weekend nourishment

sickness didn't stop me from getting nourishment from the activities of the community. on friday night, i attended our chapter teaching. on saturday afternoon, sidh and i were at the Guadalupe Minor Seminary for the chapter servants' meeting. and on sunday morning, mass. during those three events, i gained a lot. and i believe, preparation lang lahat ng yun for the MMC. i really am excited. although i must admit, stressful talaga. lalo na kung may mga pasaway pa. hay. anyway, naiyak ko na naman lahat kagabi at kanina. i'll go to confession this week. papansin talaga si satan. ayaw akong tigilan. hay. nakakapagod na pero hindi ako susuko no! ako pa. matibay ata ako. God is the strength of my heart. ^_^

here are the things i want to share.

Chapter Teaching (Fruits of the Holy Spirit Talk 2: Love and Discipline)

Read Exodus chapters 32, 33, 34.

1. God forgives.

2. God gives favors.

3. God reveals Himself to us.

Words that describe God's Love:

1. Goodness (lacks action) and Kindness (sympathy with action)

2. Mercy (moved because of pity) and Compassion

3. Grace and Generosity

4. Steadfast (not changing/firm) - Read 2 Timothy

5. Agape - honest and sacrificial love

On Discipline:

root word: disciple.

God disciplines us because He cares, because He loves us. Love and discipline go together. Love without discipline is not love at all. Part of discipline is CORRECTION.

isa sa mga pinakagusto kong sinabi ni Kuya Chris ay ito: "hindi ka pinagsasabihan para ipahiya ka kundi para itama kung ano man ang mali." at ito pa: "wag kang magalit sa tao, kundi sa maling ginawa niya." parang yung line sa isang movie, "don't hate the player, hate the game." lastly, "God's grace is free. But it's not cheap."

*****

Chapter Servants' Meeting (Guadalupe Minor Seminary)

before the meeting, may worship at exhortation muna. at yun ang gusto kong i-share.

Read Proverbs 9:7-12. (arrogant vs. wise man). sabi ng worship leader, we, as leaders of the community, tend to be arrogant. lalo na pagdating sa teachings. malaman pa lang naten yung topic, iniisip na naten na alam na naten yun. pero yun nga raw, wisdom comes to the wise and humble. hindi tayo matututo kung sa tingin naten e alam na naten lahat.

during ate kate's exhortation, ang dami niyang na-share na words of encouragement. sa totoo lang, bilang chapter servants, hindi talaga biro yung amount ng stress na kelangan naming i-endure. pero sabi nga niya, eto raw ang pinakamagandang trabaho dahil ang boss namin ay si God. she shared 2 verses from the Bible which really inspired me to serve on.

Romans 11:29. (For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.) The Lord does not change His mind on whoever He calls/chooses and whoever He blesses. with conviction, sabi ni ate kate, "don't ever doubt your service."

Colossians 3:23. "And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men." sobrang sakto yung verse na 'to sken/smen. nakakapagod. pero kung para kay God lahat ng ginagawa at gagawin naten, sulit lahat ng sakripisyo, lahat ng pagod, lahat ng pawis. sabi nga ni ate an sa txt, "serve on. serve well." ^_^

lastly, eto ang iniwang quote ni ate kate: what will change the world is not our intention but our action.

*****

Homily by Father Babes Amper (07.20.08 - Lifehomes Chapel)

First Reading: Wisdom 12:13, 16-19

Responsorial Psalm (Ps 86): Lord, You are good and forgiving.

Second Reading: Romans 8:26-27

Gospel: Matthew 13:23-43

1. Accept the fact that you're a sinner.

2. Correct your mistakes.

3. Learn from your mistakes.

Michael Jordan once said, "I failed many times but I still take the responsibility. I learn." Don't repeat your mistakes. Learn from them. Grow.

Sabi pa ni Father, deep inside us, meron daw Hesus at Hudas. There's a battle between good and evil within our hearts at kung ano yung inaalagaan naten, yun ang mamumunga. It is but proper for us to nourish the goodness in our hearts.

We could look at the Gospel in different ways. Pero para sken, eto yung analogy: the weeds signify our bad self and the mistakes that we make, the good seeds signify the goodness in our hearts. In the Gospel, the master didn't allow his slaves to pull up the weeds because they might also uproot the good crop. He let them grow together until harvest and that's when he separated the weeds from the wheat. Just the same, we can't simply eliminate our bad self because it's part of who we are. We all sin. But we must learn from our wrongdoings. Kasama sa growth naten yung mga pagkakamali. At habang natututo tayo, we become better people. Hindi naten maaalis ang katotohanang bawat tao, may kabutihan at kasamaan. Ang mahalaga, pinipili nateng ipaglaban ang kabutihan.

*****

lastly, some inspiring text messages lang.

~You shouldn't have to sacrifice who you are just because somebody else has a problem with it.

~When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic but creatures of emotion. [Dale Carnegie]

~The true meaning of intelligence is not how much we know what to do, but how we behave when we do not know what to do.

~If you're shopping for a happy ending and you couldn't find one, buy a new beginning instead.

eto yung best. simple lang pero may depth. ^_^

Wag mong bitawan ang bagay na hindi mo kayang makitang hinahawakan ng iba. Wag mong hawakan kung alam mong bibitawan mo lang. Wag mo ng hawakan kung alam mong hawak na ng iba. Wag na wag kang magbalak humawak pag alam mong may hawak ka na.

*****

eto pa pala, from mel and joey: a happy man marries the girl he loves. a happier man loves the girl he marries. ang ganda no? attention guys! hehe.

at isa pa, galing naman kay alpha. nakita lang daw niya: If you love, let me know. If you don't, please gently let me go. haha. ang drama.

God bless everyone! this might be my last post this week. busy as usual. this weekend na kasi yung MMC. pero isa lang ang sigurado, i would definitely share my MMC experience. sa lahat ng SFC Manila, kitakits sa Subic. ^_^