BEST PREACHING EVER
SPECIAL TALK: PLANT A GARDEN INSIDE Blessing Blog Last Week’s Homily & Talk Message from Bro. Bo Sanchez
TODAY’S READINGS
First Reading: Acts 6:1-7 Psalms: 33:1-2, 4-5, 18-19 Second Reading: 1 Peter 2:4-9 Gospel: John 14:1-12
“All that I am, or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” - Abraham Lincoln
Happy Mother’s Day! The Lockdown Saga Today, it has been exactly 56 long and unpredictable days since the implementation of the community quarantine. It shifted from semi-lockdown to a nationwide lockdown. As we look ahead to a brighter tomorrow, let’s look back to think and analyze: What has this experience taught us? What lessons have we learned? How has the crisis transformed us? Are we coming out of this stronger, fuller, and brighter? Has it taught us to be more humble, prayerful, and faithful in listening to what God is telling us or where He is leading us? While this pandemic seems to be nearing its end, yet another major blow hits us. A large TV and Radio network was recently shut down amidst the global crisis and that caught most of us by surprise. Maybe you are asking, why do unfortunate events happen at the same time? Well, if you are to ask me, I simply do not even know. But what I know is that whatever we are experiencing now is beyond our control. God allows them to happen to send His message across -- for us to cling on, to trust more, and to fully and completely surrender to Him because He is completely and absolutely in control. Surely, something good will come out of this.
05.10.2020 9:00AM FB Live | Holy Mass, Worship & Talk
Be Blessed, Adrian Panganiban
Gaya Ng Dati It was September 2009 when typhoon Ondoy swept across Metro Manila and Central Luzon. Two of my business partners were heavily affected by the massive floods. One had his entire house submerged in floodwater, and the other had two out of three floors partly engulfed by rising floods. Naalala ko pa na pumunta ako sa bahay nila ilang araw matapos ang bagyo para tumulong sa paglinis. Realizing that they are in a flood-prone area, they decided to find a new home in another location.
Grabe, ano? May mga pagdadaanan ka sa buhay na may permanenteng pagbabago na mangyayari sa iyo. Sa palagay ko ganun din tayo ngayong may malawakang epidemya. The usual normal we are hoping for may not be the same even after the situation subsides. At hindi naman masama yun. For sure, everyone will be more mindful about hygiene, more companies will consider the workfrom-home model, and people will come to love the extra time spent with family. We can all grow and be better because of this. Kasi kasama natin ang Diyos. He will bless us and continue to be with us every step of the way. Kaya hindi man kagaya ng dati ang mga bagay bagay, siguradong may parating na mas maganda kaysa sa nakasanayan. Have a blessed Feast today. In Christ, John Ben Rodriguez
BLESSING BLOG Buti Na Lang Nandito Ka Lord! By Puy Talde
My wife and I are celebrating our 11th wedding anniversary today! Yesterday, our favorite Korean restaurant opened for delivery, so we were able to plan for a small celebration. It was quite a surprise since it has been closed for some time now. Buti na lang, it opened just in time for our anniversary. I’m happy for all the crew!
Buti na lang... we have been working from home since the start of March and we have been at the forefront in paving this new normal for the company. We received laptops issued by the office and we started working from home once a week prior to the lockdown. When my friends talk about life during the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ), there is a realization that we have no access to food and essentials, more so things that bring us simple pleasures. Buti na
lang, we live in a community where there are lots of online sellers (as in!). Nobody goes out of the compound. Disinfectants, masks, fresh produce, and meats are just a click away. PM (private message) is key, isang pa-mine lang, the item will be yours. ECQ feels like living in a bubble sometimes. Though you get to talk to family and friends via social media video calls, you sometimes wonder about the situation of the office maintenance staff, the ate’s and kuya’s you get your morning taho from, or your neighborhood tricycle driver. One day, I got a text from one of these ate’s we know. She said her means to earn money slowed down during this time. Having two kids to care for, it was becoming a desperate situation. She mustered enough courage to ask for a little financial assistance. We had a little to spare since we cut down on some of our usual expenses. Buti na lang, we have extra cash. Buti na lang there is mobile padala to send her the financial assistance conveniently and safely. I’m part of the Feast Voiceover Team and my home base is The Feast Ermita. I usually do the announcements before the start of the talk and during the worship segment of the Feast. It has become challenging for the different ministries to continue with the service due to restrictions on mass gatherings. Last Holy Week, I got a message from Sis Wilmz asking if I can VO for the Seven Last Words. Of course, I said yes, but cautioned her that I don’t have the equipment to record studio-quality audio. So I called up Ariane, our resident VO mothership, and asked for advice. She taught me DIY by recording under a blanket using whatever earphones supplied with my mobile phone. I followed her recommendation, and voila, the recording was done. I was happy that I could still serve. Buti na lang, my thick blanket, and my usual earphone got the job done. Buti na lang din, we have a very good support system in the VO Team! Brothers and Sisters, these might seem like random events in my lockdown journey. I have no complicated problems to share. But I do worry and become anxious at times. I question what will the future be like for my family in the coming months and years. But do you know what’s keeping me sane in this situation? It’s not the thought of a big bang miracle that will happen in the next 24 hours. What keeps me comforted are the small, consistent nudges from the Lord telling me that all is well. He is in control. He reminds me of the things that I already have now. He has provided our needs even before we asked for them. He is asking us again to be still and to be not afraid. With all that God has already done in our situation, all we need to do is to pause, look up to Him and say, “Buti na lang... Salamat po, Lord.”
Bible Verse
“Jeremiah wrote a letter from Jerusalem to the elders, priests, prophets, and all the people who had been exiled to Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar…. This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says to all the captives he has exiled to Babylon from Jerusalem: ‘Build homes, and plan to stay. Plant gardens, and eat the food they produce. 6 Marry and have children. Then find spouses for them so that you may have many grandchildren. Multiply! Do not dwindle away! 7 And work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare.’ …. ‘For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.’ (Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7, 11 NIV)
Personal Reflection & Discussion Question: Pray and WRITE down a list of simple action steps that you can take on how you can prosper in this crisis in various areas of your life: in your relationships, your spiritual life, your health, your work. Share your reflections.
LAST WEEK’S HOMILY & TALK HOMILY
Gospel Reading According to John 10:1-10 Fr. Vincente Rey Duron, SSP
Sa pagdiriwang noong Linggo, narinig natin ang kwento ng pagsusugal ng iba’t ibang tao sa mga pagbasa. Sa unang pagbasa, isinugal ng mga apostol ang kanilang buhay upang ipalaganap ang Mabuting Balita ni Kristo. Dahil sa kanilang pagsusugal, ang isang maliit na grupo ng mananampalataya ay unti-unting dumami. Sa ating ebanghelyo, dalawang imahe ang ipinakita ni Hesus. Una, si Hesus bilang Mabuting Pastol ay nagsusugal ng kanyang buhay sa pag-aalaga ng kanyang mga tupa. Pangalawa, si Hesus bilang pintuan. Ang pagsusugal na ito ay ang pagbibigay ni Hesus ng Kanyang sarili para sa Kanyang minamahal. Walang hinihinging kapalit si Hesus kundi ang pagbabahagi ng Kanyang pagmamahal sa ating kapwa.
RECAP
BEST PREACHING EVER Special Talk: Life-Changing Assignments
BIG MESSAGE Your Dawn is Coming!
The COVID-19 pandemic is causing fear in many people. The question is, will you be able to survive this crisis? If you are feeling paralyzed by fear, here are three lifechanging activities that you can do. 1. Write down your 100 blessings. The smaller the blessings, the better. List down all your blessings to remind you of the good things you have. It also helps you to change your viewpoint. Be an inverse paranoid. Stay informed. Take the news that you can but don’t be overwhelmed. Is it night time in your life now? Remember that Jesus is here. He reminds us to call to mind who we are and who God is, to recall how good the Lord is in our lives and how He rescued us in the past. 2. Remember one huge trial you overcame. Sabi nga nila, kung mayroon kang pinagdaraanan, huwag tambayan, daanan lang, huwag tirahan. There is always a light at the end of the tunnel. A crisis is not the end, it’s a beginning. 3. Thank God in advance for future blessings. What has this crisis given you? Make this lockdown your Spiritual Retreat. Here are some guidelines in writing your dream: Discern the holy desires in your soul. Visualize the direction in your life where God wants you to be. Discern the raw materials you are gifted with. What are your talents? What are the things you are good at that could bless others? Discern the open doors of circumstances. There are doors of opportunity opening to you. You just have to be sensitive about it. Follow where the Lord leads you. This crisis shall pass. With God, we will overcome this because our dawn is coming.
“Minsan may pinagdaraanan ka pero hindi mo pa nakikita na may ginagawa ang Diyos sa buhay mo.” - Bro. JB
“God is not changing the situation but God wants to change us.” - Bro. A
Hope To The Hopeless Ask people for their favorite verse and many of them will say, “’For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.’” (Jeremiah 29:11 NLT) You know it’s a favorite passage if you see it printed in tee-shirts, coffee mugs, car stickers, and even rubber shoes. But if all you know about this verse is just the verse itself, plucked out of context, not knowing when Jeremiah wrote it, why he was writing it, and who he was writing to, Sayang! If you don’t know any of that, you’d miss out knowing God’s specific instructions on how God will prosper you in a crisis.
But today, you will know! Get ready to be awesomely blessed.
May your dreams come true, BO SANCHEZ The Feast, Founder
Revised Oration Imperata (To be prayed at 12 noon and 8 in the evening)
God our Father, we come to You in our need to ask Your protection against the COVID-19 that has disturbed and even claimed lives. We pray that You guide the people tasked to find cures for this disease and to stem its transmission. Protect the medical experts that they may minister to the sick with competence and compassion. We pray for those afflicted. May they be restored to health soon. Protect those who care for them. Grant eternal rest to those who have died. Give us the grace in this trying time to work for the good of all and to help those in need. We implore You to stop the spread of this virus and to save us from our fears.
Grant all these through our Lord Jesus Christ Your Son who lives and reigns with You, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, One God, forever and ever. Amen. (Sub Tuum Praesidium) We fly to you protection, O Holy Mother of God. Do not despise our petition in our necessities, but deliver us always from all dangers, O glorious and blessed Virgin. Amen. Our Lady, Health of the sick, pray for us. Saint Raphael, the Archangel, pray for us. Saint Rock, pray for us. Saint Lorenzo ruiz, pray for us. Saint Pedro Calungsod, pray for us.
ENHANCE YOUR FEAST EXPERIENCE PRAY OVER, SHEPHERDING AND HEALING (POSH) Need prayers for healing, for that job or exam, to pay off debts and other requests? Email us at thefeastermita@gmail.com
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