Laborers and Harvest

It is said that in the Archdiocese of Manila which is composed of Manila, Pasay, Mandaluyong, San Juan, and Makati City, there about 200 priests. 80 priests are 60 years old or above. Only 40 priests are 30 years old and below. The average age of the priest is 54 years old. Surely we need…

Praising God in Difficult Times

I came across a story of a wife who prayed for a baby for more than two years. One day she received the good news from her doctor and in her excitement, she texted family and friends and all were happy for her. Four days later though, she knew something was wrong with the baby….

Christian Persecution

Is it said that two-thirds of the 2.3 billion Christians in the world today live in dangerous neighborhoods. They are often poor. They often belong to ethnic, linguistic, and cultural minorities. And they are often at risk. Hence, every month, we hear of a Christian being killed. Not too long ago, a priest, Fr. Mark…

Cleanliness from the Inside

It is said that we Filipinos are a mystery. We value cleanliness, yet look at our surroundings: We will clean our own backyard but we will dump the garbage in public places. We take a bath at least two times a day, even when it is winter, but look at the litter all over the…

Shattered Dreams

All of us have had our shattered dreams in life. We have planned, we have invested in ourselves, we gave our time, we gave it our all. The results, unfortunately, did not turn out the way we planned it to be. Just think of all the emotions – shame, anger, frustration, and hopelessness.  In the…

Dealing with Stress

Once I had the opportunity to bless a spa and afterward, I was informed that the business was flourishing. In fact, the spa I blessed was their latest branch in their expansion. Why is there a huge demand, I queried? The owner said that their clients are mostly office workers and they have lots of…

Hope

There is a saying, “laugh and the whole world laughs at you. Cry and you cry alone”. In talking about crying, why is it when life brings us crisis, challenges, sickness, pain and suffering, we feel alone? When we deal with fear, anxiety, worry, restlessness, depression and suicidal thoughts, we feel all alone. In the…

It Will Always Be Better

There is a story of a flight in a storm, wherein the first announcement was to “wear your seat belts.”. Then it was announced that “food will not be served because of turbulence.” When the plane was experiencing rough movement, suddenly the oxygen masks dropped. To the gratitude of the crowd, the flight eventually became…

Antidote for Anxiety

John 20:24-29 If we use the news as the basis, whether it be TV, Radio, or the internet, there is so much anxiety and worry nowadays, even without COVID-19. If you talk to people you will realize that many of them are going through a lot – between sickness, court cases, issues with money, issues…

Healing and Jesus

The life expectancy of the average Filipino is 71 years of age. In other words, sooner or later, we are all going to say goodbye to this world. But if this is the reality of all humanity, then why did Jesus still heal people of their sicknesses? Why did he not say, “from now on…