Friday, June 02, 2006
Hello party people!!!
Hahaha, it’s been such a long time, missed me? I’m sure. Well, you gotta bear with your girl, this (blogging) is my fasting for the line of camps that took place for the entire weekend of the month. Anyways, hope you all had fun during the summer. Coz it is almost over!
Oh well, this is going to be one long blog entry, to make up for stories as I have promised, and I will try to remember the details for you to enjoy reading it, as much as I enjoyed every part of the experience. Let’s start with…
May 8, 2006My first night for SHOUT. I just found out with the many times I have been invited to attend that it meant Summer House Training. Nothing really fancy. It was fun naman, our first session with Ate Candy, our full-time worker and SHOUT master, was really good. Everything was light at first, sharing our childhood dreams, things that make us kilig, where I indulged, going deeper to things about our faith. I learned that God had planned for me to attend this training, maybe because of hope. Anyways, I just like to share the story of Ate Candy, and hope that it inspires you as much as it had inspired me. Last year, she met an accident while on a mission trip, where she and another ftw, Ate Jessie was thrown out of the jeep that they were riding. Thank God for Mang Luis, the man who was living near the place when the accident happened. He saved the two and helped them get to the hospital, even sucking the blood out of Ate Candy’s mouth. Anyways, it’s just a blessing, because on that very same day, Mang Luis woke up early, looking for a way to end his life because he was so miserable with the countless problems he’s been facing. The very reason why stepped out of his hut that morning. That’s when he saw what he thought were two bags of fertilizers thrown out of the jeep. But they weren’t fertilizers, they were the two full-time workers. Who could’ve thought, noh? When he was an instrument to give them new life, they actually gave him hope to continue with his own. Luffeeet… so although I was still aloof with the people, I knew I made the right choice of coming to that place, which was gonna be our house and sanctuary for the next five days.
Ephesians 2:8
For it is by God’s grace that you have been saved through faith.May 9, 2006
Day 2 at the SHOUT house. We started our day with a worship, take note, at five o’clock in the morning. But there’s no better way to begin your day, right? I was away for most of the day, looking for a job (but still has none while I’m writing this), but I made up to it naman during the night. My buddy, Lovee, and I was in-charge of the fun games. It was, well, as expected, fun. Then the speaker, Ate Karen, another ftw arrived so we started with our second session. She taught us a new song, Forever, which is my battle cry right now. I didn’t expect myself to be so struck with the talk, but I found myself so stunned. Because when you think you are unworthy to serve God, He will continue to use you, and while you’re being used, you’ll be healed of your guilt, your shame, your unworthiness at the same time. The best part of the night was the sharing part with my buddy, where we shared and opened up things about each other, and for the first time, I opened up to someone, what for a long time, only my God and I knew. Thanks sobra Lovee, for listening to me, understanding and not judging me. Love yah buddy. Our time made that second night. Of course, we ended with the common prayer Psalm 91, and the One Manila prayer.
1 Thessalonians 5:17-18
Pray at all times. Be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus.May 10, 2006
Started our day early, as usual, but there was no pressure since we would just have our KIKAY DAY! My buddy and I were in charge at the kitchen, along with Faith, Jen and Anna. Had a tough hectic day, breakfast pa lang, we were preparing na. It was a lot of fun though, had a blast showing off our “cooking skills” which only Jen had, and bonding with each other. Plus, they super loved our cooking! Pinakbet and iced tea Banaba! Haha! Washing the dishes never seemed so fun before. Aside from those chores, all we did was chill. I left the house for a while, then KIKAY DAY was on when I came back. Tita Luds from AVON came and taught us about personality development, and applying day and night makeup. Coolness! I super learned a lot and enjoyed it. After that, we were asked to put makeup on our buddies. But since my buddy already modeled for Tita Luds, I allowed her to use me na lang as her guinea pig instead. But hats off to Lovee, I think she did a great job, pretty good for a newbie. I had the best time, you know how I love makeup and kikay stuff. Then we were all set! Haha, all of us went to the SHOUT house backyard and had our pictures taken. NAGPAPACRUSH!! –new term from Ate Cands. Yihee, South C sisters, the most-sought after. *wink* I think that day reserved for bonding and pampering each other really served it’s purpose. During the night, we heard two talks. In one activity, we discovered our type of personality. There were four. What is mine? MELANCHOLIC. Surprised? I was a little (I’ll have sub-entries to discuss these things I want to share). Ate Cands was the speaker for the two talks, and I just really admired her more than I have before. I realized that she was just human like most of us, she had her share of bad experiences and sin, but she managed to rise from it all and serve God. The days that passed I got to know her better, and I look up to her more as time passes by. I learned about being a true woman of God. Someone whose beauty and brilliance never fades. We just have to unveil our faces of the masks we are wearing for our beauty and brilliance to shine through. And we’re just so blessed that God will be the one to take these masks off our beautiful faces. The rest of the night, err, morning, we broke into groups and had our femme, sisters share their experiences with one another, and God was just so great to put me in my group. Galing! I really treasure that experience for it just changed my life. We didn’t stop sharing until we realized it was already five in the morning. Haha!
2 Corinthians 3:18
All of us who is wearing no veils, then, reflect the glory of God.May 11, 2006Like I said, we didn’t realize we were sharing until five in the morning, so we woke the others for our worship. After that, we slept and since my buddy and I were just in charge of logistics that day, we just chilled with the others. I was around in the morning so I was able to hear the Creative Thinking session, and all the while, I couldn’t help but smile and think of my partner, who is creative all the way in planning our activities. I wished he just heard it too, but he wasn’t around that day. That afternoon naman, we heard the Stewardship talk from Ate Karen, and I just can’t help but see God’s plan for me for the rest of my year in service. He brought me there to hear those talks to affirm me, because hey, we’re on the right track, like how my partner and I has a thrust for our last year, which is to train young leaders by delegating responsibilities to them. But more than that, I think God brought me there to teach me a thing or two about humility. Yes, it’s so easy to brag about the activities my partner and I had planned and how we handled our super-solid cluster, but at the end of it all, the successes and the praises, all the glory should be God’s. Your only glory should lie with being chosen by God to take part in his magnificence...
May 12, 2006Spent the entire day with my babe, glad to take a break from the SHOUT house-bahay routine. I'm so happy to be with him after everything that's going through... Haha, I went to accompany him to the dentist, where he was such a baby! It was a great day for me, although it's raining, it didn't dampen my spirits. I went home to the SHOUT house to find out that the brothers will be going there for our session. It was fun, although they were too noisy, we couldn't concentrate on the chick flick we were watching (although I've seen it for the nth time)...
okay, so I'll stop here for now...I'll post the others soon I promise. Tata!
another adventure for COSMOGIRL!
