And so it Drizzled

 Matthew 7:7

“Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you shall find; knock, and the door shall be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives; and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.”

We were only a handful, when I took the Chemical Engineering licensure examinations. 

Our professors reviewed us, and among ourselves we conducted group study sessions. Our batch was not at all exceptionally good but still we prayed that all of us will pass the board exams. It seemed really impossible if seen through the eyes of men, nevertheless, we made a prayer pact with each other - to continue to pray for 100% passing, because we maybe limited in our intellect, but God is NOT limited, and nothing is impossible for Him. 

For the whole duration of our review, He gave us the strength to tackle the rigors of solving bulks of problem sets. In each group we conducted focus group discussions discussing the concepts and rationale behind our individual solutions. Those were gruelling days of sleepless nights and hardwork, which entailed a lot of discipline and motivation. God sustained us all. 

Finally, the board examination week came. We arrived at the city of the examination location, three days earlier, in order for us to get acquainted and be familiar with the place - what room, where it is located, things we need to bring, etc.

On our first night, God inspired me to lead a prayer meeting. Four of us went into the small prayer room, and prayed for everybody - lifting aloud each of our names. On the second night, the group increased in number, and the little prayer room already became congested. On the third night - the night before the first day of the exams, the small prayer room cannot anymore accommodate all of us, so we opted to pray outside - under a small tree, near the edge of a mountain, overlooking the city with all its dazzling lights, with the cool breeze gently fanning our faces.

As we prayed , the buzzing mosquitoes and the noise of the surroundings disturbed us, but we persevered - not minding all the disturbances. Nearing the closing prayer, it drizzled and this threatened to prematurely break-up the group. I received a great inspiration to pray for the drizzle to stop so that we can finish our prayer meeting.

We held our hands together and claimed the blessing of God. I was so sure that it was God's will for us to continue praying and that He has a purpose for allowing the drizzle in our midst. We claimed that it was our time and place to pray, and that this happened because God wanted us to experience His power! With that, our prayer became more intense and voila....wonder of wonders, the drizzle stopped.

That was a moment of grace for all of us and the experience gave us total confidence to take the board exams. God affirmed that His presence is accompanying and that experience further showed us that He listens to our prayer requests. Our faith grew in leaps and bounds, instantly removing shades of doubts and fears as we hurdled the board examinations for next two days. As we were all homeward bound, we agreed to continue with our prayer pact until the release of the results.

To the amazement of our professors, when the results came, ALL OF US passed!!! That was a big surprise to them and everybody else, but for all of us, that was God's confirmation of what happened on that night when it drizzled.

Not to worry about food

Matthew 6:25-26

“Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. 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?

As the eldest in the family, my next siblings followed my inclinations. They too became inclined to take engineering courses.  Venric took up Mechanical Engineering, while Vinna was into Civil Engineering.
    
We cooked our own food, and did the laundry chores on our own. I scheduled everything – from cooking, washing the dishes, study, doing the laundry, etc. and etc. We applied the “division of labor’ principle in all of our chores, and it was a good training for the three of us. Nevertheless, problems came in when the economy changed and our total expenses escalated. We found ourselves short of finances, and we could barely make both ends meet with the three of us having requirements which incurred a lot of expenses.
     
But God is so rich, and He is the best provider. Once when we only had ten pesos – our last money (that was big during the seventies), and it was a Sunday, and we were all going to church. We still needed to ride on a jeepney, and of course the fare for the three of us will further deplete our meager money. Obviously, there was not enough money for food for that evening. Yet, this predicament did not deter us in attending the mass. We agreed to pray and ask for God’s provision.
   
As we were waiting for a jeepney to bring us back to our boarding house, the first empty jeepney which I signaled to stop, didn’t even bother to reduce speed. Then, the second jeepney, which I didn’t even signal to stop, just stopped in front of us. To my surprise, my eldest cousin Manong Rene was in that jeep, and the first question that he asked was – “Do you still have any money?”  It was providential! God knew our need, and He supplied our needs through a person. The money given to us was enough to sustain us for a week. 

On the next week later, our allowance arrived.  God knows when the right time is, and He placed us in the right place, at the right moment. Why? Because we are kept in the palm of God’s hand.

And it all began

Jeremiah 1:5

“Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, and before you were born,

I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

As the eldest child in the broad of six children, I was brought-up to become disciplined, and goal oriented. All these compounded with hard work, led me to pursue my goals relentlessly. I thought I was already doing fine in most of the things that I did - studies, singing, dancing, doing art projects, and writing. I was a consistent honor student. I joined singing contests and became recognized. I was a ballet and jazz dancer, and stepping into the tune of the Latin dances was not difficult for me. Neither was it hard for me to dance the Pandango sa Ilaw, the Tinikling, the Sayaw sa Bagko. Making art projects was enjoyable for me that I even thought I could become an artist. Writing poems and feature stories also became a hobby which I relish with so much pleasure. With the zeal to learn as much as I can, I dreamt of excellence in my studies. Having started my schooling at the age of five (5), I graduated high school at fourteen (14) – a very young age to tackle college life.

I hail from the rural area and my exposure in the elementary and high school days did not warrant readiness to tackle the rigors of a prestigious academic institution. There I was in a foreign city, where I studied Chemical Engineering – a course which combined Mathematics, Chemistry and Physics and a lot more. I encountered a culture shock – it was a different environment, it was a different setting and I started to feel the pangs of pressure when I was not able to achieve my goals - a grade of straight one’s (the highest grade at the university). It was a new experience for me and I felt so discouraged and started to feel the cunning sifting of depression into my life. 

But God did not allow me to wallow in that state, because He loves me so much and He sent an instrument – my roommate, to tell me that life is more than just the achieving high grades. I was told that there is a better way of life and this is the life with Jesus Christ - who is waiting for me to ask Him to come into my life and let Him be my Lord and Savior. That was a very different perspective! The King of all Kings offering to me the gift of salvation! I was told of the greatness of the love of God - The Almighty Father for me in that He sent His Only Son Jesus Christ to die for me, to suffer for me and to bore all the consequences of my sins. I was then seventeen, and in my young mind, I feel in love with a God who loves me tremendously, unconditionally, and without any limitations.

That made a great impact which changed my attitude towards success, and my perspective on how to live my life was totally transformed. I still studied relentlessly, but this time, my goal is focused on pleasing God, not on pleasing myself. I was so inspired to read and study the bible, to memorize verses, and to listen to His voice through my Daily Quiet Time. I pursued to know better my God and all these were done because I wanted to savor the goodness and love of my Lord, my Savior – Jesus Christ.

College life brought to me a life with Jesus Christ – a life filled with His love – His goodness and mercy. It was then that I was introduced to a God who has been holding me in the palm of His hand.

An Eon of My Journey with God

John 3:5

“ No one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit”

I have accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior last 1977 (thanks to The Navigators in Cebu) and since then I tasted the amazing goodness and love of the living God. He is alive and His generosity cannot be outdone. From a portion of His immeasurable riches, He provided me with all of my needs. He let me pass the Chemical Engineering Board Exam in 1979. He let me have a permanent teaching job at Western Mindanao State University. He let me enjoy scholarships – which included a one-year study in Australia, a two-year masters degree, and a five-years doctoral degree.

I am also a witness to the miracles of God - when God made the impossible become possible. For instance, way back in 1986, my husband and myself were told by doctors that it was medically impossible for us to have a child. We had a complicated combination. His sperm count was very low and I have a retroverted mattress. But we saw the greatness of God as He inspired us to pray about it. We asked the Lord to give His blessings to the doctor whom we were consulting, so that the doctor will become His instrument. We prayed every night, requesting God to strengthen even just one sperm, thus this sperm could mate with my egg cell. We prayed that God will make my mattress a good haven for a child. We prayed-over all the medicines that we took, so that God will bless them. We even asked God to multiply the potency of the fertility pills three times, because instead of taking three capsules a day, we could only afford one capsule a day.

God realigned and put into order everything in my body and that of my husband – I got pregnant. The impossible thing for doctors became possible with God, and He gave us a son last January 17, 1988. Our son is now 21years old – a living witness of God’s power and grace.

Two years after the birth of my son, he contracted dengue fever. He was hospitalized with a zero blood pressure on Dec. 23 (1990). We stayed in the emergency room for six hours until his blood pressure went back to 70. His platelet count continued to decrease and his condition became more critical. God inspired me to pray over him in tongues, and while I was praying I had a vision of bursting viruses – like that of fireworks. That inspired me to claim His authority and command the virus to burst. My son’s platelet count went up and we were allowed to go home on Dec. 25. God healed my son instantaneously.

Compounded with other faith experiences, my faith grew as I became very much assured of God’s love and mercy. He loves me so much, and that nothing can separate me from His love – even trials, difficulties, and sickness.

Then came October of 2000 - when I experienced pains in all of my joints – my hands, wrist, elbows, and shoulders. By December, my knees started hurting too and I had difficulty walking. I was advised to seek medical help in Manila, and I did last January of 2001.

The sickness was a dilemma to specialists - consultant doctors at that, and they cannot identify what it is that has been ailing me. I had to be subjected to regular blood medical examinations every two weeks, until a pattern could be established.

By April, we went back for the second medical check-up. This time, I had to be confined at UST hospital for the extensive as well as intensive medical study of my sickness. Two specialists - consultants and six resident doctors scrutinized my symptoms and medical laboratory results – still they cannot put a name on the disease. My blood sample has yet to be sent and analyzed abroad - in the United States, for clearer clinical picture.

On May 31st of 2001, I received the e-mailed letter of my doctor in Manila – based on the test results from the states. The disease is Mixed Connective Tissue Disease or (MCTD) - which is an overlap of different autoimmune diseases – one of them is SLE (Systemic Lupus Erythematosus).

The Mixed Connective Tissue Disease is a malfunction of the immune system – the so-called anti-bodies. These anti-bodies, which are supposed to protect me from diseases and infections, are now attacking my body cells as though they are the enemies.

It is a disease, which is incurable and degenerative - as the medicines prescribed me will only delay the inevitable. Being degenerative means that as the disease progresses, it will worsen, rendering my body weaker.

I sought for consolation, for guidance and enlightenment. And God spoke in John 3:5, which states.“ No one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit”

Being born of the Spirit is for me to be in communion with the Spirit, breathing Him into my daily existence. This communion brings complete acceptance of the will of God, without any reservations. It is through this communion that God revealed that He allowed my suffering for the sake of His love.

I suffered both physically and emotionally, but in all these, God showed me that He is in control. This happened when we were on our way to Makati Medical Center, and all four of us - Daddy, my son Paul, my niece Maricris, and myself – were sleeping. Suddenly, I was awakened and saw in the front mirror that our driver is also closing his eyes. Automatically – I shouted “Hala” – and he woke-up in time to swerve the taxi and thereby evading a collision. God woke me up just in time to see the sleeping driver. We did not meet an accident for His timing is incredibly perfect.

As I reflected on this incident, I saw some parallelisms. We were sleeping and were oblivious of what was happening; just as the disease that has been bothering me has no known cure – as though it is sleeping. Yet, God showed that there is a waking-up time – whenever it is, His time will be most perfect and appropriate.

Oh yes, there were times when I prayed the same prayer that Jesus prayed in Gethsemane, when He said – “Lord, take away this cup – but not my will Lord, but your will be done.” Indeed, His will prevails. My acceptance and obedience brought peace, joy, and thankfulness. As what is written in Colossians 3:15 “Let the peace of Christ control your hearts, the peace into which you were also called in one body. And be thankful”. I have peace in my heart for I know that my God is with me. I have joy in my heart, for He allowed me to know His wisdom, and even in sickness, God helped me to accept and obey Him.

I am still on medication, vitamins and mineral supplements, and my pains are already minimal. I am up about with my everyday activities, seeking always to glorify Him in all that I do, thankful that each day God is giving me the gift of life. I am thankful too that God is using me in the Catholic Charismatic Movement here in Claret. He is also using my testimony to inspire and build the faith of people who are sick, so that they will look on the greatness of our God.

I really do not worry as to the outcome of this sickness, this is NOT mine, and I know it will just pass.

As it is written in I Peter 1:6-8. “In this you rejoice, although now for a little while you may have to suffer through various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire, may prove to be for praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ”.

It is for God’s glory, honor and praise that everything comes to pass. Praise the Lord.