CoeurSansPartage

Hello there ‘Twenty Four’, you got me. Indeed, I don’t live in a world where three minutes is two hundred seconds. Sabi nga ni Bob Ong, “Nararating ang malayong lugar, ngunit hindi laging nahihintay ang mahabang panahon.” Dahil tatanda at lilipas tayo sabi pa ng isang kanta. Kung babalikan ko siguro, parang isang tuldok lang sa mapa’y naging makulay ang panahon noong isinilang ako, pero ayokong sabihin na sa edad ko ngayon eh pasan ko na ang mundo. Hindi naman. Alam kong malayo pa ang lalakbayin ko. Salamat sa Poong Maykapal sa marami pa Niyang gagawin ngayong twenty four na ako.

So here’s to that same day when I was born 24 years back—March 2, 2016—my 24th year in the world:

I had this list of my heart’s desires for the day. Simple things I want to keep as treasures on my 24th birthday. That melancholic side of me kicked in. I can’t help calculating on my mind and eventually I had to write them down. Let’s go!

# 1—Breakfast with housemates.

I just wanted to have breakfast with them but this happened:

I was sleeping soundly when suddenly I heard some noise going on. Not long after, the beautiful people in the house were already peeping at the door singing their first song “Someone Is Praying For You”, with their gifts and a chocolate cake in their hands. I just melted right there on my spot… and so with my heart. They sang, we hugged, we kissed—I woke up with a wonderful birthday morning.

We had a Worship Time together, giving the day to the Lord in prayers and songs. I was so blessed with the Word for that day, about Manasseh and his father Joseph. The message was all I needed to hear from Him. They then expressed their birthday wishes and we ate together and… I could hear my heart singing.

# 2—Lunch with Ma and Pa.

They travelled more than 7 hours just to see me for lunch and another 7 hours or so as they went back home. I am lost for words to express how blessed I am to have them as my parents. Speechless. One of the best gifts I have received on my 24th is I got to celebrate it with them.

# 8—Be surprised with the random moments.

So I said I’m going to embrace everything that would come along the way, not expecting too much but hoping for the best memories I could keep. And yes, around three o’clock in the afternoon I just received another surprise. They were very good actors and actresses. They are the kind of friends your parents warned you about because they are the kind of friends you want to keep inside the pocket of your ripped jeans (laughs). I love them.

# 8—Be surprised with the random moments.

One of the random moments I got to treasure for sure is this one with my comrades at work:

# 3—Afternoon snack with friends.

Shortly after their surprise, we spent some quality time together at Pop Rock with some pasta and sweet desserts. We were noisy and actually filled the place with laughter as much as our hearts did manage.

#4—Word Date with GOD and His Wonderful People at MIDWEEK Fellowship

It felt good to have my sisters and brothers in the Lord with me during my birthday—singing songs together for Him who transcends all time and space. Nothing can compare to it. Nothing.

And I really didn’t expect a sweet surprise from my network was about to happen after the fellowship. They are treasures.

# 5—Dinner with contacts/network.

After their surprise we had dinner at McDonald’s and we talked about a lot of things. We shared our thoughts about a poem “Ang Sampung Bagay Na Itinuro Sa Akin Ng Pag-ibig” and a lot more.

# 6—Go to Japan Surplus.

Not all of my friends knew that one of my dreams is to have an Art Gallery and an Art School someday. I love Art and anything that goes with that. So bring me to Japan Surplus and I’ll be happy like a kid who had just went to her favorite art museum. (Mababaw pero yun talaga ang totoo. Mababaw lang kaligayahan ko.) So I said I won’t miss it for my birthday... I had to be there. And, yes,  I got the chance to go the day after.

While I was there, I was so fascinated I didn’t even notice I was already bugging the place for hours. I bought some gifts for myself—a cup for my coffee time and a little horse figurine for my pen. I had great time.

My gifts:

# 7—Treat myself at Watson’s.

Obviously (dahil nka-X talaga siya dun sa first pic), #7 didn’t make it in history. Walang nangyaring Watson’s spree on my birthday. Pero masaya pa rin ako. Maliit na bagay. (laughs)

# 8—Be surprised with the random moments.

Just when I thought my birthday’s over, I got another surprise from my P12 family during our meeting last friday night (March 4). It’s something that really didn’t crossed my mind. I was stoked.

            Millions of books, articles, newspapers, blogs, magazines and journals had been published all around the world pointing to this one single buzz: SUCCESS. It’s one of the most talked about topics on forums and conferences and it has never lost its place on discussions over the radio, television and the internet. Indeed, countless people are screaming about success. Few people dare to talk about FAILURE.

           You want to succeed. That is normal and, somehow, involuntary. It’s like it has been programmed on your brain since day one. Nobody wants to fail or like the feeling of failure. You can’t deny that. Even if you try to hide it with a fake face and act as if nothing happened after something broke down, truth be told, you hate failing. So here’s a fact of life I want you to understand right now: YOU ARE GOING TO FAIL.

           As early as today, you need to accept the fact that along the journey you are really going to mess up.  I have known no human who had lived a perfect life and gone in this world without one single failure. Yes, we are taught to think in a positive way and look at the brighter side. But it would be stupidity if we thought that only applies in times when everything is going just fine. Please! Not everything is going to be fine. Deal with it.

           Don’t get me wrong but all I want to say is that true successful people are not the ones who achieve great things without failing. The real one who will succeed in the long run is a man who goes through failure, understands failure, deals strongly with failure and learns from them—he who never quits and always bounce back.

           I remember one night when I was watching UFC and Brax Lasner got defeated on a match. It was a hard blow for him. During an interview after the match, the reporter asked, “So you’re going to get back from tonight and come back better as ever?” And his answer caught me when he said, “That’s what champions do, right?”

           So, let’s do the math. Reality check will always minimize the grief. I’m being true when I say you are going to make mistakes. You’ll have shortcomings. You will get defeated. You will fall at times and many things will fall together with you. You are going to have a hard time. But, you should not let it stop there. Champions get back and come back better as ever. And people who can get through these strongly will reach far in the future.

           It’s a shallow thing to say that having this ‘PhD’ cue after our name means we’ve dealt with the hardest part. Not to mention all those other letters lining up which only make our long names even longer. The hardest blow is whenever the truth strikes that no matter how much knowledge we have acquired, no matter how historic we have finished various degrees or did numerous research studies, we can never know everything.

           Yes, we don’t know everything. We can’t learn everything. We are incapable on our own. We are not limitless, boundless and inexhaustible. We can be consumed. Infinite is a far truth to us. Our breaths have its end. We’re not superheroes and Spiderman is a lie. Sum it all up and it leads to this one single bomb: WE ARE HUMANS.

           That reality will keep us on our feet and we can ask ourselves that if there’s an end to this all, then what really matters most? A scholarly work, a master’s degree, a published book and all those other things the world has defined as ‘success’ are just small dots on a map and what’s in there for us after that can be an island or something.

           I may not know all the answers and I won’t be able to figure things out like telling us our future, but there’s these some people and lives I would like to share with you. Words—just words—from them and it spoke a lot about how human they are and how their lives had stood on things that really matter. Here’s a peek:

Words from Morrie, a man who had Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) which cruelly strikes the neurological system:

“But there are days when I am depressed. Let me not deceive you. I see certain things going and I feel a sense of dread. What am I going to do without my hands? What happens when I can’t speak? Swallowing, I don’t care so much about—so they feed me through a tube, so what? But my voice? My hands? They’re such an essential part of me. I talk with my voice. I gesture with my hands. This is how I give to people.”

“So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half-asleep, even when they’re busy doing things they think are important. This is because they’re chasing the wrong things.”

During the wars and persecutions of centuries ago, a 17-year old Japanese boy, Thomas Kosaki, on the day he was about to be assassinated together with his father, February 15, 1597, wrote a letter to his mother. A part of it said:

“Everything in the world vanishes like a dream. Be sure that you never lose the happiness of heaven. Be patient and show love to many people.”

By Christian Robert C. Sanico

And so the conquerors from the West, Arose to comply their mighty quest Bound by greed for the good of their own To discover the rest of the world unknown In their ships they rode and around they roam To the East they reached and found my home With its beauty and grand scenery, they fell in love Along with its verdant lands and gold, they want to have

What have they done to my love, my country? They robbed us of our property, dignity and liberty Inflicted us agony and forced us into slavery But there never was such thing as superiority For God has made all humanity With same natural rights and equality Still we grew tired, sad and weary Asking, when will our hearts be ready?

For three hundred years we slept With the promise of redemption we hopefully kept And now that the moment is at dawn For our swords to be unsheathed and drawn With the sweat of our brows, we’ll strive and try And with the strength of our backs, we’ll fight ‘til we die To erase the bitter memories of the past Until freedom is ours at last

Even heroes die, Aye! That be true Maybe not Superman, but real heroes do But despite of this fact that they knew They still did the things that they’re meant to For the rights of me and you I just can’t imagine the sufferings they’ve been through Just because of men like Rizal, Jacinto and Bonifacio We could now proudly say “I am a Filipino!”

(By Christian Robert C. Sanico, Written: October 11, 2013)

With the naked eyes, most people would view the Philippines as a poor and dirty country from the looks of its streets and squatter areas. Statistically, Filipinos are among the people who live in a low and poor condition, because most Filipinos who live in urban squatter areas live with an average of only two dollars a day. But these things do not reflect the true wealth of the Philippines. These are just the products of corrupt government officials. Even during the ancient past, the Philippines already had a rich cultural heritage with diverse arts and vast gold deposits and already had a strong tradition of gold craftsmanship. Some accounts by colonizers even described ancient Filipinos as adorned in gold. The documentary film by the GMA Television Network entitled “Philippine Treasures” really did a good job to expose the hidden treasures of our country.

As what I have seen in the documentary, the dazzling gold jewelry worn by characters of the hit GMA-7 epicserye "Amaya" are not just products of the imagination, but are actually based on real gold artifacts created by ancient Filipinos. To view the real gold artifacts that inspired the jewelry of “Amaya," one only has to visit the Ayala Museum in Makati City, where more than 1,000 ancient golden artifacts are on display as part of the “Gold of Ancestors" exhibit. Many of the artifacts, which include earrings, necklaces, masks, bracelets, trinkets, sculptures, and other implements, are made from 22 to 24 karat gold and believed by archaeologists to have been crafted between the 10th and 13th centuries. Questions quickly popped up in my mind while watching, like how these golden artifacts were discovered, and how did they end up at the Ayala Museum? But the working staff of "Philippine Treasures" already had the answer to my questions, as they travelled all the way to Surigao del Sur where they met Berto Morales, a laborer who stumbled upon the discovery of a lifetime almost 30 years ago. As they have depicted in their dramatization, Morales was digging a canal on a breezy April morning in 1981 when something caught his eye from beneath the dirt. He dug around and found golden artifacts. The artifacts that Morales discovered eventually became part of the collection at the Ayala Museum. But I was just disappointed to learn about what happened to Berto. He is now living a simple life in Surigao del Sur, like his life before the discovery. As what Mel Tianco said, Morales had really been a personification to one of our sayings, “Ginto na nga, naging bato pa”. What I learned in his story was that the things that are acquired easily could really get out of our hands quickly. I also acknowledge the efforts of the production staff who withstood long journeys and heavy rains, and even braved rebel-infested areas, in search of the country’s almost-forgotten treasures. The team’s pursuit brought them to the southern tip of Cebu, to Boljoon, where an earring believed to be once used by Lapu-Lapu was found in an archaeological dig. They also searched for the Maitum Burial Jars in Saranggani and investigated the authenticity of a stone found in Masbate supposedly engraved with baybayin script, an ancient form of Filipino writing. They even also travelled all the way to USA to see the Golden Tara, a 5-inch-tall golden statue depicting the image of a Vajryana Buddhism deity, which now resides in the Field Museum in Chicago. The Golden Tara shares the section with precious gems and diamonds, but since its displayed miles away from Agusan del Sur, where it was found, few Filipinos get to witness the item's beauty.

For me, these treasures say so much about how rich our country was. It tells us how creative our people were—not only creative but intelligent. I was also fascinated by the craftsmanship of ancient Filipinos who created human-like burial jars such as those found in Maitum. It was really heart-warming to know that our country has so many things to boast and to be proud of in terms of natural wealth and skills in art and craftsmanship. But it is also sad that many of us doesn’t care of the historical values of our artifacts. They only care about their money value to make themselves rich. I just hope that the documentary “Philippine Treasures” would change our countrymen’s lack of sense of history and that we would treasure our country’s artifacts and riches not as our own but as a Filipino.

By Aico Marie C. Sanico (Written: March 2013)

Countless people view happiness as a picture of material possessions, prestige and power. I used to hear people say in the past that I’m fortunate for having an easy and abundant life, with my family who, literally, had a better status before. We’re not actually a very rich kind of family, but for a small town with people who live simple lives, our family was considered better. I could easily get what I wanted and lived extravagantly. For that, people thought I had everything. They thought my life was picture-perfect. What they didn’t know is the truth that I was not happy, I was not satisfied, and I kept asking for more. Despite what I had before, I have lots of insecurities and I have always longed for love. I really didn’t appreciate what I had back then. I was selfish, proud and conceited. I was wasteful and just spent carelessly. I remember myself complaining more than being thankful.

My life just went on like that, until I entered college, when suddenly things weren’t the same anymore. My father’s business broke down that left us with mountains of debts. It hit hard and reached the point of selling the house, selling our stuffs, selling some of the properties. The easy and abundant life I used to have turned into a life of hardship and scarcity. I was devastated and I feel so ruined. But, in those trying times, someone came and held me tight—kept me strong. I met Jesus. He became my Lord and Savior and I received His gift of eternal life. He showed me that there’s more to life than just material things and earthly possessions.

By Aico and Bivz, Published at LDI Newsletter 2013

True in its very depth that joining this LDI training digs a lot of purpose and motivations. It can’t be denied that many had left substantial matters for the sake of pursuing this. And some came across dreadful blows upon this pursuit. Each participant has varying stories to tell. One common thing can be found though: LOSSES. We can say that literally, for we know better—we know that they are just losses on the surface.

Peeling out the cover, we can see tremendous gain that far outweighs what had been lost. Part of that are the lessons learned from this one month training. But we don’t want to call them “lessons learned”. We’d rather call them “losses turned into gain.” And here’s some of that:

“Work with LOVE when you work for the Lord.”—Reyn (MSU-Marawi)

“There’s no royal rule in learning; learn it and live it.”—Gia (CDO)

“Be creative in doing evangelism.”—Oliver (MSU-Marawi)

“The treasure that a Christian can give to the people is the gospel.”—Shelou (Kabacan)

“Give up everything that hinders us to follow Jesus.”—Eli (CLSU)

“Act BIG for the Lord.”—Flop (MSU-Marawi)

“Surrender all things to God and nothing is impossible through Him.”—JM (Laoag)

“Vision is caught first, and then taught.”—Jekert (MSU-Marawi)

“There is no room for a disciple who’s living a selfish life. Diciplemaking needs urgency.”—Kim (Kabacan)

“Learning can only be justified through its results. Therefore, we must bear fruit.—Franz (GenSan)

“There’s a need to have a fully developed vision in your personal ministry in order to fulfill the Great Commission.”—Mayen (Iligan)

“The best way to combat fear is LOVE.”—Jana (GenSan)

“The only way to live is to live for Christ.”—Sarah Jean (VSU)

“There is no division between sacred and secular. Christian life is to think spiritual and do spiritual.”—Mark (VSU)

“Intimacy results to fruitfulness. How can I love God if I don’t know Him?”—Rose (VSU)

We were truly blessed upon hearing these from our co-participants. And just as what Franz from Gen-San had said, “Learning can only be justified through its results.” The real challenge of the battle will be the application of all of these as we return to our ministry areas. Surely, greater GAINS are yet to come.

Ciao,

By Aico Marie C. Sanico, Published at LDI Newsletter 2013

“Through the years, You’ve shown me more of You… more of You.”—Christian Song

That simple line from a common song truly means a lot to me. I marvel at the thought that the Lord of lords and the King of kings continually reveals more of Him day after day, drawing us intimately closer to Him. It’s such a blessing that in every situation, in people we encounter, in all that surrounds us, there’s this opportunity to know Him better.

I won’t say that the LDI lectures spoke about Him because that would be an understatement. Rather, I would say that the lectures shouted vastly more of Him. The topics can’t just say enough of His glory and there’s so much to write. Few of what I have seen behind the surface are these:

Our God is the God of Order. He wants discipline to be grasped by His people that even a simple task of being an usher or an emcee is so important to Him. He doesn’t settle for mediocrity that He wants even the plain matter of program preparations to be handled critically.  He’s against confusion and chaos that He even teaches us the smallest facets of communication. He doesn’t want us to go astray and so He teaches us to obey authorities. He teaches us to set our goals, for He desires that His people will find their way over the crossroads of Christian life. These are just few of the topics in LDI that show how he sets everything in place, with order and excellence, for His glory.

Our God is also the God of Certainty. All in Him is true. He is genuine and He wants His people to be genuine. He doesn’t stop at the sight of the things we do in serving Him—He digs deeper at the attitude of our hearts. He doesn’t want His word to be misunderstood and so He teaches us how to interpret (Hermeneutics) and deliver (Homiletics) them well. He hates deception and falsehood that’s why He made known to us the different doctrines and revealed the book “Total Truth” as a fight against deceit. He equips us in evangelism and disciplemaking because He wants the world to know the truth. These topics remind us that all in Him is inevitable.

Above all, God is love. I was amazed at how God used these lectures to make it clear that because of his supreme love, He wants to be the Lord of every area in our lives. He has to be. He knows we can’t do it on our own. He should rule our personal ministry, our families, our studies, our profession, our skills, our plans, even our decisions towards marriage—everything. Sensibly, He desires for us not to fall in every aspect, for He know what will terribly happen if we will have our own way. How loving our God is.

(By Aico Marie C. Sanico, published at LDI Newsletter 2013)

God, in His sovereign power, can do great things out of a piece of paper and some volume of ink. If I don’t believe on that simple truth then I should not be giving gospel tracts on streets, markets, jeepneys or buses. It would be a sad picture. It’s just like giving blank papers to people and God will not be pleased at all. As His word clearly emphasized, “…without FAITH, it is impossible to please God.” (Hebrews 11:6)

I encountered God’s discipline regarding this matter one afternoon during our fieldwork. We’re leaving for bus and jeep evangelism and I asked from the office some tracts. I asked for tagalog tracts because in my mind I was thinking, “Tagalog tracts na lang, since sa community naman kami pupunta. Hindi masyadong maa-appreciate ang English tracts doon. Mas okay lang ‘yon sa UP-campus.” And I left with my mind jailed on that thought. We rode a jeep towards San Pablo and the unexpected thing happened. Three Indian men rode the jeep we were in. I immediately asked my companions if they have English tracts and they have none. I searched through my bag keeping my hopes high. I found one. We gave that one single tract for the three of them and explained that we can’t give enough, for what’s left are tagalong ones.

That very moment, on my seat, I really felt like He’s talking to me in a very gentle voice, saying “This is why you should bring English tracts. “ My heart was so pierced and I praised Him for His correction. Indeed, He doesn’t want His children to fall on the lies of the enemy. I searched my heart and I understood that there’s more to what He’s saying. God wanted to remind me that I should not put limitations on what He can do through those tracts. That it’s not about the tracts but about His power that will work through them.

How I thought I’ve already learned in this area. I thought I’ve grown in this simple task. Yet, God reminded me that what’s in the heart of His children is more important to Him. I rejoiced at what He has done that day. It gave me a different standpoint and I know I won’t look at that piece of paper the same way again.

These are captures of our Evangelism Activity from Leadership Development Institute 2013:

This family welcomed me in their house and accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior after I shared to them the Gospel of Salvation. Such wonderful smiles of redeemed souls. Glory to Him, forever!

These girls are awesome! They gladly received Jesus after we visited their house and shared to them the Message of the Cross--the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Another family who listened, believed and received the Salvation freely offered by Jesus Christ on Calvary. That’s Kuya Eldrin sharing to them the gospel during that beautiful day at San Pablo, Laguna, Philippines.

Jeep Evangelism with my teammates. (Go team 6!)

Jeep Evangelism with my teammates. (Go team 6!)

This was last May 18, 2013 when we had our Mass Crusade at Laguna, Philippines and shared the word of God through songs, dances, mime, magical tricks and drama presentations. We gathered people from the streets and their houses. We distributed gospel tracts and rendered counseling sessions. This was a glorious day we will never forget!

The crusade ended victoriously! :)

Ciao,