Let’s play basketball for our less fortunate brothers and sisters in the Philippines.
Looking for Young Mission volunteers to go to Philippines!
Want to live the adventure of a lifetime?
The Young Caglieros Outreach Movement (or YCOM) for the first time ever is a parish based and Youth For Christ collaborated program that will send YOUNG mission volunteers to the Philippines on July 2012.
Youths aged 19-30 are welcome! but we make exceptions on case to case basis.
Contact:
Edzel Escala - eedzel45@yahoo.com
604 582 9346
Paolo Dantes - pmdantes@gmail.com
778 877 1367
http://www.facebook.com/groups/youngcaglieros/
Lessons Learned from the Beautiful “Women of the Streets”: the AGAPE WALK
Two nights ago I had the privilege of doing the “Agape Walk” (by the Agape Street Ministries) where I handed out bags of candy to less fortunate women living on the streets downtown.
The experience honestly blew me away. I felt as if these homeless women gave me twice as much as I could ever give them, inspiring me & making me realize that beauty really is inextinguishable.
Despite their disheveled appearances, it was incontestable how beautiful they were. It amazed me that no matter how bad their circumstances were, no matter what they’d done — they were STILL beautiful. Past their exteriors I could see delicate, feminine spirits; it felt as if we were sisters.
Their hearts were filled with so much gratitude when receiving bags of candy, only taking what they needed and sharing with one another, even if they barely had anything to begin with. Why is it that they could be so giving, while those of us who are more ‘“well off” constantly look for ways to gain more? For them there is such thing as “enough”, but for us “enough” never exists.
Why are they constantly helping each other up, while we’re constantly tearing each other down? Why do these street women fight so hard to survive, while so many women who are well-off want to commit suicide? Why do I feel more welcome among the rejected than I sometimes do with those who aren’t? When I climb into public transit, why are we all keeping to ourselves, avoiding eye contact, while I’m able to look into these homeless women’s eyes and see their stunning vulnerability & painful beauty? How could these women who’ve been broken a million times still have the courage to reach out and accept the love of others despite it all?
I realized that all of us women are no different from each other — we all desire to feel beautiful and we are all broken in some way. The only difference is that those who are well-off hide their brokenness, while those living on the streets have their brokenness openly revealed. But ultimately, we are all the same.
The point is that their race for survival rather than status allows them to remember what really matters in life, while we keep getting lost in insignificant competition. There is much to learn from them than we can imagine. I was truly blessed by their presence, & I pray that our lives can be blessings to others too.
So instead of judging, let’s reach out to one another and get back to MATTERS OF THE HEART. Come do the AGAPE WALK and see for yourselves!
Celine Diaz
Request for Auditions! Love the poor through your talents.
Want to be a part of the first Canadian adaptation of the popular Filipino musical Magsimula Ka?
Magsimula Ka, the longest running “tatak Pinoy” musical in the 80s/90s will be produced and shown in Canada for the very first time. ANCOP International, BC chapter, will produce and render an adaptation of the musical highlighting many notable Filipino qualities such as going for one’s dreams and working hard to achieve it. ANCOP also aims to recognize the generosity of Filipinos who have a natural desire to share the fruits of their labor to others. This musical will surely inspire you. “Aspire -Achieve-Inspire-Share” is the general theme of the Canadian version of Magsimula Ka.
EMAIL US AT: ANCOPMUSICAL[at]GMAIL[dot]COM
“Lord, we pray for all those not fortunate enough to see your blessings and to find where You are in their lives.” - Vince Licerio #OpeningPrayer
Religious liberty might be supposed to mean that everybody is free to discuss religion. In practice it means that hardly anybody is allowed to mention it.
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| — | G.K. Chesterton (via eternallyadoring) |
Today is International Women’s Day.
Brothers and sisters of Christ, take the time to read up about the history of today. More importantly, please pray for those women all over the world (even in our own nation) that are still struggling for equality and fairness because of their gender.
Fittingly, let us lift all this through the blessed intercession of the Queen of Heaven and Earth. May she be a source of inspiration, courage, and faith to all of her daughters.
Caught up in the heat of the moment with this KONY 2012 debacle, and if there’s one good thing Invisible Children has done, it’s that it’s made the youth more aware of a pressing situation happening in Central Africa. Even if did do that by turning it into a gimmick.
I don’t doubt the sincerity of its supporters, but I do think that while as a viral campaign, it stands successful, its effectivity and long-term effects are still questionable at best. I’m not too well-read on the subject matter but I’ve found these accounts by Daniel Solomon and Mark Kersten on familiarizing with the essential troubling aspects of IC’s Stop Kony 2012 campaign.
This account also put things into perspective with regards to the sensationalism and problematic delivery of IC’s message.
However, just because Invisible Children is going wrong about helping Uganda doesn’t mean there aren’t alternatives to helping resolve the issue. The Resolve is, for starters, an alternative striving towards a similar goal; but take action with caution: if you’ll read the linked articles you’ll know the trouble with charity funds and non-sustainability.
The moral of the story: information before action.
(via prufrocking)
