Powerbooks How many of us will be honest enough to admit that whenever we go to a mall, the last thing that we will do is to at least to drop by a bookstore to see the latest or bestseller books that inspire, empower and uplift you? Most of us would rather go window shopping, see the latest trend of fashion from clothes to shoes, furniture to kitchen wares, etc. Today, as we begin our new talk series on Breaking News to learn more about the bestselling book of all time -- the Bible, we welcome you to our Feast A1’s new home here at Robinsons Place Manila. And speaking of malls… yes, we are in this huge place with a wide array of things for your eyes to feast on and buy. But hopefully, may we not forget where all these things come from. Matthew 4:4 “Man shall not live by bread alone, but from every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
08.05.18 / 9:00 AM Cinema 3, Robinsons Place Manila
Be Blessed, ADRIAN PANGANIBAN
Dig Deeper I have been in the community for about 17 years already. Now I can tell that I’m not really young anymore. One thing I have discovered is that God’s Word is timeless. Even if you hear the same verse or parable over and over again, I find myself inspired in different ways. Through the years as my faith grew, so was my desire to understand and know God better. I learned that one way to do this was by knowing the Bible more — reading and interpreting it involves understanding the context, considering the author of the chapter, and even knowing the original target audience. These were helpful to appreciate why a certain verse was said in a particular manner.
1st Reading: Exodus 16:2-4, 12-15 Psalm: Ps.78:1-72 2nd Reading: Ephesians 4:17, 20-24 Gospel: John 6:24-35
I’m excited because in this new series we will dig deeper into Bible. We will study the Four Gospels of the New Testament. I’m sure this will enrich your faith. The talks for this series may be a little bit more cerebral than the other talks we usually have. But, in the end, I know that it will still drive home how much God loves us. In Christ, JOHN BEN RODRIGUEZ PS: Welcome to our new home here in Robinsons Place Manila. I’m happy you are here with us today. Prepare for an amazing ride ahead. God will work his wonders here and even more in your life. I hope to see you every Sunday.
BREAKING NEWS
Pe rsonal Re fle ction and Group Sh ar i n g
Your Story According To...
Talk 1 - GOSPEL And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. (Mark 13:10 NIV)
1. What one thing fascinated you about the Gospels? 2. How do you build the Kingdom of God in your own personal life—and in the world around you?
The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel. (Mark 1:15 NKJV). From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” (Matthew 4:17, NIV) “This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. (Matthew 6:9-10, NIV, emphasis added) Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. (Matthew 16:24-25, NIV)
BLESSING BLOG
I LOST GOD. HE FOUND ME. Butch Jugueta, 58 years old, technical expert in ID Automation, has been with The Feast since it started in Camp Aguinaldo. After 34 years, he remains passionate in serving in the community. Jerome Tobias shares his story.
Butch Jugueta and the family of Feast Founder, Bo Sanchez, lived in the same neighborhood. Prior to The Feast, they belonged to different communities. It was Bo’s mother, Tita Pilar, who invited him and his mother-in-law to the monthly Feast in Camp Aguinaldo. At first, he served as part of the Security team. It was the easiest. Not so many meetings. He continued serving in Valle Verde. He joined the Couples Ministry with his wife, Meg. Later, he accepted to lead the Men of God Ministry. It was a difficult and challenging task. Nobody wanted to take the position since it was for men who were separated from their spouses. With increasing challenges, all the more he found reasons to serve. Whether with or without money, happy or sad, it didn’t matter. Knowing that the Lord was always there to care for him was more important. He believed that our Heavenly Father would never leave us and that was the biggest blessing. God Who? This was far different from his life before finding God. He was then a resident visa holder in Australia. When he turned 18, he experienced independence. His father had to go back to the Philippines due to an illness. He was left with his brother in a foreign land. At age 21, he was already an alcoholic, a chain smoker, and involved with different girls. Like many youth in Australia who had no religion, he stopped hearing the mass few months later. At a young age, he lost his faith. He no longer had God in his life.
Butch Jugueta (left), and namesake Butch Naraindas (right), during the film showing of a movie entitled “Miracles from Heaven” hosted by their ministry, Men of God, in Feast Bay Area around October 2016.
However, the Australian immigration committed a mistake with regard to his diplomatic-like visa. Because his visa was dependent on his parents’ visa, he was given a grace period of one year to apply for amnesty to stay there. Melbourne approved, but Canberra denied his application. Things got complicated so he chose to return to his homeland. He was furious at God. Hide and Seek For a year, he kept his Australian ways of drinking and having a good time. Then he met a friend of his brother who was a member of a charismatic group. This person would consistently invite him to attend their prayer meeting and he would always hide. He got so annoyed by his persistent invitation that he granted his request just to put an end to it. He attended the prayer meeting. Surprisingly, he found himself attending for about two months. Then, there was a Life in the Spirit Seminar (LSS). The Vision During the baptism in the Holy Spirit, he had a vision of many different people. When he opened his eyes, he saw a pew that was full of nuns. One of the sisters approached him and asked for his name. He gave it. The nun returned to the pew and all of them left. One of the facilitators approached him and said, “You are lucky. Of all the attendees, you are the only one prayed over by the nuns.” From that time on, his way of thinking changed. He was renewed. Finding a New Home at the Feast When he met Christ, he found peace within. Happiness took a different meaning. He was grateful because if God had not removed him from Australia, maybe he would be dead by now because of his vices. Blessings outpoured, he even gained a support system through the prayer group. We have the need for service, not God. Serving in a community was not always easy. There had been challenges that seemed to aim at destroying his reputation. Yet, he emerged victorious because God and the truth was on his side.
Bro. Butch Jugueta (left, wearing ID) together with some of his fellow brothers from the Men of God.
He continues to serve in the Couples Ministry in Feast Ermita for his spiritual nourishment. Every session is filled with energy and life. God has no need from anyone because He is self-sufficient. He serves because he needs God. Genuine service is rooted in love. Through service, he learns to add value to other people. In the Feast, the goal is to make disciples. We need to learn to be a disciple to lead others how to become one. For him, that is his mission and his calling.
Blessed by the Feast? Share your story and inspire our community. Email to a1media.feastbayarea@gmail.com
SCENES FROM LAST SUNDAY
Sometimes it is easy for us to pray when we are in need and we forget to thank God when we receive the blessing. “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” - 1 Thessalonians 5:18
“Your suffering is someone else’s blessing. Learn to suffer to bless others. The secret to happiness is understanding that you are not the center of the universe, it’s God.” - Bro. Bo Sanchez
GIVE THANKS
The Feast Bay Area (FBA) District held a 1T Thanksgiving Concert for the benefit of the Light of Jesus (LOJ) Youth last Sunday, July 29, at the PICC Plenary Hall. Thousands of people gathered to witness the fun-filled and extraordinary performances of the Feast Builders from FBA, Mall of Asia and SM Manila. The night was filled with cheers and laughter. Intentional friendship? We call it discipleship. With arms wide open, we welcome you to experience God’s loving presence and miracles through The Feast Ermita. Be Loved.
Waiting for your answered prayers? God’s timing is never too late or too early. Have faith. It is worth the wait. Pray for everything and worry about nothing.
When life is challenging and morale is low, try this Gratitude exercise then recite the prayer below. 1. List three things you have taken for granted. 2. List three things you appreciate in yourself. 3. List three people you are thankful for in your life. Dear Jesus, thank you for the blessings I have in my life.
RECAP FROM LAST SUNDAY
News Feed
HOW TO REALLY CONNECT
Big Day Are you a worrier? Whatever happens, give thanks to God. He is never blind to our tears, silent to our prayers and deaf to our pains. Make gratitude a deliberate decision. It is important to have a conscious decision of finding the good in life and being thankful in all circumstances. It will improve your wellbeing and relationships. Attention gives you access. The brain has a Reticular Activating System (RAS) that creates a filter based on what you set your mind on. What you focus on grows. When you are faced with a bad situation, remember to put your frame of gratitude. It will help you appreciate what you have and open yourself to more blessings.
Gospel Reading according to John 6:1-15 Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand “Even when we are unfaithful to God, He remains faithful. He cannot deny Himself.” - Fr. Jeff Aytona God knows exactly what we need. He provides for our physical and spiritual needs. In the bible story, Jesus wants us to understand that man shall not live by bread alone. We are both body and spirit. When we receive the Eucharist, we all partake of the Bread of Life. The multiplication of bread demonstrates the power of God. He gives what is good for us not because we deserve it but because He is generous and merciful. He uses the weakest and most insignificant member of the society to teach us about sharing.
MESSAGE FROM OUR FOUNDER
Doubts Are Part Of Our Faith Journey
WELCOME to our exciting series, Breaking News. For five weeks, we’ll ride a spaceship to the sky, and from that vantage point, get a macro-view of the four Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. (Note: If we wanted, we could have ridden Elon Musk’s Boring Machine, drill deep into each of the 4 Gospels, and dissect the 3779 verses. That will take, uh, 75.3 years. Not a good idea. Most of us will be dead.)
Before we dive into the series, let me give you two WARNINGS.
First: The talks will be more cerebral. So if you donate your brain, you can no longer claim it is “slightly used”. Some people assume that faith means throwing away their brain. Nope. God gave each one of us a mind so that we can understand our faith. Your faith is not blind. Our Catholic faith is an intelligent faith. Second: After this series, my hope is that you’ll have more questions than answers. I’m serious. I know some people who feel guilty when they have questions because they think that means they have doubts—and for them, doubts are bad. But may I shock you? Doubts are part of our faith journey. Doubts are needed to deepen our faith.
Have an amazing Feast. And have an amazing series!
May your dreams come true,
Bo Sanchez
The Builders: Adrian Panganiban • John Ben Rodriguez Council Heads: Mayvin Alejandro Gigi Alvarez Mon Bumatay A1 Feast Bulletin Staff Media Heads: Ryan Alejandro and Joemer Ernn Embernate Editor in Chief: Judee Quiazon Associate Editor: Bethany Dechavez Editorial Assistant: Krystel Angeline Ramos Writer: Jerome Tobias Chief Photographer: Ryan Carlo Mahinay Photographers: Mike Belleza, Androu Magno Layout Artists: Dino Castañeda, Robert Quiazon Art Director: Wilma Cosme Contributing Photographer: Dahlia Bagatsing