Bloody procession!

This coming Friday is one of the most bloody Fridays of the year in the Philippines. This bloody day, a part of the Lenten Season is planned – infact there is people exodus going on in the major cities to have both religious and grand weekend long vacation to visit families and to see bloody bodies (not by accidents but by choice).

One of the most popular visited places during this Lenten Times is the one in Maleldo, Pampanga, where selected men of the village are nailed on the cross as penitents.

Crucifixion at Maleldo, Pampanga

Why are we practicing this?

We Filipinos are cultural Christians, thinking that to do certain religious piety or make ourselves suffer will make God love or care for us more or will make Him considerate to give our prayer requests, the like of ’suertes’ for the year and good health.

To note sadly, the least that we think of during Holy Friday, even if all the processions and pious practices are around, is the real essence of God’s sacrificial act of LOVE by giving His ONLY Son to carry in Himself the sins He did not commit but ours.  So that we may be guiltless and will not suffer the painful consequence of our sins in hell!

During that time He became the BAD one not us:

• He was the cheating employee, the selfish businessman, the corrupt government official.
• He was the flirting wife, the adulterer husband, the disobedient child.
• He was the hold upper, the murderer, the drug addict, the sexual abuser.
• He was the lustful man, the self-absorbed vain lady, the extravagant yuppy.

Name all the sins we commit and those He took, was punished and died so that we can now run free from the eternal horrible penalty.

By reading this, I hope that you will appreciate that act on the CROSS by Jesus.

To end this post let me share with you a beautiful verse in the last book of the Bible: “…Jesus Christ, who is the first witness…the ruler of the kings of the earth…Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood, and has made us to be a kingdom…to serve His God and Father.” (Revelation 1: 5, 6)

• Who among you wanted three to four nights a week for yourself and your sweetheart to dine out, watch movie and go to an entertainment place?

• Who wanted more time to spend in the gym, running and getting physical for a better health and a hot body?

• Who among you wanted to have more than one month to go to a vacation get away?

• Who wanted an extra or more than enough left over money to do anything you wanted?

I guess your arms are aching now if I request you to raise your hand if you answer positively to all the questions. Then, if you answer yes, it means you are desperately needing a MARGIN since Yesterday!

You needed MARGIN to enjoy life more!

What is a Margin?  It is the extra space in a pad of paper or in a page of your note book where you can write any extra point, important thought or just entertain yourself by drawing cartoon characters of your teacher or your boss.

In life Margin is anything available beyond what do we needed! It is anything where the best things happens. It is something most of us missing and do not have because of prioritizing the seemingly essential and urgent things we thought we needed to work for, to acquire or to accomplish.

To give concrete examples:

1. We do not have extra “Time Margin” because we work longer to earn more money to sustain the needs of our loved ones but as a result we lost connection with them.
2. We do not have extra “Time Margin” due to the demands of life that we neglect health practices so our body suffers.
3. We do not have extra “Time Margin” because we needed more time for our daily activities and chores that we neglect our relationship with God who can guide us how to have a better lifestyle, as a consequence we mess things up.

When you’re busy busy busy and tired of doing things over and over then you get less Margin in your life and most probably you are stressed out and your relationships are suffering!

Do you wanted to increase your Life Margin and enjoy life more? Jesus has something to tell you today: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest…learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Matthew 11: 28, 29)

If you wanted to learn more about LIFE’S MARGIN it is the topic of our church family’s message series every Sunday!  This coming Sunday (January 24) we will learn “SCHEDULING MARGIN.” How to schedule to have Margin? I am inviting you to visit us, leave a comment below so that I can communicate with you!

Today is an All Souls Day Eve and it is storming outside! I’m wondering if the souls are also afraid of the storm. Do they hate the rain and the strong winds, like us? Are they concern with flying objects like house roofs & the falling billboard frames? Do they stay inside the house when there is typhoon or do they try to have some recreation too, even during rainy and typhoon season?

I asked those questions because I will talk about the least or the fifth priority of a person to eliminate bad ghost feelings that over-rule many homes (refer to the two preceding blogs as reference for those bad home ghosts). After putting God first, then your family second, your work third, your friends fourth…the fifth should be RECREATIONAL or PLEASURABLE ACTIVITIES. We call these activities with different names: sports, outing, gimmick, vacation or amusement. It is anything that restores our energy!

It is the least but is very important because our life is ruled by the Stress – Relief principle. If we always work, work and work, we will either burn out physically or emotionally. That is the reason why God wanted us to rest!

Normally our regular jobs give us negative stress, exhaust us and wear or waste us out! We need positive stress that helps restore and refreshes our body and mind to function well again.

This positive stress should…

…Be something that relieves us from our regular distressful activities.

…Motivates us to focus on something that is good and new for a short time.

…Makes us feel good, but not a dirty, immoral or unhealthy, form of excitement.

…Helps us to enhance what we do regularly.

Let me mention some:

1. A whole day, a half day or just a night date with your peers, family or your spouse.
2. Or a play schedule with your kids.
3. A 45 to 30 minutes walk or running every day or every other day.
4. A two to three week gym schedule.
5. An over night out of town trip.
6. A one week end or one week holiday.
7. A team or partner sports like badminton, basketball, bowling, volley ball and others.
8. A new hobby or crafts that will make you excited to accomplish.
9. Or just a plain pleasure reading.
10. Or a whole day sleeping and doing nothing.
11. And for most women, cleaning the house, cooking and baking for the family is a form of recreation.

Boracay, a Filipinos' & foreign nationals' vacation getaway!

This is very essential! If you don’t intentionally have a recreation, you will always have that stressful lifestyle of purely working. You won’t be re-created, that is why it was called recreation, and you will die early! Then, all the souls that we honor this weekend will welcome you warmly to their invisible world. Do you like that?

May you all have a great Halloween! May all the bad ghosts on the way to your work, in your work places and in you homes be exorcised by the help of the tips and suggestions presented in these special Holloween Blogs!