Prayer: Hebrews 12:3-6 3 Think of what he went through; how he put up with so much hatred from sinners!

So do not let yourselves become discouraged and give up. 4 For in your struggle against sin you have not yet had to resist to the point of being killed. 5 Have you forgotten the encouraging word which God speaks to you as his sons? My son, pay attention when the Lord corrects you, and do not be discouraged when he rebukes you. 6 Because the Lord corrects everyone he loves, and punishes everyone he accepts as a son. Glory be. Maayong gabii sa tanan! Kumusta atong semana? Kumusta ang mga challenges na atong nadawat sa dynamics? Im sure daghan sa ato naka dawat og lain-lain sizes sa cross. On top of our own crosses naa pay nadungag na assignment para nato sa dynamics ba? Kay maybe some of you na ulanan pud og problema this week, or nabahaan og stress or nalinogan og intensity 10 ang dughan o dib a kaha ang bulsa. But really, whatever challenges we are carrying these days or whatever cross we are about to carry, to realize that this is a gift from God. To realize that we are surprisingly enjoying the trials that we are about to carry in our lives- kay kaganina naa koy nakita nagngisi sa ilang na hublutan na cross, to carry with a smile the loads which are infront of us, the problems that our realities present to us. Kaning mga challenges og mga stress sa atong kinabuhi, this should not stop us from living, the problems that confront us should not prevent us from loving knowing that we have a God who knows us; knowing that we have a God who feels our pain; a God who carry these loads with us, and most of all a God who has a heart of compassion and love. And speaking of a heart of compassion and love, karong adlawa is a special day for our Church. Kinsay nakabalo unsa na feast atong gi celebrate karon? I dont know kung nakabantag ba mo sa mga colourful flaglets na gipang bitay dire sa gawas. Yes we are celebrating the feast of the sacred heart of Jesus. Naa koy friend na Koreans kaniadto ba. Nakaadto sila sa among balay. Unya naay statue akong mama na Sacred Heart of Jesus. Nangutana tong isa nako ka Korean friend unsa daw to. And I told her that its an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Unya na gum-os gyud iyang nawong. She said, why is it a secret heart? I had no deeper explanations for her that time except to laugh. Pero karon, to understand that the heart of Jesus is not a secret. He has revealed his heart to us. A heart full of compassion and love that He is willing to break Himself for our sake. And we have listened from Lesley last week how Jesus demonstrates this self-giving heart in the Eucharist. To understand from Jesus Himself that to be Eucharist is to break and lose ourselves. To break and lose ourselves even if we are bombarded with work; to break and lose ourselves even if people demand so much from us; to break and lose ourselves even when we have done our best yet people only see the failure instead of the effort; to break and lose ourselves in the middle of stress and pressure! *While preparing this guidelines ba. I almost wanted to quit also just like Alvin the last time. Wala hinoon ko na high blood pero na stress ko because during the workshop, Bong told us he will just email the guide on what to give for week 4. When I texted him about it katong hapit na gyud mag Friday, Bong did not reply. It took me 2 text messages on his Sun and Globe to be able to get a reply. And in the office, we also have to repeat 8 folders of paperwork because we did not use the new template forms. Ka ingnonon na gyud ko, Bong dili na lang ko maghatag kay

dili na nako kaya. And this feeling of incapacity we always feel when faced with challenges, this is what hinders us from doing the things God wants us to do. As we pray tonight, we will try to discover on how Jesus persevered despite the trials; despite the challenges! He did not give up because of the cross! thats found in Hebrews 12:2. He is inviting us to look beyond the cross. The cross is not the whole story to tell. It is just the preface; it is just the twist of the story before the happy ending unfolds... but the story goes on. The story tells much, much more. And as we deepen on this, let us have the objective at the back of our minds: to be able to recognize Gods saving grace in our daily carrying of the cross. Pero ato sang tagsa tagsa-on og digest. First, let us start with answering, Whats in the cross?
The cross symbol is highly popular and universally recognized. We wear it as jewelry around our necks and put it in our bracelets. We set it high above our places of worship, and hang it in our chapels. Verbum Dei is no exception. But although the cross is one of the most prominent symbols in our time, it also is one of the most misunderstood. In reality, the cross puzzles us. It can frighten us. It mystifies us. Many of us just dont know much about it. Because in the Roman era, the cross is like a sort of instrument of punishment, that when we look at the cross, we associate it with suffering, pain, hardships. But more than what transpired on the cross 2,000 years ago is the person on the cross, the person of Jesus Christ who claimed the suffering joyfully for us. When we wear symbols of the cross, we identify ourselves with Jesus enduring all the pain in the name of love. Jesus suffered because of it. Carrying our cross daily is never easy because of the pain. We always wanted the easiest way but Jesus is telling us if we want to follow Him, we must deny ourselves and take up our cross. Jesus suffered too but He wants us to know that theres salvation behind the cross. Theres joy after the pain. *Sa una ba or even until karon, pinaka hate gyud nako mu adto og dentist. Pero kadtong nadaot akong ngipon gipugos gyud ko sa akong mama og adto. Ingon akong mama, kung mag good girl daw ko og mag cooperate daw ko sa dentist, palitan daw ko niya og ice cream. Kadtong kamulo na og tusok sa dagum sa akong gums, ning pikit na lang gyud ko then nag imagine ko sa ice cream. And true enough, my mama bought me ice cream after the dentist appointment. I realized from then on that there is truth to the clich, when the going gets tough, the tough gets going because the tough gets ice cream! I think of the cross more that way. For me, its like an ice cream at the end of the agony of tooth-pulling. The cross is our sign of victory over death. Mao na mangaon ta og ice cream unya no kay nakadawat man ta og cross. It symbolizes a way of life. It is a sign that has set us apart from the rest of the world. Kay dib a kahibalo man gyud ta na life is about choices. Its one thing that I can choose to remain in my fear of meeting the dentist, and its another thing that I choose to be courageous and not remain in my fears just as Jesus did not remain on the cross. He resurrected, ascended and continues to send His Holy Spirit. Perhaps Jesus did not promise us an ice cream the moment we take up our crosses but if we would like to follow Him, He invites us to remember that all decent things are difficult. Its never easy to enter the narrow gate. Kinsa may ganahan magka lisud lisud og magka hirap hirap kung naa man sayon? 5 years nako disciple, Lord, pero lisud man kaayo mo enter og prayer, I have prayed long hours talking to you Lord, listening to your Word pero ngano lisud man gyud kaayo i-resist og libak aning tawhana Lord oy? I have journeyed for

so long, consecrated my life to you, committed my life to prayer and preaching, ngano lisud man gyud kaayo mo volunteer maghatag guidelines or talk Lord? And as I was praying about this, it is so beautiful to be assured by Him. Angel, do not dwell on the difficulty. I am with you in difficult times. To realize that we always focus on what is hard, we only focus on our pains. Dili na lang ta mag pray kay lisud maka enter? Dili na lang ta maghatag talk kay ma stress ta? To understand that Jesus is inviting us to enter the narrow road; to understand that Jesus is inviting us to look at our cross through His eyes. Tan-awon nato atong kalisud with eyes of understanding, with eyes of love and faith. Only then will we be able to see the things we should be appreciating instead of grumbling about. Seeing Jesus not grumbling when He was made to feed five thousand people, seeing Jesus not complaining when all His friends ran away from Him at a time he needed them most, picturing Jesus not murmuring at the many work awaiting him, many people depending on him, many sick people wanting to be cured by Him pero wala sya nagbagulbol. A life patterned after Jesus entails hardships and disappointments gyud. But all these thingsthese difficulties and afflictions- will help guide us in a direction that is truly meant for us. We are meant to overcome. We are meant to get up and experience the sun after the storm. We are meant to be assured after a mistake. *Ka experience naba mo nanumbaling or nakig storya og tawo thinking that person is someone you know only to find out ka pareho ra diay niya og nawong? Naay one time ning ingon ako cousin hello! Abi niya og parente namo, pero gilabyan lang siya wala gyud ning smile kay dili diay to mao. Naka experience na pud ko ana ikadaghan. Sa una ga bike ko summer to paingon college. Nag ask among silingan, asa ka mag college? Nitubag pud ko, sa Silliman. Pero naay lain nitubag sa likod kay sya diay to ang gipangutana dili diay to ako. Sa kadaghan nako naka experience og ing-ani ba, naa na gyud ko andam na buhaton ana in case masayop na pud ko. Kabalo mo unsa ako buhaton? Pag nasayop pa gani ko, hello (dili diay to mao akong kaila)- magpa lamo lamo na lang gyud ko og naay ka storya sa akong cellphone. Kay lisud na maalaan ta og buang ba. Its easier to cover up the shame that way. Pero dili pareho sa physical mistakes na pwede ra nato ma preparahan unsay atong buhaton, when we commit mistakes towards the Lord, when we commit spiritual mistakes, many times we are not prepared. Kinsa gud kabalo unsay atong reaction kung makapamakak ta? Or kinsa gud prepared na masuko? Would you know what is your reaction kung matapol ka or makalibak ka? Ah kung makalibak ko, ing-ani akong buhaton. Ah kung ma touch akong pride, ing-ana akong buhaton. We are vulnerable and helpless during these instances. Thats why it is such a consolation to know that God saves us and calls us friends even though we are helpless in our mistakes; even though we are vulnerable in our shortcomings. In Romans 5:6, makita nato ang anticipated love sa Ginoo para nato For when we were still helpless, Christ died for the wicked at the time that God chose. And I like so much the last part at the time that God chose. Yes, we were helpless during those wrong decisions that we made, during those times that we gave in to our tendencies, during those circumstances when we took the wrong steps, we stumbled, and fell. But it was God who decided to be friends with us; it was He who opted to help us. When? At a time that He chose. And He chooses to love us every day, every moment of our lives. His grace is overpouring and His grace is greater than our adversities. That is why it hurts God when we continue to grumble over our difficulties. It hurts Him to see us not doing anything about it. The cross is infront of us. Do we look away and wait for someone to carry it for us? Our picking it up, our carrying our crosses means so much to God. Our denial of self, our picking up our cross means we agree with Him in saying the cross is not the end. Theres joy behind the cross. And this is the side of the cross that we are invited to dwell on tonight. Yes there are heavy loads we carry today but tomorrow is another day for joy to come. Sa tagalong pa, Pasan ko ang daigdig pero may bukas pa!

*Some Fridays ago, Alvin shared in his guidelines about our cousin. For the benefit of those who were not here that time, gi share man gud to ni Alvin among cousin was living a well-to-do life. He was enjoying affluence pero he wanted more. Nabaw-an na lang namo na gipusasan siya because of drug pushing and gun running. You see, his desire to enter the wide gate to get rich fast led him to destruction to a point na he experienced hepa sulod sa hoot kayo na prison cell because of poor sanitation and hygiene. He was physically alive then but spiritually dead. But the story did not end there. Shortly before he was released, Ive seen him in the process of picking up his cross. Slowly he was able to confide to us the things he did which he knew in his heart were not right. And that cousin, well I knew him as someone who does not confess easily. He was not used to opening up sensitive issues to us. Perhaps it was hard for him to say all that he admitted to us. It probably took him a big amount of humility and remorse to be able to speak his heart out. For me, it was his way of picking up his own cross. Dili sayon mag storya sa atong dili maayo na kaagi. For me, being able to verbalize and being able to bring back the bad memories of our past mistakes doubles the pain of what we had gone through. Maybe it was his way of denying himself. Denying himself of the sympathy and justification of his wrong choices in life. I did not see him cry. But maybe for God, it was enough seeing him wanting to seek reconciliation in the family. It was enough that he wanted to go home to Him. And my cousin was granted just that. God welcomed him in the arms of people who did not condemn him. His parents and sister is helping him rebuild his life again. Perhaps he is still living an imperfect life now. But having experienced Gods mercy, Im sure he had realized that Gods mercy is greater than our sins. He realized that we can be sure of Gods mercy because He loves us. His love for us is immense and infinite He will do everything to find us and bring us back to His loving embrace. But to be able to go back to His loving embrace, we must do our part. How do we carry our cross? Jesus said, deny yourself, pick up your cross. Come follow me. What is our response? Yes Lord I will follow you. Sayon ra kaayo isulti pero lisod buhaton. I will follow you kung dili na labad akong ulo. I will attend the school of the word kung naa nakoy helper sa balay. Musimba na lagi ko Lord kung muhunong ning ulan. Mag pray na lagi ko Lord kung dili ko bilar. We insist on our burdens as excuses. But we are asked by God to endure such burdens as best as we can, and to be aware that God is with us in the midst of those unavoidable afflictions. And it is so beautiful to look at how Jesus illustrates in carrying His own cross ba. In my prayer, I presented to him, what do you say about these unavoidable circumstances Lord wherein we really cannot do your will? And he was telling me, yes burdens are real, afflictions do happen. But stop insisting on these burdens because there is a possibility for you to endure all these. Ayaw ipamukha sa ako na walay paagi para makaya nimo imong kasakit. Tood no? Jesus did not say, Okay Father, I will walk to Calvary kung dili na ni labad akong ulo. Na stress ko kay gi interrogate ko ni Pilate. He did not insist on his burdens. He did not insist on his humiliation. He did not dwell on his pain. He is showing us that in carrying our cross, we should not give up. We continue to persevere. Katong sa song kaganina ba I wont give up on us, even if the skies get rough. Im giving you all my love. Im still looking up, still looking up. Na realize nako ba na we have hope because of love. Ka give upon naman gyud ko sa paghatag sa guidelines, Lord, pero pinangga man gyud taka, pinangga man gyud nako akong community that I cannot afford na walay maghatag sa imohang Word, I cannot allow na mo-anha sila sa Friday empty-handed. I cannot do that. Tudlu-I lang gyud ko Lord how to persevere. Tudlu-i lang gyud ko not to give up. And one of the things that Jesus taught me these days to have perseverance is by continually praying. Even in the middle of pain, He wanted to talk to me. Even in the endless stretch of time staring at my notebook, He wanted to listen to me. Nakita pud ni nato from Jesus Himself. At the point of death, He continued to engage in conversation to His father. He expressed to the Father what He truly feels. The words I thirst and why

have you abandoned me?- these words may not be sensible to someone as far as human capacity is concerned. But for God, who is beyond our understanding, understands us. He longs for the prayers of our hearts.. even if we ourselves do not understand what were praying for. *Akong ig-agaw ba kasab-an gyud sya sa iyang asawa kung wala daw mag lead sa ilang prayer before meals dayon sya ang mag volunteer og pray. Iyahang prayer will say Bless this food, ako pud, sila pud.. og para ang among food dili ma pagudpud. And for me, it may sound like a joke but it signifies that he still wanted to connect with God. In prayer, we ease the burden of carrying our cross every day. It lightens the heaviness of our daily struggles. And we think of unloading some of our burdens. Always atong kaugalingon gyud ang starring sa atong prayer. Lisod man gyud kaayo Lord para nako kay mao ni, mao na. But when we listen to Jesus pray in the midst of suffering, we hear how He continues to think of others issues and not His own. Father forgive them for they do not know what they are doing. And this is the same loving that He wanted us to learn. To pray also for others. In doing so, in a way we are already carrying their crosses as well not just ours. Pero maayo kaayo ta mu debate ana ba. Nganong mag huna huna pa man ko sa uban na nagkalandrakas na gani ni akong agi? Nganong manghatag pa man ko sa nanginahanglan, wala na man gani koy pangload. Ngano mag carry pako sa cross sa uban, dili pa gani nako gaka tugkad akong cross? All of these we do not do because we have or we are capable of doing, but because love capacitates us to voluntarily accept and share the cross of others.

*Katong bag-o lang nag open ang J. Co na donut sa Centrio, daghan daw kaayo tao. Ang uban mag antos og 2 hours just to line up and buy the donuts. Naa koy nakit-an na comment sa facebook, Sos kund dili pa lang taka palangga anak, di gyud ko mag linya of duha ka oras para lang palitan ka! Makita lang take busog and happy, happy na pud ko! So tonight, let us all try to examine our hearts, and ask ourselves Can I fall in line for the Lord? Can I endure the cross and not give up because I am loving? The invitation of Jesus for all of us now in living our lives, in waking up each morning, in facing our daily challenges is to persevere in carrying one anothers crosses and our own every day and to become more and more aware of the joy behind all these. The passages that we can pray: Hebrews 12:2
In Romans 5:6

Matthew 7:13-14