having a heart for hannah ü

For those who've seen my office station, you might be wondering who that cute little baby is posted all over my Mac. Her name is Hannah Emmanuelle Antonio, and she is the daughter of my friend and our church pastor, Carlos Antonio. She is diagnosed with Transposition of the Great Arteries, and what's keeping her alive now is, surprisingly, a hole in her heart.



We are all believing for a miracle, and we know that what God will do for Hannah will be far greater than anything we can ever pray for, however in our own way this is how we can help their family as they hold on to their faith for their baby... by helping to raise funds through a dinner, auction plus entertainment by my friends DJ Chip de la Calzada & DJ Benjo Marquez (heart of soul).

Only a year ago, DJ Benjo Marquez was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and what we witnessed was nothing short of a miracle when he faced this full of strength and courage with God's grace, continuing to inspire and encourage others despite his sickness. And now God has healed him! And he is fighting again, this time for Baby Hannah, and we're all proud to stand by him and our spiritual family for this cause.

The Fundraising event is on March 31, 2007 at Wasabi Resto & Bar (Ayala Ave right beside Peninsula Manila), at 7:30pm. Everyone is invited! Proceeds of the dinner tickets and the auction will all go to Hannah's medical treatment.



For tickets contact me or any of my friends Rina, Laica, & Benjo Marquez, Mari, OJ, Gayette Tipton, Cristalle Henares, Anson Yu, Catrice & Chip dela Calzada, and Stuart Yang (and so many others, haha, can't remember na). You can also help by donating money or any items/gift certificates for the auction. Spread the word!

Thanks so much and God bless!



to know more about Hannah and her family, drop by her dad and mom's site, http://caloybert.multiply.com/ and http://bantonio.multiply.com/ ü

watching 300...(and woes of an art director)

ay. where do i begin. o_O oh yeah... jj, camille, rich... my sincere apologies!!! hahaha. normally i'm a pretty quiet movie-watcher... except for the occasional comment or two, you wouldn't hear a peep out of me. but last night...last night was something else. so, do pardon all the squirming and the jumping, and audible "oohs" and "aahs" and "AAAAAAAUUUUUGGGGGHHHS". i must've found 10 different chair positions you could possibly be in inside a theater. sorry sorry sorry...we're still movie buddies right...??!??

ANYway, the movie was awesome. bloody gross in most parts, but awesome.

some review, huh. i'm not much of a movie critic, so i won't go into detail about the plot twists (like there are any), acting ability and character favorites, but i will say this... the movie was so amazingly and wonderfully art directed. beautiful production design and breathtaking art direction.

(again...sorry for my audible oohs and aaaahs)

not a hair, stone or glowing ember out of place. every single element carefully composed and thought out for each shot...never mind that it was all done on chroma. the composition of every body, every object against negative space, how everything balanced out not just in visual weight but in colors and light... gaaaaaaaaaah.

ok... to put it simply... you can pretty much freeze-frame any second of the film and have great-looking desktop wallpaper for your computer. hahahahaha. (other movies that made me feel this way were House of Flying Daggers, Hero and V for Vendetta)









as an art director, i'm always challenged to come up with great looking art work "limited" in print ads and commercials. the reason i say limited is because we're not talking about personal art where you decide on what's beautiful and what's not. artwork that's YOURS where you dictate your own style. it's limited because we have to be creative and artistic in presenting what would otherwise be something so mundane and oftentimes tiresome... like selling shampoo or cars. when we're lucky, we get to work on social issues and advocacy like saving the environment or crime awareness.

but see, that's where it gets exciting... we pretty much have about 5 seconds before our reader flips the magazine page or a viewer changes the channel, and in that five seconds we MUST drive our message through... in five seconds we've captured your full attention, keeping you focused on what we want to say and what we want you to see. how? great art direction. short, to-the-point copy. in some rare cases, extremely long copy, art-directed in its own way. if we compose a shot of a wall, and the wall has a crack...that crack had better had a purpose there. why is the crack there? where should it be placed? how long should the crack be? who put that crack there anyway?!?!

hay.

there are a LOT of ads like that out there. some great examples, and recent additions to the ad world, would be Disney's fantasy series featuring the work of acclaimed photographer Annie Leibovitz, starring no less than David Beckham (Prince Phillip), Scarlett Johannson (Cinderella), Beyonce Knowles, Lyle Lovette (March Hare) and Oliver Platt (Mad Hatter)...







and...


a wonderfully art-directed commercial (yup commercial lang to)...

Golden Sun - Culture Advanced
Uploaded by YforYerom

double hay. i have a looooong way to go. i have my hits and misses... everyday, you just have to keep learning and absorbing and being creatively alert. and occasionally, a whack on the side of the head. (tune in for the next blog entry on that term hahaha)

where was i? oh yeah. 300. the first battle scene pretty much left me weak-kneed and my blood drained from my healthy shiny hair roots to my toes (ay). the warriors were...well, WARRIORS. in all their blood, sweat and glory...and abs. galing pa ng choreography in such a way that it doesn't LOOK choreographed. and the camera-work. and tasteful use of slow-motion. imagine Brad Pitt's Achilles in Troy... 100 times better and multiplied by 300. O_o

and it wasn't just the war scenes that were beautiful of course... the training of the young boys, Queen Gorgo's speech to the council, the summoning of the oracle...

guess you have to watch and see for yourselves nalang.

chiko...really really wish you could've been there. you get well soon. as in NOW. *hugz*

guys...next movie?


*300 images courtesy of The Internet Movie Database

cupcakes anyone?

the other night i asked Chiko to accompany me on my "last free day" as a social person (as i was expecting a lot of work that week). we binged on NY fries... ok, I binged on NY fries (Extra Large Grande size with extra garlic parmesan dip, if you please) with large lemonade at Market! Market! then we skipped over to Serendra for some cupcakes at Sonja's and...i was hooked! not with their cupcakes, although they were yummy. rather with the idea of cupcakes. it's so...uh...gloriumptious. hahaha.


:: for those who need to know...cupcakes are tiny cakes, therefore a dessert...while muffins aren't, therefore they are eaten at breakfast.

anyhoo...i'm on a cupcake rampage, so i went blog-hopping and look where my mouse took me! enjoy!


My kind of flowers
Baking is in the genes
Cupcakes for a birthday girl and an anxious mom
Cupcakes by Sonja

on foreign sites:

52cupcakes
Cupcake blog



Cupcake Workshop!

:: in pic... our cupcakes and nanos!

Ah, the day of hearts! Just want to greet everyone a Happy Valentines day. I thank God for blessing me with your love and friendship. ü let's not forget to greet Him as well, the One who blesses us, romances us, and loves us more than any bouquet of flowers or box of chocolates can ever express! ü

*hugz*


Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
~ 1 John 4:11-12

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
~ John 3:16

*in pic: heart-shaped tikoy! ü

"If men have compartments, women have tote bags..."

For you men out there who are not familiar with tote bags, a tote bag is a large "carry-all" bag similar to but just a tad smaller than a sports duffel bag. The whole point of a tote bag is you throw everything in it that you could ever possibly need and bring it with you wherever you go.

I have always wondered how men survive without carrying bags around (what do you do if your lips are chapped? what if you need a mint? where do you put your checkbook?) Women are always prepared. I am always amazed at women who can open their bag and produce snacks, books, an entire makeup kit, hairspray, and even flip-flops! (you know who you are...!)

Even more interesting, though, is that the compartment-tote bag dichotomy extends into our brains as well.

Link

a delightful entry by my friend and church-mate, lynn nawata hehehe! ^_^

when i grow up i want to be...

i'm bored. bored bored bored. in the middle of a chat conversation with neil the q, a thought entered my mind... my gosh, i'm an art director. but i'm bored right now. help. haha...then i tried to recall what were the professions i wanted to be in growing up... hmmm

:: a concert pianist
first one that came to mind. i would dream of being onstage, applauded by thousands of people, as i finished one of the most difficult pieces known to man - at the time, i think it was The Beautiful Blue Danube, Grade III

:: a comic strip artist
i love comics... it's such a unique form of art that is not just visually entertaining but also exposes human traits and culture or character. my favorites (and the only ones that really make me laugh out loud, or tug my heartstrings) are garfield, pugad baboy, gary larson's the far side, and calvin & hobbes. i actually invented quite a few characters, complete with biography and whatnot. one even resembled a cute spherical blob with arms and legs and not much else, who went around in a car made of popsicle sticks and peppermint candy. some of them actually progressed to a few storylines here and there, but i guess this phase of my life never quite caught on

:: a comic book artist
i totally idolize comic book artists, and my favorites were of course the great Jim Lee and J Scott Campbell. my cousin mike and i would spend hours drawing, mostly copying his collection of DC, Marvel and Image comic books and trading cards. we eventually came up with our own team of super heroes... 6 in all, he drew the guys, i took care of the girls... and would make up fantastical stories that usually involved my heroine having to be saved by one of his characters. harumph!

:: a figure skater
well, there goes THAT dream. haha. i did take a few lessons back in college, and i guess it's like riding a bike...you won't ever forget once you learn how to. owel. this came around the time i was staying in LA and my cousins and i were totally mesmerized by the Winter Olympics. go oksana!

:: a cook
i loved to read. it was my favorite pastime, and sometimes this would annoy my cousin (yes, mike) immensely, when i'd rather spend vacation time reading instead of playing...or rather watching him play...nintendo, go biking or build with tinkertoys. and some of the books i loved to browse through were cookbooks. i would go through my lola's cookbooks and baking books as if they Grimm's fairy tales, reading each step in detail and gazing at the photographs or illustrations. funny, i still don't know exactly how to, and i even love to watch cooking shows on tv and all. i think i'll have to learn eventually. neil would say.. "paano na when you're married?" hm... instant noodles for dinner, honey?

:: a singer for Disney's animated films
hahaha... specific ba? i have serious stage fright kasi... but i loved Disney songs and would belt out songs from the little mermaid, aladdin, and all the old classics. so i would dream of being chosen by Disney scouts to voice one of their lovely characters, and i'd have a lovely solo or a romantic duet...safely behind-the-scenes in a recording booth

more to come... i gotta go attend small group now :P

* cute photo from Getty Images

scattered thoughts

it's 9pm and my work for the day is pretty much done... much more tomorrow of course, but for now, i can't keep still. my mind's been on "turbo mode" since last week, and lately it's been quite taxing just to keep up with it. so if you catch me in a dazed or zoned-out mode, that's probably just me trying to get my brain to settle, or i'm having a meeting with myself. hahaha. sometimes the opposite would happen, that i have so much stuff inside my head, i end up just being bored coz i don't know where to begin. does that make sense?

lately, i'd have chats with a few online friends that kinda go like this...

yahoo friend: ei diane! (or poink, or yanee, depending on who it is) poink123: hey! :) yahoo friend: how are you? poink123: good good. you? yahoo friend: blah blah blah blah (here, a bit of chatter...again, depending on who it is) yahoo friend: so what have you been up to lately? anything new? poink123: nothing new...work, as usual :P hehe

...

*cricket cricket*

*sigh* there's a LOT of things new, actually. i guess it's just that i'd rather tell my story in person, over lunch or coffee... than tire myself out typing out everything that's been happening in my life, only to be interrupted by, wait brb, or ei gtg, til next time! bitin! o_O

tapos may hirit pa yung iba na "so, you have a boyfriend na ba?", like that's really all the update they need.

the people i do chat with online are usually those i already see everyday...sometimes my officemate across the room haha, because i don't need any "updating" for them. i do bug them whenever i can though.

so what HAS been keeping me busy? what's keeping my mind on hyper mode...thus making me even more absent-minded than usual? (to manny, who doesn't read blogs... i know my attention span of late is like that of a 3-year-old...sorreeeee!)

a lot!!! tapos sabay sabay pa! yaaaagh.

at home:
when typhoon milenyo hit, the windows in my room flew off, leaving it in a disastrous, muddy mess. but now, finally, renovations are underway, but lo! my mom and my lola decided not just to repair our windows but do a major overhaul on the house.. painting the walls, replacing the windows, re-cementing the garage. gaaaaaaah. lately we come home to the smell of fresh paint or sawdust, plus my sleeping habit's a bit off-kilter now that the living room sofa has been my bed the past, oh, 4 weeks or so. waaaaah. so anyway, since everything's being turned up, down and inside out here, it's added stress that i have to figure out where to put all the knick-knacks, photo albums, old "toys" and whatnots i've been ignoring since i started working...

work:
pitch, pitch, pitch. that is the word for the month. well, that and REVISIONS. hahaha. but don't get me wrong...work is still fun. i still love it here... yes, despite the overtime, (overnights!). nothing like brainstorming on skin-whitening lotion to really get the adrenaline going. *snicker* but for sure i know i'm still in the right place, with the right people. there IS one thing that does bother me though... it's SO COLD!!! huhuhuhu. it's like working in a refrigerator everyday. i have pics to prove it...with hats, gloves and even wraparound blankies we all look like we're tourists in Siberia or something. our recent Manila weather isn't helping either, brrrrrrrr. lamigin pa naman ako. *sniff*

[edit]
did i mention that it's Philippine Advertising Congress year? yup...so top of mind at work right now is metals! we need award-winning ideas! i feel the pressure now...o_O

church:
ay, where do i begin? hahahaha. basta madami! those on my multiply list are 80% from church anyway, so you know what i'm talking about, hehe. my schedule in the music ministry has been a bit more hectic of late, what with events happening and the kids musical just finishing last december. but it's actually what's been giving me my "break" between work. for KC naman...boy, i have my hands full now with the music team... changes are underway, you guys better keep your eyes and ears open, hehe! please pray all goes well :) (more on that in another entry siguro...er, soon)

and lastly, small group. barely a year ago, i attended my first small group meeting under Randee, and i can still recall how nervous i was to be with new people...opening up like that about God and family and church with strangers, who later on became invaluable friends of mine who'd guide me in my own journey with God. some of them have moved on with new groups, the others still there, every week ever faithful. i've been co-leading the last few months and now...NOW i'm leading my own small group, and it's inspiring to see the look of their earnest faces when we meet, seeing them eager to share their stories and insights on our discussions and excited to know more about God.

between the KC music team changes, helping to train and serving in Music Ministry, plus work, i know i'm up for a rather turbulent time ahead, but i know He's just there guiding me every step of the way. so what do i answer na when someone asks me "what's up?"

ayayay. O_O

7 days!

yesterday i got a text from roe manalo asking if i could drop by ENLI
and give my testimony on video on why i'm excited to join the annual
7-day prayer and fasting this year. i told her it was going to be my
first time, and asked if that was ok and she replied "Yup. Just why ur excited to fast if you are ü caloy said you are daw e."



i knew it! calooooooy. hahaha... sabi na nga ba ikaw eh.
last sunday kasi i think he heard me squealing (yes, squealing) my
excitement about it, especially after i saw the booklet "The Armor of
God", a guide to our 7-day prayer and fasting.



of course, thanks to makati traffic i arrived just in time to sing with
teri and attend the prayer meeting, so we had to do the video after
that.
JA did the interview, and i actually can't remember what i said
anymore, except i couldn't contain what i had to say "in just one
sentence". veej...have you EVER heard me say anything in just one
sentence? bleh... .



i'm excited to fast! i've been a Christian for just over a year now...i
didn't join the 7-day fasting last year because i felt i wasn't ready
to do it. i wanted to fully understand first why we were fasting, and i
wanted my whole heart and soul and mind to be ready, and i guess at
that time i wasn't bursting with excitement like i am now... i was
still in questioning...in doubt. but now, i can't wait. the last time i
felt this excited was...um, hm. i can't remember...pero matagal na.
hahaha.



JA kept asking me to explain the feeling... how can you explain
something like that? it was difficult to say "i'm excited about not
eating"... and that's when i realized that it's not what fasting is
about. it wasn't about NOT eating. it wasn't about skipping meals. i
don't feel like i'm "skipping" anything. it's not a diet, nor is it
being deprived on anything. deprivation is dispossession, a withdrawal
and is associated with damage. how can you be damaged by focusing on
God? impossible!



Pastor Joey said it perfectly last Sunday... you're so focused on God
you forget about everything else. it's being in love with HIM.



i told JA that when i'm with the music team, sometimes we do forget
about eating because we're so focused on perfecting the music, making
worship excellent and getting everything right that our lunchtime would
be at 4pm. or we're eating but our mind is still on the music or the
lyrics. when i was teaching in kids church, sometimes we wouldn't eat
until the end of the day, not because we were skipping meals but
because we're so focused on the children we actually forget to eat.
we're so busy preparing for the roles we were assigned that day, so
busy teaching them about God and learning from them that food is just
an after thought. then at the end of a busy day at KC Sunday or a full
day of being with the music team, i don't feel deprived... in fact,
it's the complete opposite. physically tired but spiritually full...
i'm more satisfied than i would be any other day of the week, and we
continue to be amazed at how God sustains us with a different kind of
strength, something we don't get out of food or any other material
thing from this earth. it's a swelling, soaring awesome sort of
feeling, and that was just one day...imagine seven days of THAT! no
kind of ulam, favorite dessert or eat-all-you-can buffet will ever
match the gifts God has given us.



so here's to a week of humbling ourselves before God... of focusing on
Him that we forget everything else. we don't need food to appreciate
life, because HE is at the center of it. HE will sustain us and we will
delight in Him.



cheers! ^_^



1 O God, you are my God,
earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you,
my body longs for you,
in a dry and weary land
where there is no water.

2 I have seen you in the sanctuary
and beheld your power and your glory.

3 Because your love is better than life,
my lips will glorify you.

4 I will praise you as long as I live,
and in your name I will lift up my hands.

5 My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods;
with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

- Psalm 63:1-5

Is your mind flabby?

something i picked up from Leadership Wired


-------------------------------

AVOIDING 'MENTAL FLABBINESS' By Dr. John C. Maxwell

I have a designated "thinking chair" in my office.

I don't sit in it when someone drops by to talk. I don't take
power naps in it. I use it only for thinking.

This chair doesn't think for me, but it does speak to me every
now and then. If I've gone a few days without sitting in it, its
presence subtly reminds me that I'm not devoting enough time to
the all-important task of thinking.

When we fail to make thinking a priority, we develop what author
Gordon MacDonald calls "mental flabbiness." This may not sound
like a life-threatening condition, but some ways, it can be quite
dangerous. Here's how MacDonald explains it:

"In our pressurized society, people who are out of shape mentally usually fall victim to ideas and systems that are destructive to the human spirit and to the human relationship," he writes. "They are victimized because they have not taught themselves how to think, nor have they set themselves to the lifelong pursuit of growth of the mind. Not having the faculty of a strong mind, they grow dependent upon the thoughts and opinions of others. Rather than deal with ideas and issues, they reduce themselves to lives full of rules, regulations, and programs."

You can't be an effective leader with a mindset like that—it's
just not possible.

Fortunately, there is an antidote to mental flabbiness: making time to think. I realize this can be a daunting assignment for
people whose schedules are already bursting at the seams. And
yet, when we don't make thinking a priority, we're actually
sabotaging our own creativity and success.

Think about it. One of the highest commodities in a person's life
is a great idea. A great idea has transforming power. It can take
you places you may never have dreamed of going. But great ideas
don't come out of nowhere. They begin as thoughts. So it stands
to reason that the more time we spend thinking, the more great ideas we'll have.

The good news is that it doesn't take hours of thinking each day
to generate ideas and stay in good mental shape. You can
accomplish a great deal in a few moments of concentrated,
intentional thought.

Let me give you two examples of how this works in my life. Every
morning, I devote three minutes to what I call "big-picture thinking." I look at my schedule for the day and ask myself one
simple question: What's the main event? Of all the things I'm going to do, of all the people I'm going to see, of all the experiences that I'm going to encounter, what's the main event?

You can't prioritize your day if you don't see everything in your
day. That's why I practice big-picture thinking in the morning. I
have to pick out my main event early, because whatever it is,
that's where I had better be at my best. I'm human, and I don't
always hit the ball out of the park. Sometimes I don't hit the
ball at all. But at the main event, I had better hit a homerun.
Big-picture thinking helps me achieve that goal.

At the end of the day, I spend another five to 10 minutes doing
what I refer to as "reflective thinking". I go to my thinking
chair and spend time reviewing my whole day. I ask myself
questions such as, "Who did I see today? How did I add value to those people? What lessons did I learn?" Reflective thinking
doesn't take long, but it's an incredibly valuable exercise
because it turns experience into insight.

Can you imagine what would happen in your life if you practiced
big-picture and reflective thinking? You would stop wasting time
on things that don't really matter, which would give you more
energy for the really important activities. You would be more
organized and efficient. You would experience less stress. Most
importantly, you would also take more away from each day that
would enable you to lead better the next day.

The best way to start this process is to designate a specific place to think. It doesn't matter if your "thinking chair" is in
your den at home or your office at work. It just has to be a spot
where you can do nothing but think for a few moments twice a day.

The bottom line is this: If you find a place to think your thoughts, you'll have more thoughts. If you find a place to shape your thoughts, you will have better thoughts. And if you find a place to stretch your thoughts, you will have bigger thoughts.

All this, from just three minutes in the morning and five to ten
minutes at night. As you can see, the results far outweigh the
time investment.

the great blondin

last night i attended a wake for my friend sherwin's grandfather, victorino pajarillo. as i listened to friends and family talk about this great man that they were blessed to have in their lives, i kept remembering how, years ago, i attended my own brother's wake. butch passed away when we were kids, and although he did not have a full life like sherwin's granddad, we celebrated his life in the same way, how he was a great blessing to us even though he came just for a short while.

pastor pao gave a sermon last night... it was such an amazing and powerful message, and i couldn't stop my tears from falling as i listened to his words...

Life is SHORT... whether we live to 3 or 89 years, it will always seem too short. how time flies when we're caught up in matters of "importance". i guess every birthday, every Christmas...or even every time someone dies we wonder, where did time go? and even though there will also be days that seem to last forever, life is barely a blink compared to eternity...(Hebrews 13:14) DEATH is sure... death is an appointment we all have...no one escapes death. but we must remember that even though life is short, and death is sure... God is GOOD.

4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever. Psalm 23:4-6

as pastor paolo closed his sermon, he told us the story of the amazing Charles Blondin. Blondin, born Jean Francois Gravelet, was a french tight-rope walker and an acrobat who lived in the late 19th century. he was famous for his feats of walking across the niagara falls on a tight-rope. each time he crossed, a distance of over 1100 feet long above the falls, he would ask the audience if they believed he could do it...and they would always reply with an enthusiastic "Yes!" "We believe in you!" "You're the Great Blondin!". and he would cross with ease, and even back again. when he asked if they believed he could cross the falls with a man on his back, they replied the same way. BUT when he asked who would volunteer to be that person on his back... do you think they replied as enthusiastically? they were silent, or probably tried to volunteer each other. they were hesitant.

we are just like those people. we pray to God fervently asking him for miracles, we are passionate and wholehearted when we sing praises and when we worship Him... "Yes! You are good!" "You are the great Father" "Amazing God! You can do anything!". but when we are put on the spot to give up everything to Him... to put our trust in Him and to lay our lives before Him just as a person would ride on Blondin's back across the Niagara...we are hesitant. we are scared.

if we believe in God who is great and can do amazing things with our lives, then we should wholeheartedly give that to Him. how much easier life would be if we let Him carry us across...!

an email i got at work today :) took the liberty of adding the passages (from NIV)
---------------------------

Five Reasons Why God Uses Problems

The problems you face will either defeat you or develop you - depending on how you respond to them. Unfortunately, most people fail to see how God wants to use problems for good in their lives. They react foolishly and resent their problems rather than pausing to consider what benefit they might bring.

Here are five ways God wants to use the problems in your life:

1. God uses problems to DIRECT you.
Sometimes God must light a fire under you to get you moving. Problems often point us in a new direction and motivate us to change. Is God trying to get your attention? "Sometimes it takes a painful situation to make us change our ways."
Proverbs 20:30
³⁰ Blows and wounds cleanse away evil, and beatings purge the inmost being.

2. God uses problems to INSPECT you.
People are like tea bags...if you want to know what's inside them, just drop them into hot water! Has God tested your faith with a problem? What do problems reveal about you? "When you have many kinds of troubles, you should be full of joy, because you know that these troubles test your faith, and this will give you patience."
James 1:2-3
²Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.

3. God uses problems to CORRECT you.
Some lessons we learn only through pain and failure. It's likely that as a child your parents told you not to touch a hot stove. But you probably learned by being burned.
Sometimes we only learn the value of something...health, money, a relationship... by losing it. "It was the best thing that could have happened to me, for it taught me to pay attention to your laws."
Psalm 119:71-72
⁷¹ It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees.

⁷² The law from your mouth is more precious to me
than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.

4. God uses problems to PROTECT you.
A problem can be a blessing in disguise if it prevents you from being harmed by something more serious. Last year a friend was fired for refusing to do something unethical that his boss had asked him to do. His unemployment was a problem - but it saved him from being convicted and sent to prison a year later when management's actions were eventually discovered. "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good..."
Genesis 50:20
²⁰ You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.

5. God uses problems to PERFECT you.
Problems, when responded to correctly, are character builders. God is far more interested in your character than your comfort. Your relationship to God and your character are the only two things you're going to take with you into eternity. "We can rejoice when we run into problems... they help us learn to be patient. And patience develops strength of character in us and helps us trust God more each time we use it until finally our hope and faith are strong and steady."
Romans 5:3-4
³Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴perseverance, character; and character, hope.

Here's the point:
God is at work in your life - even when you do not recognize it or understand it.
But it's much easier and profitable when you cooperate with Him.

"Success can be measured not only in achievements, but in lessons learned, lives touched and moments shared along the way"

LIFE IS AN ECHO. What you send out, you get back. What you give, you receive.

WHEN YOU BRING OUT THE BEST IN OTHERS, YOU BRING OUT THE BEST IN YOURSELF

:)

last leg of Remission... spread the word, people! :)

Why join...?!?

Join the Quest

We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values.

We confess that we have ridiculed the absolute truth of Your Word
and call it Pluralism.

We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.

We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare.

We have killed our unborn and called it choice.

We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable.

We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem.

We have abused power and called it politics.

We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition.

We have polluted the air with profanity and porn and called
it freedom of expression.

We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and
called it enlightenment.

Everythings messed up.. And no ones taking a stand.. How Annoying!!

- Jose Villanueva

Join the Quest

Dont wait for change coz it will never come

Dont sit back and watch things be done

Coz Deep inside we're all longing for something

But if you do nothing then you'll get nothing

Dont be lazy, Stop complaining

Stop debating, This nations ailing

We dont need a new President, we need a new heart

We need to change our mindsets, Lets go back from the start

Throw away our pride, Begin to listen

understand our needs, stop the dissin

Another edsa revolution will lead to nothing

Chaos is not the sulotion for our nations suffering

United we stand,Divided we fall

The second statement is exactly whats happening to us all

Take your stand, Do whats right, play your part, Live your role

Thats when you will begin to see transformation unfold

The little that you do will matter when we're all grown

Coz the next generation will reap what we've sown

Every individual is crucial for a better Philippines

And we will once again be the pearl of the orient seas

Coz the Philippines is not Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao

Not the islands or the infastructure we have now

Not the three stars and a sun, the red, white and blue

Coz The Philippines is Alive... Its living in YOU!

- Jose Villanueva

All hail King Benjo!

he was my brother peter, and he called me sister lucy (he still does!). since then i felt like it was more than just a role in a kids church skit... when i first met him at cat's house for friday's small group meetings i felt drawn to this charming, funny, energetic guy. he had a big smile and an even bigger laugh, always ready with a funny hirit or two. everytime i see him i can't help but give him a hug.

recently, we learned he's been diagnosed with hodgkin's lymphoma, and is currently undergoing chemotherapy...he gave us a visit one time, just to say hi and to let us know about his condition. at first i felt tears in my eyes as he described in detail how he felt, his doctor appointments and their plans at first to go to the States but deciding to have treatment done here instead. but as he talked, i felt he was as strong as ever, and i felt a bit guilty for feeling sad. he still had his big smile on and it wasn't fake...he wasn't just being brave for us...he genuinely believed that this is God's answer to his prayer for spiritual growth. he said this was his chance to grow closer to God, to walk the path He meant for his life, to perhaps be able to finally fulfill his destiny. as he sat there and talked about his great trial, i felt his passion for life even more. my heart felt lighter, and i found myself wearing a smile almost as big as his...it was as if his excitement was catching. physically, he looked like he needed rest, but his eyes still shone with the same passionate energy and his voice was powerful and resounded through the room.

benjo's faith in God keeps him strong and he is an inspiration to so many people, and i think his good friend lance said it best in his entry...

"what makes Benjo an astonishing person is that he chooses to be defiant in the very face of despair."

just like a true king, don't you think? i can't wait to see him again, to hear him call me Lu and then give him a big big hug.

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for schedule on gigs for his fundraising, check out "Remission Is Possible"



other multiply entries about our dear DJ Benjo:
Hail the Lizard Kings
Benjo the Brave
Benjo Marquez Fundraiser Updates #2 Pls Read!