put out into the deep

Did you know that Jesus' birthplace, Bethlehem means "House of Bread"?

Then Jesus said, “I am the bread that gives life. No one who comes to me will ever be hungry. No one who believes in me will ever be thirsty.

John 6:35

The world is certainly hungry. On the news, you'll find hunger for food, hunger for health, hunger for happiness. The world is in dire need of material and spiritual bread.

What is this bread that we long for in our daily lives?

It is said that baking bread is a traditional way of observing religious days such as making hot cross buns during Lent and Good Friday, dyeing eggs red on Greek Easter bread to symbolize Jesus' blood and the Jewish making challah to commemorate the coming of Sabbath.

What does bread mean for me?

Many years ago, I visited Israel. The thing I remember most from the trip was coming home with a sense of meaning. I was convicted that all things were created for a purpose - not just each person and each life, but each thing - a rock, a pebble, a grain of sand.

That same truth is found in the Bible - every chapter, every sentence, every word is rich with meaning and purpose. That is why for centuries, scholars have been debating upon the meaning of Jesus' words that He is the BREAD OF LIFE.

Bread appears as manna to the Israelites. Unleavened bread was taken during fleeing from Egypt. It saves them from certain death from starvation. Bread was multiplied for the thousands.

"Terumah" (heave offering) is often mentioned in the Bible - signifying bread as something that is set apart for God. Though bread is quite commonplace then and now, this bread was something special - sometimes only the priests could eat.

Just like bread, Jesus was a man who breathed, talked, walked and looked like a man. But He was no ordinary man! His life was an offering for the salvation of the world and He was fully man and fully God! Pretty mind-blowing huh?

Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. - John 6:51

Today at mass I received Christ in the Eucharist. As my hands touched the precious Host, I asked the Lord to use my hands for His glory. As I opened my mouth and touched the Eucharist, I asked the Lord to use my tongue as an instrument for His glory. How many of us believe that this is His true flesh?

Many believe that this is merely a symbol. They say that Jesus meant feasting on His Word instead of eating a piece of bread. Sometimes people say that Christ is not present because a sick person does not get healed from consuming it. I think that Jesus promised eternal life for all who received His body and blood, not physical healing from all our worldly ills.

Whatever you believe, Jesus' words remain. It is for each of us to decide. As for me, I believe.

Eugenio Hansen Photograph, OFS [CC BY-SA 4.0], from Wikimedia Commons

What is the smallest thing you have ever seen?

Maybe a speck of dust, or grain would be it. In the photo above, it could easily be missed (the seed is next to the ring).

FULL GROWN MUSTARD TREE (Salvadora Persica)

SOURCE: EMMANUEL GUDDU

"it is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches." Matthew 13:32

Seeds do indeed sprout and as time and rain and sun do it's work, the seeds that were so little, become gigantious compared to its former size.

We no doubt have to guard against seeds of doubt. As these have the potential of thoughts leading to fear and inaction.

A story that illustrates this in my own life began about a decade ago.

My family and I visited relatives in Australia and one morning before going out to do some sightseeing, I had my time of quiet with the Lord.

I ended the prayer recalling that I asked the Lord to use me that day and to allow me to bring His goodness - even to strangers.

On the train, a tall, pretty lady with black hair chatted with me (which is quite unusual). She was very nice and I enjoyed our conversation.

On the way home, on a different train (at the end of the day) in another part of town, I met the same lady! We were both startled when we found ourselves on the same train, twice in one day (in a different part of town). No, she was not stalking us.

When we met each other again, I found out that she was a Christian and was active in her church. Then along the course of the conversation, she said, "is it true that there are children on the streets begging in the Philippines?" I was stunned by her question and told her, "yes it is true". She said that she wanted to come and help the children. I was so inspired and amazed at her - to want to come to a foreign land, to help children.

We parted ways and tried to give each other our contact information but for some reason, we never got to connect again. For me that was a divine appointment.

That was the seed that started something big in my heart. I felt ashamed that as I grew up, I would see street children begging at our car window and (as ugly as this may sound), would not feel an ounce of pity.

It took this lady from Australia, a stranger - to plant a seed of guilt and conviction in me - to help in any way I could.

As the days passed and as my prayers intensified. "Lord I am afraid to go into the shanties. I am afraid to talk to people. I am not good in Tagalog. I am so small and defenceless. What can I do?"

Amidst asking the Lord to show me what to do - the seed of an idea came to me. Education. The children can rise from poverty if they study, graduate and get jobs. Their life can change with education.

Soon enough, more friends shared the vision. We visited He Cares Foundation and the founder, Joe Dean Sola asked us to tutor the scholars. He said that despite the foundation's support for the children, they were dropping out of school.

We said, "we are not trained tutors". He said, "just be their friends". And so that is what we did. We would be there for the kids 2x a month. I lost my fear of going to the informal settler communities and got better in speaking in Tagalog.

The children who first came to us wore ragged clothes, unresponsive to our questions, didn't take a bath, unsmiling and generally looking unhappy.

As we kept going, there was an obvious change to the children. They would come to the tutorial sessions freshly smelling, with smiles, more courteous, friendly and happier-looking.

When we first looked at their grades, almost everyone was in danger of getting booted out of their scholarship - as they had to maintain a certain average to retain it. We thought of an incentive - to treat out the scholars who achieved the highest grades. Out of 30 or so children in the first year, only about 5 attained good grades.

After the 1st, 2nd 3rd years, we had to find help with funding our treats because almost all of the children had high grades already.

Almost a decade into the program, more and more of the children we tutored have stayed in school. From around 10 children we tutored then - it has now grown to 83 students being tutored weekly.

I am waiting for all of our students to graduate from college. Some of them chose to work rather than continue on to college - but I am still hoping and praying for all of them.

I cannot say that the seed I once had is already full grown. But I can already see the birds perching on it's branches. May the program keep growing strong and be able to change lives.

If you wish to volunteer as a tutor, please see this page for updates, schedules and how-to's.

I come from a family of mostly women but one thing we are not fond of, is cooking. In fact, it was a major concern for me before getting married and disconcertingly told my fiance (and now husband) that I did not know how to cook.

*Note: If you want to go to the recipe and skip my ramblings, just scroll down to the bottom.

Despite passing Home Ed. classes and having baking as a hobby when I was little, I could not get over the thought of having to plan a meal, find a recipe and cook to be able to feed myself everyday. It just seemed the epitome of drudgery akin to slavery (don't take me seriously, okay?)

I also told my fiance, "Do you have insurance? What if I burn the whole house down?" He just grinned and said that he did.

You see, we always had a cook around the house. Ever since I was little, someone would call me to the dining table and as a family, we would pray and then eat. No cooking was ever involved.

Except that time when we were suddenly left without a cook. Us siblings were assigned to a particular day. My brother and I were teamed together (as we were the 2 youngest) and I remember us gingerly handling the frozen chicken. We named it "Bertha". We would profusely apologize to the dead chicken while attempting to cook and slice it.

Flash forward to the future when a life in Japan meant "no cook, no cleaning lady, no laundry woman, no driver" and actually "no car" too! *happy smile*

One thing that marriage has taught me - it's fun to do housework!!! It's fun to cook!

You can imagine how nervous I was to start planning meals for my husband and I. My hands would shake and I would keep flitting from the stove to the recipe book, trying to follow, to the letter, what it said. Sometimes it was good and sometimes it was bad. But all throughout the process, I found myself enjoying each recipe and getting bored if I cooked that particular dish already. New recipes seemed more and more exciting!

The first thing I cooked without looking at a recipe was soup. It was easy! And it turned out delicious!!! Here in Japan, you can get a lot of soup stock. You can use miso paste, dashi (fish), vegetable powder, etc as your base.

I think the best way to get over your Mageirocophobia is to start cooking. It is the best and only way. I can compare it to traveling to a foreign land where everything is just new and exciting!

So, we are going on a trip soon and needed to use up all the ingredients in our fridge. This recipe is made up of things we needed to eat so - you can make your own "eat soon or else" pizza.

EASY PIZZA
(This before cooking it)

It turned out delicious! I do suggest though that when you cook, you use this simple rule of thumb - cook the ingredients you like the taste of (duh!). I know, this is not a novel idea, but it was to me! This is not foolproof though! It's a trial and error thing. But there you go - TRY it first even if you go wrong, you will move in the right direction and you will overcome your fears!

So today's bible readings seem to eerily resemble the events in the news. It tells us how God commands his prophet Jeremiah to shout this out to the people.

2 “Stand in the gate of the Lord’s house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the Lord, all you men of Judah who enter these gates to worship the Lord. 3 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings, and I will let you dwell in this place. 4 Do not trust in these deceptive words: ‘This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord.’[a]

5 “For if you truly amend your ways and your doings, if you truly execute justice one with another, 6 if you do not oppress the alien, the fatherless or the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not go after other gods to your own hurt, 7 then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your fathers for ever.
Jeremiah 7:1-11

In the news nowadays in the USA is the immigration crisis and in my country, the Philippines, it is the proposal to a government shift to federalism.

"do not oppress the alien"

The immigration crisis is a very difficult thing to fix. I believe most Americans want secure borders but do not want to oppress those who are already oppressed. I see issues like this - break families apart and really tear away at the fabric of American society.

I want to see Democrats and Republicans work together to fix this issue. I want to see Americans volunteering at the border to help the dying and to vet who is an asylum seeker and who is not.

"Do not trust in these deceptive words"

Sometimes it is hard to know which of the news is actually the whole news. You see a headline and read it. At the very last paragraph, you see something totally different from what the headline is trying to say. At other times, the news leave out very important information that would make a significant impact on how you would think of the story.

"truly execute justice one with another"

In the Philippines, the police say there have been 4,279 people killed in drug-bust police operations since July 2016 (source) and in a recent report they also said that there were 22,983 cases filed under DUI (Deaths Under Inquiry) (source).

Despite government reports saying they seized ₱20.77 billion worth of drugs (source), the drug-related deaths cannot be justified.

We all need a government that gives all of us a fair trial. Otherwise, life has no value.

The killings of priests, mayors all seem precursors to a tyrannical rule wherein opposition is easily squelched.

"truly amend your ways and your doings"

If we as a people, run to God and His ways, we can live in our countries (and may I add) in peace and prosperity. This is a call for true change, true conversion in each of us. We need to amend our ways our doings. We need to transform ourselves in order to have a transformed country.

Still, these may all seem too impossible for us. If we cannot see this being fulfilled in our lifetime, we can see it fulfilled in our death. As long as we amend our ways and our doings, we can look to the day where we can dwell in such a land.

Maybe it is this place, this land for which He calls us to.

How lovely is your dwelling place,
    Lord Almighty!
2 My soul yearns, even faints,
    for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and my flesh cry out
    for the living God.
3 Even the sparrow has found a home,
    and the swallow a nest for herself,
    where she may have her young—
a place near your altar,
    Lord Almighty, my King and my God.
4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house;
    they are ever praising you.[c]

5 Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
    whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.
6 As they pass through the Valley of Baka,
    they make it a place of springs;
    the autumn rains also cover it with pools.[d]
7 They go from strength to strength,
    till each appears before God in Zion.

8 Hear my prayer, Lord God Almighty;
listen to me, God of Jacob.
9 Look on our shield,[e] O God;
look with favor on your anointed one.

10 Better is one day in your courts
    than a thousand elsewhere;
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
    than dwell in the tents of the wicked.
11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
    the Lord bestows favor and honor;
no good thing does he withhold
    from those whose walk is blameless.

12 Lord Almighty,
blessed is the one who trusts in you.

Psalm 84

Lord, teach us to long for heaven.

When I am planning for a vacation, I always pray for our family's safety. Visions of doom and destruction flash across my mind. Accidents, calamities, stormy weather, stolen and lost things and all sorts of bad luck seem to loom over all my plans and I wonder why I have a tendency to worry.

With deeper thought, the truth emerges. I feel like I have reached my limit.

Looking back at all my trips around the globe, these have not been thoroughly free from strife. Traveling hours on a crammed vehicle and reaching the wrong airport and thinking we would be late for our flight has happened. Being prey to thieves trying to get hold of our luggage has happened. Getting surrounded by a mob of strange men on a train has happened.

But we eventually found the right airport and did not miss our flight. We were able to stave off the knaves and save our luggages from being stolen. We were eventually saved from the mob of strange men and escaped unscathed.

These memories were labeled "adventures" rather than curses. The minute amount of mishaps on each journey could not compare to the multitude of blessings we received!

Still I find myself in a place of worry, whenever I start to pack. I automatically go into prayer mode and pray for each thing I can think of that could go wrong. I pray for God's protection.

Maybe that is not at all wrong and maybe that is God's way of allowing me to rely more on His goodness and saving power in my life. Still I blame myself for that seed of doubt and worry.

Then I go back and think. I might have reached my limit.

You see I can describe my life as a bed of roses. It is such a grace-filled existence. I feel like I live in a dream life. I am excited to go to work and whenever I look at my husband, I feel God's love for me (yes, every single time). We live in a very tiny apartment but we love every corner of it and we do not want for anything.

And maybe it is the prince of darkness that whispers to me, "You have reached your limit - of goodness in this life." It is easy to believe because I have had so much of it! Since I was 16 years old, I gave my life to Christ (in somewhat of an altar call) and as the years rolled by, it has been more and more a lesson of God's unlimited, unfathomable, indescribable, mercy-filled love.

The more I give of myself to God, the more I obey His call, the more I experience His love without limits. Even if I tell Him Lord, "I am not worthy of all these blessings Lord!" He says, "I have more!" It's only I, we, who limit His blessings and grace and mercy and goodness!

"I will show them my love without limits" - Hosea 14:4

Thank You Lord for your love without limit! We cannot reach the heights, nor depths of it, even if we tried. May all people know of this GREAT LOVE.

"And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:38

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