kay sa rito ang gagawin niya; sapagka’t ako’y paroroon sa Ama." – Juan 14:12 

"And Moses said to the people, "Do not fear for God has come to test you, and that His fear maybe before you, so that you may not sin."- Exodus 20:20

"Sinabi sa kanila ni Moses, "Huwag kayong matakot, sapagkat sinusubok lang kayo ng Diyos. Ibig lang niyang magkaroon kayo ng takot sa Kanya pagkat ayaw Niya kayong magkasala." Exodo 20:20

People have experienced different struggles in life. Each one of us have our own fear. We will not be able to entertain fear if we are in the presence of God. If we follow His path we will always be reminded that He is always there to help us in times of need. If we have problems that we cannot bear, let us give them all to God. Let Him lead the way. We cannot do everything on our own.

Do you believe that God can do anything? With God nothing is impossible.We have so many in fears in our life. Fear that something might happen to us. Let us not let the negative thoughts pollute our minds. Let us not hear the words of the enemy. Let us focus our attention to the love of God for us. That because He loves us, He has His own purpose why we encounter problems. That is to come near to Him and acknowledge that He is high above all things and can do great things if we just set our fears aside.

Let us fear the Lord our God. Not in the sense that we should stay away from Him but by obeying His will and His words. Reading and Listening to His words improves our relationship with Him. One basic instruction to us is by reading the BIBLE. BIBLE is the Basic Instruction Before Leaving Earth. Let us obey Him with respect and honor Him.

With God all things are possible!

"Lord, may you take away all our fears and remind us always of your goodness and love for us. Guide us to do your will. Give us courage and strength in the trials we encounter. May it be with regards to our family, friends, health, the things that are happening around us. May we always do Your will. All these we ask in Jesus Mighty Name and with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. AMEN."

"Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers." (Ephesians 4:29)

"Huwag kayong gumamit ng masamang pananalita,  sikaping lagi na ang pangungusap ninyo’y yaong mabubuti at angkop sa pagkakataon upang pakinabang ng makaririnig." – Efeso 4:29 (Magandang Balita Biblia)

We often say excuses for saying things that we thought are just expressions. We forget that it is not nice to say bad things about other people. I myself is guilty of that. Some people just tend to say expressions which are not pleasing to God and just laugh about it. But the truth is, God does not want to hear bad things to come out of our mouth just like what is written in the above mentioned verse. We tend to discourage and let other people down when we say bad things to them or about them. Saying bad things to them is useless. It will not improve yourself, you will just ruin the person’s dignity and self worth.

Let us not get used to saying unpleasant words and we must correct people who continually say these words because it is our obligation to remind them. Let us try to stay away from it, even if it takes time and patience. Don’t give up, you can do it!

Today is Grandparent’s Day. Time for us to remember our lolo’s and lola’s who took care of us when we were. In my case, I did not grew up with my grandparents because they already died when I was young and they lived far from us. I was always thinking how is it  like to be living with your grandparents.

Time pass by, and my parents are now grandparents. I saw how they took care of my nephews and nieces while my siblings work abroad. There are times of laughter, there are times of misunderstandings. But how they took care of us will always be remembered.

I also experienced living with my parents in the Philippines and I saw how well they treated each of my kids, nephews and nieces. They took care of them and cared for them just like what they did to us. I also want to remember how my aunt took care of us when we were still small. She was there to help my mother in taking care of the 5 of us when my father was in Jeddah. When my father retired from work, that was the time when he had time to take care of his "apo" (grandsons and granddaughters). I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.

I am also blessed to be spending some time with my in-laws. I saw how they loved my kids and how they care for all their grandchildren. They also loved Joanne(my sister-in-law) and me and treated us like their own children. My husband is also blessed to be able to live with his grandparents when he was young, that I did not experience. And I am very thankful that my in-laws raised him well to become a very responsible, loving husband and father to our kids.

Now, I realized how blessed my kids, nephews and nieces are that they were able to spend some time with their lolo’s and lola’s. They’ve experienced the love and concern of their grandparents. I am very grateful to them for taking care of us and loving us for who we are.

HAPPY GRANDPARENT’S DAY  to my mother Mama Pacita and my father Papa Arturo, my in-laws Nanay Marilyn and Tatay Gerardo,Sr., lola Dely, my aunt Meme, nanay Betty and nanay Ikang. We love you all. We hope that you will continue to understand, love and support us in every decisions we make.

Near or far, we must always remember them and have time to communicate with them once in a while for they need to feel our love for them.

To all the Grandparents, HAPPY GRANDPARENT’S DAY!Thank you for taking good care of us!God Bless you all  In Jesus Mighty Name! 

“Call to me, and I will answer  you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.”   – Jeremiah 33:3