Sharing of Love and Compassion

          Another gathering of life was held today on our Couples for Christ North Household community. Our kind host was the Vidal family, couple Bro. Alex and Sis. Precious and their ever talented daughter Alexi. We went through our usual routine of our gathering and in spite of our conventional way, it was still enriched by the varied experiences we shared in our group. 

          When everyone was ready, we started our gathering with two meaningful songs,  My Life is In You and Give Thanks. The first song allowed us to recognise God as the source of all- that everything we have in life- life, strength, talents, skills, etc. - they are all coming from Him and it is  but fitting for us all to recognise Him as such.

          The second song, Give Thanks, allowed us to recognise again God as the source of everything and that we are expressing our gratefulness to Him for all His unending goodness showered on us every single day.  

  We have so much to be thankful to Him and for several times in our life, we fail to recognise such goodness thus we chose this song to remind us that we have to be constantly grateful to God Above for His love and compassion.

          We moved on with the rest of our activities such as the sharing of thanksgiving prayers and also the expression of petitions wherein we submitted all our worries and concerns to God believing that He can hear us at all times. He would always remain as the source of our strength and energy everyday as we continue with our separate journeys in life. 

A Borrowed Quote

image: http://www.brainyquote.com/photos/r/ralphmarston132966.jpg

 

What you do today can improve all your tomorrows.

Ralph Marston

I personally shared this borrowed quote from Ralph Marston for I strongly believe on what he shared here that whatever we do in the present moment of time will greatly affect our "tomorrows". 

Henceforth, it is but essential for us to be always  mindful of all the ways that we communicate with others for there might be unfavourable consequences on our actions that may, sooner or later, affect us negatively. 

However, being aware of our everyday dynamics, it is but an everyday challenge for us to constantly monitor and be consistent on our life values for whether we like it or not, there would always be instances wherein these values will be tested and challenged. 

Yet at the end of the day, we will always go back to the basic premise and question ourselves, " What have we done today that improve our life being?", " Have we contributed positively or the contrary to our world today?", Did we become agents of change for others today?"....so on and so forth. 

Again, as Ralph said, let us utilise positively our "todays" to experience a better "tomorrows".....not just for our sake but that of our neighbours regardless of any status, situation, colour etc. in life. 

CFC Celebrates 24th Year Anniversary

          August 15, 2014, Saturday will mark the 24th anniversary of CFC (Couples for Christ) in Melbourne, Australia. Many grateful hearts are ready to share their gifts tomorrow during the celebration. The venue for this momentous event will be St. Brigid's Church and Parish Hall.

          To make this event a very meaningful one, the following activities are being prepared for everyone to share. The celebration of the Holy Eucharist will commence the festivities then this will be followed with the following events:

- praise and worship

- group photo

- dinner

- inspirational talk from Bro. Ed Canilao 

- unit presentations 1, 2 and 3

-  unit and family ministry presentations

          Everyone is so thankful to God for everything that has transpired all those 24 years that CFC existed here in Melbourne, Australia. It has passed through so many stages including the moment of purification most notably when it passed the division phase. Yet after all those trying moments, CFC continues to grow and move forward by the grace of God and by the abled leadership of people like Bros. Bong, Romy, Ed and others. Happy 24th anniversary dear fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. 

Coming Together For Mutual Support

          We just came back from our gathering today in our CFC Northside household sharing. And we are thankful to our hosts- bro Alex and sis Precious for accommodating us in their home. What made this gathering a more memorable one was the event of welcoming the latest addition to our household- bro Jose and sis Daisy Aguinaldo. 

image: http://www.brainyquote.com/photos/w/williamjames108497.jpg

 

The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.

William James

          As shown in our borrowed image beforehand, our life is a continuing flow of events intertwined with each other's daily events and whether we like it or not, we come across the lives of other people whom we directly or indirectly interact with. Thus, in our gathering today, we all felt lucky and blessed to have heard the various stories we brought and carried in our lives. 

          We all said our prayers of gratitude to God for the past blessings both recent and past. Amidst the seemed complexity of life, we were still so grateful to God for His overflowing goodness and love to each one of us. What was common in our experiences was the presence of both good and bad events yet we were grateful for those happy moments and at the same time, blessed for those trial moments since they allowed us to be more steadfast in our faith.

          We ended our fellowship by wishing each one the best for the coming new week and days. Indeed gatherings like we had this day become a source of strength and motivation for us. And it allowed us to be more appreciative to the presence and support of each member of our community.  

Times of Desolation and Consolation: What Are You Made Of?

          As we celebrate the season of Lent, we are reminded to go back to the various chapters of our life and examine if where are we exactly in our relationship with God as manifested also in our relationships with others like our neighbours, brothers and sisters in Christ, families and most notably our primordial relationship with Him Above. 

          If we recall back the days spent by Jesus before He died on the cross, we can exactly recall how he suffered at the garden of Gethsemane. He was, at that stage, feeling so depressed and down however some of those significant persons surrounding Him especially Peter, Paul and John fell asleep while accompanying Him.

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          If we look it on a human way, it could have been so painful and frustrating on the part of Jesus seeing and realising that those people close to Him left Him at that very trying moments. In our reflection, can we identify certain resemblance that those three disciples have in our own life? At this time, can we afford to lay down our life and sacrifice our time for the sake of others like our families, friends, and others? 

           Constancy in our faith requires from us a genuine desire to dedicate our life for Him Above. And I believe that there goes a deeper meaning in life- when we are able and willing to offer everything for the greater glory of God. This road, if chosen, is not a smooth one and just like the painful journey of Jesus before His death on the cross, we are also given trials and sacrifices that oftentimes test our inner faith and love of God. 

The Joy of Coming Together as One Family

          Every opportunity for us to gather together in our CFC (Couples For Christ) Household is always seen as an opportunity of bonding together and sharing our giftedness as persons created in the image and likeness of our Divine Creator. 

          In every gathering that we cherish, we readily exchange pleasantries, prayers, and share our food as our means of strengthening our bond of brotherhood and sisterhood. We based our relationship on our being members of a community which is centered on our faith in God. On every gathering that we have, our initial activity is constantly to offer our prayers both as our means of expressing our gratitude to God and to relay to Him our petitions as well as the petitions of others who recommended themselves to our prayers.

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           Likewise, hymns of praises to our Most Loving Father are cheerfully sung to share our positive sentiments of the moment. Bonded by this common belief, we feel strengthened by this unity. Thus, it is always the prayer of each one that our group may continue to journey in the midst of life's complexities and challenges. And at the end, we believe that in all our gatherings and activities, God is always the focus of everything. 

Seek and You Shall Be Find

Jeremiah 29:13:  Thank You God, that you are there for us, We hear your words: " You will seek me and find me, when you search me with all your HEART"

          In life, there are certain moments that we get lost in our search for His kingdom. Our inadequacies and limitations caught us along the way thus resulting us to be misguided and misdirected. Yet at the end of the day, God's assurance of His eternal love continue to give us hope and light to go on and move ahead. After all, He is our reason why we strive daily to be good followers of Him.

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          No matter what will happen along the way, just like in the words of Jeremiah, God will always find us and welcome us to His warm embrace. During this season of hope as we joined others in celebrating the birthday of our Lord Jesus Christ, may we always find refuge in God's unending love for us all. 

          Whatever hardships and crosses we will find on this world. these will become light with His assistance. Live life to its fullest and love God with all your heart.

Precious Moments.....Memories to Cherish

          When people gather together as brothers and sisters in Christ, it is there in that gathering that one can feel and radiate the same positive vibes to others. Life is so wonderful that one could not miss to enjoy every bit of it. Regardless of the busy schedules that we have everyday, it is still a part of our life to exchange our life story with others.

          That's exactly what we cherish last November 09, 2014, Sunday when we held our household gathering  at the residence of our household leader, Bro. Rodel and his loving wife, Sis Danna. What made the gathering more meaningful was the presence of our charismatic unit head, Bro. Ed and his loving wife, Sis Pinky. Amidst the chit- chat we made before we formally started our sharing, the full of spirit children were also busy with their games and antics most common to their ages. 

photo credit: Denis Collette...!!! via photopin cc

          We had our singing practice right before we took off our celebration. What struck me among the three songs that Bro. Rodel had prepared for the celebration was that they all tell and remind us of the overflowing love GOD has for all His people including us gathered at that very moment.

          Finally, we started our celebration of faith and life and as each one shared his thanksgiving prayer for all the recent blessings that were received from God, I said to myself that God indeed is such a generous God. He never fails in sending His goodness to all of us in so many ways. Throughout all the chapters of life specifically for us who were bonded together at that very moment, we personally and concretely feel God's amazing kindness by the multitude of gifts that He has showered on us. 

          Thus, we all felt the strength of our being together and as we all went back to each of our families, we carried with us the new found flame of life and the bond of fraternal love that we shared with each other. After all, those precious moments that we shared indeed become memories to cherish.  

Submit Everything To Him Above

          Opportunities to gather together as one household is always a renowned moment for it brings people more closer to one another. When we had our household gathering last month, there was excitement in the air as we gathered collectively as one family- people bounded together in one common faith in the Lord. 

          And when we started the gathering by offering songs of praise, we lifted up our hearts and faith to God for we all believed that He is the sole purpose of everything. Being the owner of our life, He is the main reason why we always have positive things in life. He showered immense blessings to us most notably through the gifts of our family, our loved ones, our life, our talents etc. . 

imagecredit: Jozh Tuballa, Australia

          So going back to our gathering, we also lifted to Him our personal intentions and even those intentions of other people unknown to us. We prayed in a special way for those who are presently sick and unloved, for those people who have no one to pray for them. Afterwards, we had our sharing on the given readings. Particularly, we shared our struggles and those positive energies that allowed us to move on from them.  

          To end, I am always looking forward to every opportunity that allows me to interact and share life with other people. There are fresh and new discoveries that I could find in myself as I will exchange moments together with others.  

Sharing the Joy of the Holiday Season

          One of the most awaited holidays of the year is Christmas. It's the season of sharing and exchanging of hope as well as love in life. On the 8th of this month, our household came together to jointly share the spirit of the season.

           Our host was the Circulado family. The gathering was started at lunchtime till 6pm. Delicious foods were shared and enjoyed by everyone. All the members of our unit were present including kids. To make the celebration more meaningful, exchanging of gifts was held and as each one received his/her present/s, laughter and excitement filled the home. 

          Another highlight of the party was the karaoke sharing. The singing prowess of the participants was revealed. Our household's version of Bruno Mars, Rhihanna, Matt Monroe, and many more was displayed. All in all, the celebration became an avenue for each one to share the spirit of joy while waiting for Christmas. 

Consolation In Moments of Desolation

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           The devastations as consequences of Typhoon Haiyan's rage in the Philippines especially in places like Leyte and Samar brought misery to thousands of people,  both directly and indirectly affected by it.

          Until now, scores of dead bodies are still waiting to be retrieved and identified. People scrambling for food and shelter and so disheartened that many of them decided to leave their place, Tacloban.

             What is consoling to hear at this time is the efforts both of the government and that of other countries to come together and help each other in rebuilding the places which are severely damaged by Haiyan. With much sympathy, you can express your assistance in many forms and in your own way. Moreover it is understandable that many affected victims and their loved ones may at one point or the other have lost their faith and became impatient as well as frustrated  of their plight.

imagecredit:ID 16621205 © Jiajianzheng | Dreamstime.com

          On the other hand, efforts by countries like US, UK, Australia, China, South Korea, Canada, Israel and many more have been pouring in into the affected places. They have jointly shared their bountiful resources like money, logistics, personnel, medicine and food much to the delight of their recipients.

           Presently, there are still many people who are urgently waiting for assistance. You can help the situation by spreading this immediate need to those who can extend support. May substantial food and medical aid be given to the victims soon.