Gratitude, Happiness, and Diamonds

I felt like crap yesterday.

And to be honest, I still feel a bit like it today.

In hindsight, when I broke the bathroom's lavatory faucet early in the morning, I should have known more "un-pretty" things would happen. But that would be very superstitious of me, and that wouldn't please God, so let's just chalk it up as the first "un" event.

I wasn't able to do all of my tasks because certain issues were pulling me down.

First, I lent a friend of mine a sizable amount of money more than a month ago. I know, I just don't know how to say no. And I'm confident she'd pay me back until she was hospitalized. She tried paying me half the amount she owed, but her office-mate, whom she asked to deposit for her (since she's in the hospital) took the money away. I'm feeling so bad for her, but at the same time, well, I need the money because Yuri's birthday is coming.

Next, I had a bit of trouble transacting with the human resource personnel of my employer. Uh, no, she just made it clear that I'm not employed under them as stated in the contract. That's not the point since I knew that from the beginning. All I needed was a piece of paper signifying that I'm "working" with them for a bank loan. - INSERT LONG STORY HERE-- Anyway, she didn't need to imply that she doesn't have to procure papers for me because I'm only a "service provider" (all tutors are) because I already know that. That's why I'm very apologetic and not demanding at all. All I needed was some compassion and a clear explanation, but I didn't get them. I know it's not her intention to do so but she made me feel un-valuable to the company.

(Disclaimer: I do enjoy working for this company. This is just an isolated case and I believe it's caused by stress from both parties.)

Of Answered Prayers, Salvation, and Little Sisters

When I first gave my life to Jesus in 2010, one of my most fervent prayers was salvation for my family. I backslid and returned to my old ways, but here I am now with renewed faith and hope in my Savior. Four years later, I cry out for the same thing: salvation for my loved ones.

The most unexpected thing happened last Saturday. My sister wanted to use the laptop and didn't ask permission from my parents, so she asked me. My parents were out so I was the "person in authority." Yes, kailangang naka-quotation marks. I allowed her on the condition that she only uses the laptop for 2 hours. She agreed.

More than 2 hours passed and she still wanted to use the laptop; she wanted to extend. Knowing her tendencies to get addicted, I stopped her. She got mad. I resorted to texting Mama, and she got even madder. To cut the long story short, she didn't speak to me for the rest of the afternoon.

By 4pm, we were talking again. If you have a sister, you'd know how these fights go. Meanwhile, I was still mad inside because she called me "liar" earlier when all I did was tell Mama the truth (long story). Still, God told me to show compassion to my younger sister, so I did - even though it was against my human nature.

(In hindsight, if I didn't listen to God then, I think the next events wouldn't have happened!)

That night, she asked for my help for her assignment. I was already fully recovered (much thanks to God's grace) and willingly helped. The assignment was to look for 3-5 Bible verses to turn into bookmarks. I thought to myself, "Oh, this might be a nice way to encourage her to read the Bible." But God has an even greater plan.

Since my sister is not much of a reader, I Googled websites containing verses that are made easy to understand for children. The page loaded and I allowed her to look for verses that spark her interest.

Lo and behold, this was the first verse she chose:

Acts 16:31
They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

When she showed it to me, it felt like I was bopped on the head. Well, it wasn't like that really, but I strongly felt God's urge for me to share the Gospel to my sister. It's like God was saying, "This is it, Maan. My divine intervention! Go for it! I'll be with you."

Wow, Lord. You continue to amaze me. I have asked for an opportunity to share the Gospel with my sister, and there it was, handed to me on a silver platter!

As if on cue, my ever-curious sister asked me, "Ate, anong ibig sabihin ng saved?"