Future tag

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

10 years from now, I'll be 30. By then, I want to be settled with maybe two kids. Also, I'll be a legit lawyer by 30. Well. I don't really know where exactly I'd be in my professional path in 10 years, but one thing I'm sure of is that I'll be committed in a carreer that's focused on service :)

Do you want to get married?

Definitely! God knows that! Honestly, I am anuptaphobic, that is, I am scared not getting married. I want to be married to guy that loves God and is sold out in just going after God's will and purposes in his life.

Do you want to have children?

Yes! I love kids! It will be such a pity if I don't get to have my own kids when everytime I watch over or play with kids, I consider it as training ground to my being a mom in the future.

Do you want to move? If yes, where?

No. Batac is where God called me to be and so I'm staying here. I just know that the man I will marry will understand that full-well. I am also confident that he will be the kind of man that will go out of his way to just stand with me as I fulfill God's call for my life. In fact, I'm also sure that he will also find his purposes fulfilled in Batac.

How does your dream house look like?

I really want to have big house. There will be swimming pool, a backyard to gather friends and relatives, a family/music room and I also want to find a place for a dance room if any of my kids will be interested to my forgone passion :P

What is your dream job?

Public servant, enough said. But above that social job is that I will be a faithful wife and a devoted mother. If the need comes that I need choose between my social job and responsibilities to my family, I'd choose the later.

What are five things you want to do before you die?

In no particular order: skydiving, see the grand canon, own an island, visit Africa, visit all the provinces of the Philippines

Are you scared of the future?

There are times that I really get tempted to fear but in times lie that, I always choose to trust in the word of God and His plans for me. No fear can ever cloud the good, pleasing and perfect will of God in my life :)

What’s your biggest dream you would like to achieve in life?

That I be able to influence and make an impact into the lives of other people especially to the next generation. The ultimate dream is to pass on my legacy to my children. That is, that they will also choose follow Christ in their lives.

What would be the ideal age for you to die?

I really don't know. But whenever that's gonna be, one thing I know, I don't fear death.

Lesson Learned: BE FOCUSED

"Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you."

- Proverbs 4:25

         I just started reading Proverbs for my quiet time this week. Most of the chapters in the book of Proverbs was written by no other than the wisest man (according to the Bible) ever lived. So I thought, if I want to grow in wisdom and in the knowledge of God, I should learn it from the best (with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit, of course).

             By the way, I am already a college graduate (Yehey!) but I am not working just yet. Currently, I am reviewing for the entrance exams I will be taking for law school. In fact, last Monday, I went to UP Diliman to submit my application for the examination. Mimay, my good friend accompanied me since she is familiar with the campus. While we were waiting for our ride to Trinoma for our lunch, we randomly talked about a common friend that we have - how he/she is impulsive about his/her decision and keeps on taking responsibilities that we think are beyond his/her capacity.

         Truth is, I can relate to that friend we were talking about. In my heart is the desire to make a difference, to influence other people and to make an impact in my generation. Now these desires are not at all bad, in fact, they are good. But, however good they may be, they can be distractions to my goals. When I was in my supposed last semester in college, my goal was to graduate on time. But at the same time, I was the president of my organization, was part of big events in my university and was active in the community. All these things are good, but ultimately, it took my focus off of my goal.

             That is one lesson I have learned in my life: to set my focus on my goal. It's important to know what you want and keep your eyes focused on it. When an opportunity comes, ask yourself, "will this help me attain my goal or not?" Because if not, that is just a distraction, no matter how good and beautiful it may seem to be. If that opportunity is really for you, it will come in the right place and the right time. Just take one step at a time. 

          And as I was praying and meditating on this verse, I just realized that there are still a lot of things that I want to do in my life. And then I asked, which should I do first? which should be my the goal that I will accomplish first? Then, I was reminded of another verse in the bible which pretty much have the same wisdom as the one in Proverbs.

"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.

who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its

shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

-Hebrews 12;2

           God revealed to me that it is not just about being focused on a goal, particularly your personal goals. It is all about being focused to the goals and purposes of the Lord for our lives. It's about wanting and fixing our eyes on what He wants for us. Ultimately, our eyes should be focused on Jesus. Every hope, every dream, every desires of your lives must be focused on Him alone.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

God, thank you for this word. Thank you for teaching me to keep my attention and focus straight ahead so that I will not be distracted with the seemingly "interesting" sights along the way. Teach me set my gaze straight when it comes to spiritual things and in the decisions that I'll make in my life. Thank you, Holy Spirit for the guidance that you have been giving and those that you will continually give. Jesus, all glory and honor belongs to you, and in your name I ask all these.

                

Foodie me: Mio Cucina

I've been in Los Banos for more than four years already and I have yet to try all the fancy restaurants in this humble town. It's funny how this small town has really good places to eat - Bonito's, Arla's, Faustina's, Ristretto and Dalcielo. They say there are still a lot around the corner I haven't tried. At least now, Mio Cucina is out of the list in my to-visit restaurants in Los Banos.

Mio Cucina is near the intersection of Agapita and Grove. When you're around that area, it's impossible to find it easily. They only have a small signage indicating the direction to their humble but lovely restaurant. So, if it's your first time to visit the place, just ask around where Mio Cucina is and I'm sure people will be more than willing to show you the place.

I really found the place elegant and classy. I wasn't expecting a place like this in Los Banos. The ambiance here is better the restaurants and cafe I mentioned above.

The only downside is that they only serve Filipino dishes and some pasta and sandwiches. So, if you're looking for an Italian Night, this is not really the place to be.

 My friends and I ordered Crispy Pata, Fish Escabeche, Ginataang Laing and Pumpkin Soup. We weren't warned the we had to wait 20 minutes for the food. The upside is, you are sure that the food they serve is fresh from the stove and not from the oven.

There were four of us for dinner and I can't deny that we went home satisfied and full. Mio Cucina is definitely a must try for Filipino food lovers. I hope you be able to enjoy your visit as much as we have!

Here are some of our pictures while we were waiting for the food:

  

Who's your best friend?

        Mine is Shareid Shundy Bayang Aguilar. For past days, she became this really annoying and demanding person who just needs to get what she wants. And she needs to get it from me.  Something that I have to produce. As if she doesn't understand what busy means and, as if no one else can make it for her. So here I am in our University Library, having some time to spare, writing a description of my best friend (because I love her)  for her yearbook in a maximum of 70 words. But I don't do well with rules. (I was looking through my old blog page and I saw a blog I wrote about our friendship right here)

        I don't know where to start. Let's start with the physical. She is tall, dark and somewhere between medium to large frame. She has this thick, long, dark hair that she loves put down though pony-tail looks better on her. Her eyes are beautiful. She has this naturally thick long eyelashes that would normally require people to put on some eyelash extensions and/or volumizing/extending mascara. 

        She's good with music and I think music likes her too. She can sing, play the guitar, a little bit of the violin and the keyboard. She also dances but she never really made much of an effort to hone her talent in that area. When we were in high school, I remember being so proud of her whenever she performs because you can just see so much passion and life whenever she does the things that she does. I have never seen her anymore happier when she was on the stage, strumming her guitar and singing her heart out.

       Shareid is loud. maybe that's why we became best friends. Or she became loud since I became her best friend, I don't know. Almost everyday of my four years in high school was spent with her. SO guess it's safe to say that pretty much every good and bad memory was spent with her.

        Over the past few years, we drifted geographically and changed individually. One thing I am glad about is that despite all that, communication lines remained open. Despite our distance and small chance of catching up even during vacations, I'm glad that this person still knows me inside and out - my reactions, my intentions, my actions, and every little detail of what's in my mind. I hope it's safe to say that I know her that well too.

          Shareid has a lot of potentials - she's talented, clever and opinionated - but I'm not sure she believed that before because, every time she looks at herself, all she saw were her mistakes and faults. But that was before. Now, I am confident that Shareid will conquer and make a difference in this world because she not only have confidence in herself but all the more in Christ. I know that her God will bring her to places beyond her expectations and cause her to touch hearts and change the lives of other people. Shareid is going to be great, not because of her own strengths and abilities but because she lives for the glory of her Father. Some people might think  she can't do it because she's a late bloomer and that she's too young and meek and ignorant. But it's never really about how early you bloom. It's about the blooming. And when everybody else's falling away, she will stand out and bloom gloriously and beatifully because her time has come.

Jesus: wounded to bring healing

" But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our inequities;

the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,

and by his wounds we are healed."

- Isaiah 53:5

           It was in January 2012 when I first saw healing through the power of the Holy Spirit happen before my very eye. It was a Thursday prayer meeting of our annual prayer and fasting in our church. By then, I have already watched Furious Love and even if I was amazed and empowered by the film, I never thought that it was possible for me. I though healing would only happen if a hardcore and radical missionary type kind of Christian would pray for the sick. But that night, our pastor exhorted and empowered our church congregation that we too can pray and declare healing to anyone who is sick. After all, its is and never will be about us. It is and always will be about Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Since I  understood that every Christians has the ability to pray for set people free from the bondage of sickness through Jesus Christ, I got intrigued and excited to do exactly just that. To date, God has used me pray for healing to five people and by His grace and power, I was able to witness their healing right before my very eyes.

Many (even Christians) still remain doubtful and skeptic about this. Maybe it is normal to fear and doubt when you are faced with the facts about your disease. You have all the symptoms to it. It's been wracking you up and causing you pain and discomfort. It's been in your family for generations already. The symptoms that you have, your pain, your hardship, your genetic make up - these are all facts that explains your sickness. But there is truth that sets us free. The truth is this: that there is healing thru Christ Jesus.

And that is what Isaiah 53:5 reveals to us -"by his [Jesus] wounds we are healed." I tried to find the words "wound" and "healed" in my Oxford Dictionary for me to have a better mental picture and understanding of what this portion of the scripture meant. Here's what I found:

Wound - an injury to the body (as from violence, accident, or surgery)

that typically involves laceration of breaking of a membrane

(as the skin) and usually damage to underlying tissue; 

a mental or emotional hurt or blow

Healed - to make sound or whole; to restore to health;

to restore to original purity or integrity;

to cause to be overcome

Jesus had to be wounded for you and me to be healed! If Jesus' only goal of coming down to earth was to save us, he need not to go thru flogging (to beat with or as with a rod or whip) to do that. Being pierced on the cross and having his body crushed (see same verse) would have sufficed. But Jesus would not have been satisfied with just that. He wants us to live a good life - to enjoy everything he has to offer. He wants us to live a good life and be healthy as we fulfill his calling and destiny for each and everyone of us.

I am not suggesting to not think about your sickness at all. In fact, you have to. And as you do, declare the Kingdom of God to your sickness. Declare healing in your life (or to other people's lives) in the Name of Jesus. Believe in what Jesus did for you two thousand years ago. We do not have to live defeated by disease or sickness because Jesus was already wounded for us to be healed. Pray and access that privilege that you have in Christ Jesus.