Chapel Visits, Holy Week, and The Resurrection of The Most Holy

     WOW!!! What an amazing two weeks since my last blog post! So much has happened that I couldn't keep up. Stacie and I were extremely busy putting together our testimonies and a Bible sharing for the Chapel Visits as well as starting up the food distribution program for those in need during the first week. After that was over, Holy Week was upon us. There was little time to catch our breath as we prepared to move in to our permanent residence on Alvarez Street. We were also asked to hold a retreat for the Altar Servers of Holy Rosary Parish on Holy Thursday. The rest of the time was filled with mile-long processions through town for the Way of the Cross. There was a joyous vibe as many gathered for the prayers. At one time I thought to myself, “ YES! At every hour of every day, there IS a Mass being said all over the world!” How wonderful it is to be in the ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC, and APOSTOLIC Church! While most of my readers were in the USA sleeping, we were celebrating the Resurrection of Our Lord side by side with our brothers and sisters in the Philippines! Now, as I am typing this up through sleepy eyes, the Mass is being celebrated in America. “Father, you are holy indeed, and all creation rightly gives you praise. All life, all holiness comes from you through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, by the working of the Holy Spirit. From age to age you gather a people to yourself, so that from east to west a perfect offering may be made to the glory of your name.--Eucharistic Prayer in the Holy Mass

     So, in the first week, we were invited to speak at 5 chapels throughout town. It didn't seem so bad at first but after laying our hands on almost everyone to pray over them, it was starting to get hard on the kids and they soon got tired. It was an awesome privilege, however, to share how God was working in our lives as a family to those whose first language is Visaya. The people understand English but we could not tell by their expressions. With the help of our friend, Lilia, we were able to get the message out. We also felt way better after learning that each of the chapels wanted, no, expected us to come back next month! God is good :)

     I became more appreciative of the Gospel of Mathew after these visits. We used the story of the rich, young man (Matthew 13: 1-16) to explain how God was calling us to missions. Matthew has always impressed me as has Peter and Andrew and their call to follow Jesus. Mostly, though, is how Matthew was sitting at his money table and following immediately after Jesus' command. This wasn't just a fishnet or a boat that he was leaving behind. He left his old ways behind, too. Tax collectors were not honest men that charged only what was due. I know what Matthew heard when Jesus said, “Follow me.” Read my post titled “My Dream Job”.

     Palm Sunday came as we finished our fifth chapel visit. We got home exhausted but prepared to repack everything and move in to our new home by Wednesday. Then, we received a call from Father Joe asking us to put together a retreat for the altar servers...on Thursday! Of course, we said “YES!” because we had been praying so hard for doors to open for our ministry. Next time we will pray for the exact size of door to open because while we were thinking about a lil, tiny crease and God opened a floodgate instead!

     Wednesday came and we moved everything to the new home which still needed some cleaning before the blessing. When I arrived with the final load, I asked Richard if I could help him wax the floor. Now I know why he was grinning as if to say, “Yes, if you want to.” There was red dye wax everywhere. At one time it looked like I had lipstick on and nobody told me until I passed a broken glass that was used as a mirror. Ah, Humility:)

     At the very early hours of Holy Thursday, the girls and I walked into town to shop for our breakfast and items for the retreat. Stacie was up until the wee hours the night before preparing for her talk as this is the only “free” time she gets from Juju. Not me. I need my beauty sleep, but since I am not allowed to sleep for 20 hours, now you know why I look the way I do:) Anyways, we got everything we needed and got ready to host our guests by 8AM. We titled the retreat “Called to Serve: A Holy Thursday Reflection”. We again read from Matthew, talked about FMC's 5-point Catechism, shared a personal testimony, had an in-depth study of the Mass, sang praise and worship songs, re-enacted the teaching of Jesus' washing of the apostles feet, and concluded with a candlelight ceremony as we encouraged the students to let their light shine for Jesus. It was an all-around great time reflecting with the youth of Sagay. We are praying that we can do more with them this summer.

     Good Friday was also a special day that we will always remember. Many of the chapels displayed some of their handiwork in a procession through town during the Way of the Cross with the statues and floral decorations. Before the walk, I was handed a piece of paper and asked to read the 8th Station (Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem) except that the entire sheet was in Visaya. I had to ask somebody what number I was reading and quickly ran to the front of the group. Earlier in the week, I read the 6th Station in the Church. I prayed that I could see a Tongue of Fire hovering above my head as in ACTS but instead I saw many Filipino eyes looking to see who in the world hijacked the microphone from Father Joe's hands:) After I was done, I prayed that I didn't sound too much like nails on a chalkboard. I felt way better that night when Fr. Joe talked to us about it. He said that when he saw me walking up to recite the prayer he thought to himself, “Oh, boy! This is going to be a massacre.” To his surprise, everything sounded fine and that I even had the accent for it! Thank God for the Holy Spirit, our Helper!

     We went to the Easter Vigil Mass at sundown which is 6pm here. All of the lights were turned off inside of the church. The wait in the darkness was so still and ,just when it seemed like it was too long, the candle procession began and the church was alive again. The Light of the world came back on the 3rd day just as He promised! Alleluia alleluia!!! This was our first vigil Mass but definitely not our last. What an awesome holy day this is! “This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it!”

     So, there it is. This was just a brief description of what was experienced since the last time you read my blog. There was so much more but I don't have time to write it all down. You will have to wait until we see you again so that we can talk about it face to face. We pray that you are well and that your prayer intentions have been heard and answered. Thank you for your prayers for us and know that we are happy to be serving the Lord and eager to see what happens next.

Birthday Week

      With so much happening and not being able to keep up with the blog as often as I would like, I will be changing it up a little. I will be reporting a little bit more of the weekly events of our mission life. This past week was very busy with finalizing a good schedule, setting up our first home visit, and birthdays to finish the week.

      The beginning of the week was awesome as far as feeling like we are starting to “settle in”. Our family sat down and put together a schedule that already seems to be a solid one. Arriving here in March, we were having a hard time knowing what to do besides being ready for a call from Fr. Joe at any minute to say “I'm going to pick you up so that I can introduce you to (_such_and_such) group”. There was no way to know when this would be over and get back to a routine similar to the one at Big Woods. We went through page after page of re-doing schedule after schedule. At least it made for a nice starter for the burn pile of leaves that we have every day (and night).

      Our little rosary group that we started with the neighborhood children was one thing we were glad to say that stayed consistent. We also have seen an increase of the size of those attending increase little by little. Maybe this is because of the summer starting and school ending. Either way, it is good to see that children, even some as young as 5 years old, are skipping their “hang-out” time on the street and spending it with us and Our Lady. These kids literally play on the street at night because most of the homes here do not have a living room. Fr. Joe calls the main road their “sala”, also Spanish for living room, because they gather wherever there is a streetlight to play. Makes me think of our living room back home that we took for granted.

      One little surprise that happened last week was a special meeting called to talk about the use of bad language around our yard. We don't know for sure if it was cuss words that were being said or not-so-nice words that we could do without. Stacie and I overheard our kids saying that “so and so said this is a bad word”. Regardless, we thought we'd better take immediate action before it got worse. Of course, I, being the authority figure, had to tell them and I did not feel good about it. After a short prayer, I quickly felt like it was the right thing to do. To my surprise, they were all very respectful and apologized for any wrong done. I was glad that it was over but even more glad that everyone was on the same page.

      The downside of the week was the news that the mayor of Sagay had passed away the week before and plans were being made for his funeral on Thursday. Fr. Joe knew him well and our family had been with him a few times to pray at his bedside before he died. Father talked highly of him and what he had done for this town. It was also a reminder to me that our time here on Earth is unknown. We pray for the repose of the soul of the Mayor.

      We paid the mayor's daughter, who is also a registered nurse, a visit for Stacie's rash on her leg. It was finally determined that it was an allergic reaction and Stacie was given a cream to rub on it. She was also told to avoid fish, eggs, and wheat. Not so easy to do here. Nevertheless, all is well and it is almost completely gone.

      This week also was a major step for the seniors of Holy Rosary High. The school celebrated its 60th Commencement Exercises with about 40 graduates. Don't let the small number fool you. With a mass and other festivities, the class of 2011 held a 5 hour ceremony! Maddie and Meredith were excited when a few of the schoolgirls came the day before to ask them if they would perform in a dance before the Mass. With only one day of practice, the girls represented FMC well as they were placed at the very front of the pack! Not the first choices of spots on stage for ANY Alvarez but still an honor and a joy to see our little girls do a ballet type dance for us on Stacie's birthday.

      Stacie celebrated her 35th, er, I mean, her thirtysomething birthday on Friday. The parishioners got together and sang the Filipino version of Las Mananitas on our porch. Fr. Joe called me the night before and said, ”Is it ok if we do this for her? Ok, good, we'll be over there before the Stations of the Cross.” Click. Uhhhh....Stations is every Friday of Lent at 430....AM! Yes, they showed up at 345am all dressed up and with very clear voices sang Happy Birthday and other songs beautifully. Then, they came right in and offered us “suman” which is a sweet treat made of sticky rice and magically wrapped in banana leaves. It would take me years just to know HOW they are wrapped so tightly and perfectly.

      So, guess what happened two days later on my birthday? Yup, but this time we got to sleep in 30 minutes and I was sung to at 415AM since first Mass wasn't until 630AM. Of course, everyone still performed awesomely while I tried to squeeze out a smile and an audible “Salamat!” thanking them for their visit. This time they brought a sweet rice treat flavored with chocolate and in the shape of a rice cake. I have forgotten the name of it but I will call it “Choco-flavored rice cake”. The Bisayan name is WAYYY shorter than that! Oh and the kids were only able to use their sense of taste at both times. All other functions caught up about 2hrs later :)

      Another praise report has to do with what we have been praying for since we arrived. We have been praying for ways to get more involved in the town with home visits. Sometimes when one prays to God for a door to open, he'd better watch out. God might open a flood gate! “You asked for it!” is one of Fr. Joe's most memorable quotes. Already lined up is a regular Saturday home visit with a widow named Ring-Ring, preparing and taking lunch to the volunteer workers at our new home, and participating in a new food distribution program for the poor. Programs of this kind are rare here and I was asked to give any advice that I could share with the chapel leaders of the community. Well, I am a rookie missionary and I, too, have little experience in this sort of thing. However, thanks to the short-term trip that we took to Mexico in November 2010, I was able to share how home visits were handled there. With some minor adjustments, Fr. Joe accepted to begin immediately on the project—and I mean immediately! Right after the meeting with the chapel leaders, Maddie and Meredith helped me stuff sacks of noodles for the 50+ families that we will pray with and visit---this week! Already this week is off with a bang! Salamat sa Dios!

      Living on this island for a month now, I still cannot get over how beautiful it is. The palm trees, coconuts, volcanoes, waterfalls, coconuts, the ocean, and even more coconuts were all created with one spoken word! After a long day of Mass, meetings, and noodle sorting, I took a dip in God's swimming pool with the boys. Thank you, God! A perfect birthday gift on a perfect Sun-day.

John 4:34 “Jesus said to them,”My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work.”

The Mission Life

     I remember sitting at Big Woods in Louisiana and listening to all of the teachings throughout Intake about life in  missions. The thought of almost being sent out to our post was both exciting and at the same time a little scary. What will it be like to be surrounded by water? What living arrangements will there be for us? What foods will we eat? After all, we were about to be sent halfway across the world! Yes, living on an island is what others dream of-- for two-week vacations but not months or even years! 

Mathew 6:25-26 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”

     I can honestly tell you that we did as much research that we could before coming here to Camiguin. None of the pictures of waterfalls, fishing boats, and palm trees match what we see here. It is beautiful! Probably the most beautiful island in the world! We see a people of such warm hospitality and happy to greet you with a nod followed by a “Good Morning” on our walk to daily Mass at 6AM. Oh, yes, the whole town wakes up very early and also shuts down no later than 6PM! All day long people can be seen working hard in their flower beds, going out in their boats to fish, and riding the motorelas to get to and fro. Everything seems to stop immediately when we walk by. An American family with six children?!

    When we met Fr. Joe Villamil in Cagayan de Oro- a major city on one of the main islands- he said something I'll never forget. After his warm welcome he said, ”You will like Camiguin but it will be no picnic.” “Wow! At least this guy is honest!” I remember thinking. It isn't too bad so far. Yeah, the mosquitoes are a nuisance and the constant change of sun-to-rain and then back again makes for an extra long “dry cycle” on the clothes hanging on the line. Oh and then there was this little thingy called a “Level 1 Tsunami Alert” the first night we were on our own and after we had just waved goodbye to Ms. Genie Summers, the Director of Family Missions Company.

He called us here for a reason and we have to remain with Him and be patient.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 “Give thanks in all circumstances.”

    

     We have done pretty well I think adjusting to life without a fridge. Every meal has to be bought at the local stores all along the main road. We truly seek our daily bread. The first week though Fr. Joe has blessed us so much by providing all meals at the Convento just next to the Church in Sagay. We are currently staying in a one-room bamboo cottage with the ocean just outside our doorsteps while the new FMC missionary house is having the finishing touches put on it. A generous donor gave money about a year ago to go directly to this project. When the framing and layout work was started on it months ago, Fr. Joe walked up to it and immediately thought, “Oh, no! This is too big! We miscalculated!” He now says the Holy Spirit must have known a family was coming and that all is well in the end. And as a side note, we confirmed Father Joe's suspicion of Divine Intervention by showing him the street name this new home is built on-- you guessed it! Alvarez Street! No joke!

Last Week

     Well, I had been on a good run of posting on Mondays and I hope I can get this done by midnight tonight. I have been busy the last few weeks with painting the inside of one house and the outside of another. I have been blessed to have this work to pay off some of the balances of our personal bills before we head off to the Philippines. The Philippines!!! I think that it is finally starting to hit me that things will change once we lift off into the sky from Houston next Monday! Our last week at Big Woods in Louisiana.
     Wow! I can't believe how time has flown by since we arrived here last September. That's almost 6 months ago! Six months ago I was saying my goodbyes to friends at work, family in Kansas, and fellow parishoners from St. Anthony's. It seemed like it was only going to be a short road trip. When we visited in December though it seemed like forever. It was SO good to see everyone again! It was so exciting to share how good God is and has been to us through our journey. This is just the beginning. I know from when I first heard His voice a little more than a year ago that this was for real. And now the time has come.
     With all of the intensive studying and training done, the long hours of driving to the mission base in Mexico, and the awesome fellowship here with our new missionary friends it is time to let our Light shine to the ends of the world! Jesus has called us to build His Kingdom. We are happy and ready to follow where He leads us. We are willing to do whatever He asks of us. We are His!
     In our last week, I cannot help but think of all the help we have received from our benefactors. It is with your support that this is starting to take shape. We are blessed when we receive your help and love to pray for your intercessions. We start off every day with the Liturgy of the Hours and include your prayer intentions as often as possible. For those of you who have turned in a prayer intention and have had it answered, could you please comment below. We should praise God in EVERYTHING we do!
     It just dawned on me that next Monday I may have to be posting from the airport! There's still so much to do! We are planning a little "test run" with the kiddos sometime this week. We plan on only taking one backpack each and one suitcase for the whole family. The backpacks will mostly have clothes and maybe a few other things that we might need throughout our stops before getting to the island. The suitcase will mostly carry our books and other study material along with other things that we may need for our new home. Stacie has managed to reduce the weight of it to 40 lbs. So, after we all get suited up, we will walk from our house to the end of the road and back. It should be about a half-mile or so. Just a taste of what to expect with all of our gate changes at the airports.
     Well, that's about all I have this week. Sorry it was a little short and very choppy but my eyes are getting heavy and I need to rest up. This last week is gonna go by fast! Pray for us, brothers and sisters. We definitely will keep you in ours. Peace be with you.

Ecclesiastes 3:6 "A time to get, and a time to lose. A time to keep, and a time to cast away."

Christian Joy

     Over the past week the word JOY has been popping up at me from Scripture. I have also been feeling joyful as our day of departure to the Philippines draws nearer. I remember feeling this way when we prepared to go for our mission training in Mexico last November. I have a feeling God has something SO much bigger than anything we've ever known or prepared for.
     This time last year we were preparing for our trip to Big Woods for the "Come and See" event. We were so excited to see if this was for real and as the time got closer to go, the joy was overwhelming. The kids would picture all the "far away" places they would love to go. Their joy was infectious. Finally, the day came and within 13 hours we were in south Louisiana praying and singing praises to the Lord with strangers we had just barely met. It was awesome! It was for real!
     Jesus was calling us to serve Him. My dream was coming true. It was not just a thought or some fantasy. It was more than that. He was calling us to serve Him in a deeper way. For some reason, I felt that there had to be more than what we were doing. We always went to Mass on Sunday and had our prayer time at home. I even volunteered my time to serve on the parish council for St. Anthony's in Wichita hoping to become a more "important" part of the Church. Still, my soul was thirsting for more.
     Today's reading from Jeremiah 15: 15-16  in the Liturgy of the Hours we read "When I found your words, I devoured them; they became my joy and the happiness of my heart..." In our last year in Kansas, we had started to regularly go to daily Mass. It was a very joyful time for me to hear the Word of Life. I never wanted to leave. I really believed that Heaven came to Earth and the more that I read the Bible the more I felt alive.
     God's timing is perfect! From the time that we heard the call to missions, it seemed as if God was reassuring us. The priest would pray at Mass, "...for all missionaries in the field..." or the day would be the feast of a missionary saint. After this, I would look down the pew and all eyes were looking back to see if I caught the keyword. All smiles.
     The thing that got me more and more though was the way the words jumped out from the book. Had I read this before? What version is this? Yup, Jesus was opening my eyes and my heart to listen to that reading on that day for a reason. Here are some of the verses that were read during that time of waiting:

Mathew 19:21 "Jesus said to him, "If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me."

John 15:16 "You did not choose me, but I chose you, and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide."

Mark 16:15 And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation."

Luke 12:22-23 And he said to his disciples, "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat, nor about your body, what you shall put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing."

     Again, this is not like we had never heard these verses before. These were the same words over and over through the years but with a new meaning and with a new energy. We felt God's presence ever nearer. God's Word was coming alive and jumping out to reach us. God was calling us now.  We had to answer and jump for JOY!
     Jesus calls everyone every day. He wants you! He loves you! Answer Him today and invite Him into your heart. Be sincere and be ready to listen. I know that what you hear will make you feel more alive than ever! Trust Him!

Down But Not Out

     I'm sitting in the living room typing this up after just finishing the Super Bowl game on television. It doesn't get bigger than this game. It beats the baseball and basketball best of seven series. Only one game for the championship. It's win or lose. I grew up with football. I love it. I sometimes hate it. I love the sport because of the toughness, the teamwork, and the strategy on both sides of the ball. I hate it because I get so wrapped up in it with stats, anxiety, and a lot of times anger when something doesn't go right for my team. Football was, for a lot of years, a false god I worshipped.
     As a kid, I remember Sundays being a day where we all gathered at Grandma's and planned out the day of BBQ, family, and fun. There's nothing at all wrong with any of this except for the most important part of Sunday--the most holy sacrifice of the Mass, Jesus. Oh, yes, we did go every Sunday, but keeping the sabbath holy was definitely not on my mind for the rest of the day. When I moved to Kansas at age 12, the Mass and Jesus were almost completely removed as part of my life. The one thing that I did do was football. And even more of it. I was addicted.
     The early 1990s was more of a temptation to keep me hooked as my team was winning a lot more and was suddenly more competitive. I was definitely riding a high when the Dallas Cowboys won 3 Super Bowls in four years. It was not easy having losing seasons after that and knowing that we had bad teams with little to no chance of winning. It was so hard knowing that the only thing that I thought was constant on that day could bring me such pain. I was in deep.
     I have sometimes heard drug addicts say they started to realize how bad it was when they hit rock bottom. One day changed my life for good-- thank God! My family and I were watching a game that was coming to a last-second field goal. Make it and Dallas wins. How hard can this really be? He better make this or else.....The kick was up....wide right! For those of you who know me, I am pretty much a cool/quiet guy. Not that day. I grabbed the remote control and slammed it very hard on a pillow that was on the floor. The remote bounced off and hit my oldest daughter on her face and made her cry. I hit rock bottom. I immediately began to feel very embarrassed as all eyes were on me. The room emptied out slowly and my heart was burdened. This was totally unacceptable. I obviously didn't mean to hurt my daughter but it still happened. Stacie had pulled me off to a side and we talked. The hardest part for me to understand was how to let go.
     Nowadays things are more calm. I'm not stressed out and yelling at those in the TV. I love life. I have learned about moderation. I don't HAVE to watch every single game. I don't HAVE to watch every single play. My priorities are more in order and I thank God that He has shown me the joy of keeping His commandments. I remember putting ALL of my energy into a game that would be decided by the players not by what I did. I also like to think of my life now and what Jesus has for me if I put all of my energy towards Him! Yes, I sometimes fail (and sometimes miserably) but it doesn't end there. No matter how many times Satan knocks us down we have to dust ourselves off and get right back up and in the game. We are on the Lord's team. Jesus wins!

Vince Lombardi (Green Bay Packers Head Coach-1960s) quote on life: "After all the cheers have died down and the stadium is empty, after the headlines have been written, and after you are back in the quiet of your room and the championship ring has been placed on the dresser and after all the pomp and fanfare have faded, the enduring thing that is left is the dedication to doing with our lives the very best we can to make the world a better place in which to live."

"It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up."

My Dream Job

     Since I said I was going to start posting on this blog every Monday, I thought I'd better start with a dream I had when I was young. This is one of those special type dreams that seems so real that when you wake up it feels like you're in a new place. I had this dream during our engagement. It is a dream that I will never forget.
     In my dream I was walking in one direction. A stranger stops me, points to the ground, and says, "He needs your help." The man leaves me as I continue to stare at the empty ground wondering, "What the heck!" Suddenly, the ground starts to rumble and then sift into the shape of a man. The man takes me by my hand and leads me in the other direction to a church rooftop. We stay there a moment gazing into the darkness until finally a beautiful sunrise reveals the land. After a short while, the view of the land turns into more and more when I realize He is showing me the world.
     I had never spoken of this dream at first because I remember waking up and feeling different. I didn't understand what the dream meant or who the man was leading me. I felt a peace that I had never known from a sleep like that. All the pieces started coming together as my relationship with Jesus grew stronger and stronger.
     Jesus is the man! He took me by the hand and led me to the rooftop. He was showing me the world and how many people there are that don't know about Him. He needs my help. He is taking me in a direction that I wasn't planning on going. I know, however, that when I reach the end of the journey I will know Peace.
     I remember my last days as an aircraft painter at Spirit Aerosystems. I was half-joking with my friends that I was going to be taking a new job. I didn't want to say too much too early. Some would ask, "Is it with Spirit?" I answered with a quick yes thinking that my new boss is the Holy Spirit. "Oh! So it's an international position," they continued. Yes, again. The whole time I knew that my new "dream" job was working with the Holy Spirit in foreign lands as a lay missionary for the Catholic Church.
     Below is a song from Rich Mullins called "I'll Carry On". It is one of the best songs that I've ever heard that best describes my call to missions. The beginning is very touching so listen closely. God bless you.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/c-rCF9GsAlQ?rel=0