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I’m off to the Makati City Hall tomorrow, Friday, for our One Life to Live Campaign there. I’ll be speaking on the topic Learn.

Pastor Bernard shared an inspiring word last Tuesday. It’s great to hear his personal testimony about the things he has learned when he was young. He even shared the wrong things he got involved in and I kept on giving Dane, Pastor B’s youngest daughter, a sign to cup her ears so she won’t lose respect on her dad (he..he..). Pastor Bernard ended by encouraging everyone to learn from Jesus by using a very simple guide whenever we’re reading the bible:

A ttitude to change

S in to forsake

P romise to claim

E xample to follow

C ommand to obey

T ruth to apply

At the Makati City Hall campaign I’ll be using a sponge as an object lesson to drive home the point. I’ll explain how our brain is like a sponge that imbibes information. A brand new sponge like a baby’s brain can imbibe more than a used one (that’s why learning is harder for older people because previously learned things are retained in the sponge making absorption limited). I’ll dip it in clear water to represent the good things we learn from our parents, other family members, teachers friends, etc. and drain it into a fish bowl representing our lives. I’ll also dip it in water with betadine which represents the wrong things we learn. As I drain it in the same fish bowl, I’ll explain how one sin greatly affects the entirety of our lives. Then I’ll talk about Jesus when He said;

…  “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31-32

It’s interesting that in the bible people also refer to Jesus as the “good teacher.” More interesting though is to note that Jesus didn’t just claim to know the truth but declared that He is the truth Himself (John 14:6).

If we learn from Him by taking Him in our lives he can set us free from a “dirty” life to a life that “counts.” (While explaining this, I’ll pour the solution that makes the water with betadine in the fish bowl clear again.)

Please pray for me and the small group leaders as well. Pray also for the people in the Makati City Hall to have an encounter with God.

A lot of things have been said about love and the internet is swarmed with love quotes. Everyone has an opinion about the matter.  I am no expert but here are my personal quotes  (promise these are not cheesy):

To love is to take risks and to open up one’s self to possible pain.

Getting in a relationship with someone you don’t fully know is risky. The friendship stage gives you a peek in another’s soul but somehow that is still not enough. I know of good friends who took their relationship to the next stage and it fell apart. They’re better off as friends and that’s it. I would agree though that the best way to start is this route.

Now pain. Love has its own highs and lows and pain is inevitable. After all you’re in a relationship with another human being –who, just like you, commits mistakes. But there’s another side of pain in love –the pain of having to sacrifice. I would say that this is the real measure of the depth of one’s love.

The greatest expression of love is to connect someone to the source of love Himself.

For some reason the love you give and the love you receive never fully satisfies. We all need a love that’s greater than ours -the kind of love that surpasses even our ‘impossible’ expectations.
We could give the most expensive gift, spend 24/7 with someone but unless we connect them to God they will always want some more.

2000 years ago the crowd gathered to watch this man hang on the cross. “He saved others, let him save himself…” they said because no one understood what He’s doing.

1John 3:16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us…

He died so we could live. Why? Because He loves you and me.

Love is risky, it’s painful at times and it can only be found in it’s fullness in Christ.

You may also want to check this blog from last Tuesday.

We finally started our campaign last night. A lot of people came from all walks of life. We even had balikbayans on vacation who attended. The Assembly Hall was packed with excited people.

I spoke about how passion for adventure is trapped in the daily grind of what constitutes a thing we now call -life. We are alive but not living. Somehow we remain as potentials where the lion never growls.

I ended by talking about the connection of passion with purpose and how fulfillment in life which is the expression of passion can only be achieved by living according to His purposes.

Pastor Dennis Isleta and Pastor Bernard did a great job hosting. Pastor B was his usual funny self. Mae Perez our Worship Services head helped orienting our facilitators. Marge Pateña, one of our staff made the powerpoint. Pastor Miko Tangco and Gabby Vargas were big helping hands as well. It feels good to be a part of a great team making the campaign great.

If you’re a facilitator, Great job! Thank you.

 

Today, we officially began our One Live To Live campaign starting with all our Sunday services all throughout Metro Manila.

I just got home from dinner with my family after preaching at the 1 and 3 pm services at the Fort practicing what I just preached -making every moment count. During the preaching I mentioned that people can actually read our blogs during this campaign so we can all inspire and encourage one another.

So how should I open this 30 day series of blogs? Well I guess there’s no better way but to start with thanksgiving. There’s so much to be grateful for but I sort of narrowed down my list to last year’s top 10. Here it goes:

Top 10 Popcorn, the newest family member. She’s an apricot toy poodle who’s really smart. She stays in her cage and doesn’t poo or pee all over the place (that would be the total bummer if she does). My kids love her. I love her because she seldom barks –talk about having a restful day after work –bark free.


Top 9 Aileen, she’s the last person I baptized in ’08 last December 30. She’s really serious in following God that she even fasted that day ‘til she received baptism. It was a privilege to be a part of her life.




Top 8 Pastor Robert and Joanne Gonzales. Ever since Pastor Robert Hern moved to Pioneer it was hard plodding with such  BIG shoes to fill but thank God for Pastor Robert and Joanne who carried the weight with me. It was an honor to work with them.




Top 7 my son Gio graduating from Prep at VCS.  Grabe may napa graduate na akong anak. He..he..




Top 6 my daughter Raine going to school. Time flies so fast. Karga ko lang dati now they’re studying na. Her favorite subject – Mandarin. Cool!





Top 5 family vacations. This was in Baguio. Nothing beats spending time with my family.




Top 4 Date with my wife on her birthday. I surprised her with a quiet dinner. With two young and eager kids who love to tag along, going out with just the two of us is a rarity. We had a great time. I thank God my kids agreed that they be left with the yaya.


Top 3 this is rather selfish but I asked God for a little rain on my birthday and the clouds turned dark and it drizzled a bit. Thank you Lord.




Top 2 last year was our 10th year wedding anniversary. We went to Bora to celebrate. God I love this woman.



Top 1 Karen. Need I say more? She’s my superwoman.

Last night we ended our Tuesday One Life To Live Training. Pastor Bernard Marquez, our Pastoral Services head and Pastor Jeff Eliscupidez, one of our new pastors, were sure hits as the new Porkchop duo– Christian version (you decide who’s the Pork and who’s the Chop..he..he..). Grabe magpatawa. I wasn’t sure though if Pastor Jeff has real ABS-CBN exposure as he would ostentatiously claim or if that’s just an ad lib. They livened up the meeting while making important points as we all gear up for our upcoming campaign. Over 320 people attended the trainings and over 140 wanted to help as facilitators for discussions. The excitement is definitely in the air.

So what’s the training like? It was like cranking the timer of a bomb that is ready to set off an explosion that will affect the lives of our friends, families, co-workers, classmates, neighbors, etc. One Life To Live will surely be a blast - a constructive one of course.

We are all set and waiting for the big KABOOM!