18th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME B

ENERGY BOOSTER(Revised)

Most people are doing the best that they can, working late at night, doing something extra in order to raise foods to sustain their life. Food are energy boosters, they usually be eaten in order to have energy for the day. If one person does not take food for the whole day, his/her energy will be exhausted and as a result he will slowly deteriorate and die.

We have to take in food to obtain energy, and eat enough to survive. Not enough food for the body drains your energy and you feel tired. In order to remain healthy and strong, take enough amount of food daily. Foods are called energy boosters because it provides energy to the body.

If we eat food to sustain our physical well-being, we need also food from heaven to maintain our spiritual well-being.

My dear friends, in today’s gospel, Jesus presents himself as bread of life. However, let us not understand it literally, since we are not cannibals or “wak wak” nga mokaon ug tawo. We don’t eat human flesh. Let us explain it figuratively: Jesus is trying to figure out the importance of following HIM. “I am the bread of life, whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”  In other words, whoever follows my way will live forever or have the promise of everlasting life.

I happen to read the book of Fr. Rafael T. Cruz and I want to share some of his stories.

“During the presidency of Richard Nixon one the most powerful Americans was a man named Charles Colson. He was powerful, Why? Because as he bragged, “I hold office next to the very office of the president of the united States.” He was so rich and has everything. However, he made an admission. He has everything but there is something lacking. He doesn’t understand about it. Until one evening, he was invited to a dinner to one of his close friends. Pero ito pong kanyang kaibigan had recently a peak experience with the Lord. His friend told him, “I have everything, power , wealth and I can do everything I want but I felt hollowness inside me until I found Jesus Christ.” Mr. Colson was about to Cry. That simple invitation changed the life of Mr. Colson. Today, Mr. Colson travelled anywhere to proclaim Jesus Christ.”

The bread that we ate during Eucharistic celebration is Jesus Christ Himself, an energy booster to our soul. Therefore, let us not forget to go to the mass always especially Sundays and holidays. The presence of Jesus in this celebration is an energy booster that will strengthen our souls. It will always give us the right energy that will keep us moving towards our goal, that is heaven.

On other hand, Don’t you know that you can be an energy booster also to other people? If you see and know somebody who suffered lots of difficulties, especially problems and sometimes tend to give up, your helping hand is an energy booster to that person. Our help is an energy booster that will keep him/her going.

If you are full of energy because you feel that God is really present in you; then, share your energy to those who are weak. Share your energy to those suffering people around you. Be an energy booster. Only in God you will find happiness, and happy people are full of energy. Release it! Share your energy! You’ve got the power!  Be a Corpus Christi to them.

Be an energy booster.

17TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME B

EAT ALL YOU CAN

One day, when I was still in Davao City, I happen to ate at a restaurant with “eat all you can” banquet. When I enter the eatery, I followed what other customers are doing, since it was my first time. I realized that in this kind of banquet self service is being observed. You will be the one to get your food. You can get everything, viand, rice, desserts and drinks, as long as you can consume it. It was a very nice system since; you will really feel that you are at home.

Greetings!

My dear friends, the grace of God are like “eat you can” dinner. The grace of God is just around us just “eat all you can”. In our Gospel today Jesus feed 5000 men not including women and children meaning to say there are more than 5000 people. It does not only say like that since, there are 12 baskets left in the banquet. The remaining 12 baskets convey that there are lots of foods available. This may mean that the graces that we have received everyday of our life are really abundant.

In life, we received loads of graces. The basic example for this is our life, the air we breathe every day, the food we take daily, friends who care for us, our families, and our neighbors are God’s given graces. These graces are just like “eat all you can” banquet, unlimited and without any expense. Remember that these unlimited graces do not only feed our stomach but also to our soul.

Since, we have received these graces in our life without any expense; it is also fitting for us to give thanks to the giver. This is our only expression as a response to the giver of the gifts.

One way of giving thanks to the giver is to share these graces to other people. Share what you have received. Invite and let other people know that you have been enjoying the “eat all you can” graces of God.

But sometimes in our life, we feel that we have been forsaken. It seems that there are empty spaces that need to fill up. There are difficulties that need to settle. If you will feel this way just approach God and ask Him to “eat all you can” to his graces. I am pretty sure that he will always give what you need. Our gospel reminds us today that God provides everything we need. Let us be conscious about it. Let us be aware of the things we have received from God. God provides us everything and it is also fitting to give him in return.

Karon gihagit kita sa Ginoo: unsa man ang imong mahatag sa Dios isip balos sa iyang pagkamanggihatagon? Unsa man ang imong ikatampo alang sa kalambuan sa iyang katawhan?

Friendly reminder: graces are just everywhere, just “eat all you can”.

16TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME B

REST!

Karong umaabot lunes July 20, 2015, ang tanang pari sa tibuok Diocese sa Malaybalay magahimo sa among retreat, gitawag namo kini ug Annual Retreat. Dili lamang kini basta basta nga retreat kondili usa kini sa paagi sa pagpahulay tungod sa daghang mga trabaho nga among naagian ug pagpamalandong sa tanan nga among nabuhat sa tibuok tuig. Kini usab usa ka pagpangandam pag-usab alang sa umaabot pa namo nga pagserbisyo sa katawhan nga gisangon kanamo sa Dios. Tungod niini ako kamong gihagit sa pag-ampo alang sa tanang kaparian aron magmalampuson ang among ipahigayon nga annual retreat.

Sa atong ebanghelyo karong adlawa atong nahibal an nga ang mga tinun-an gikan sa misyon nga gihatag kanila sa Dios ug mitaho sila kang Hesus sa mga accomplishments nga ilang nahimo. Human sila makabuhat niini, giingnan sila ni Hesus sa pag-adto sa deserto aron sa pagpahulay. Sila gipinahan ni Hesus sa pagpahulay siguro tungod sa kakapoy sa ilang panaw. Ang pagpahulay sa mga apostoles importante alang sa Ginoo tungod kay nasayod man siya nga aduna pay daghan nga trabaho nga nagpaabot kanila.

Ang pulong pagpahgulay sa ingles  “rest” from Latin rēstāre, from re- + stāre to stand. Re is a prefix, occurring originally in loanwords from Latin, used with the meaning “again” or “again and again” to indicate repetition. Rest meaning to say is to stand again and again. Mao kini ang gusto nga mahitabo ni Hesus ngadto sa iyang mga tinun-an. Kinahanglan gayud nga makapahulay sila aron sila makapadayon sa daghan pang mga misyon nga isangon kanila.

Daghan kaayo ug panahon sa atong kinabuhi nga daw kita gikapuyan na. gikapuyan kita diha sa atong pagtrabaho aron mabuhi ang pamilya. Usahay gikapuyan usab kita diha sa pag atiman sa tong tagsatagsa ka pamilya o gikapuyan ba kaha kita diha sa atong kahimtang.

Ang kakapoy makabalda sa atong pagpadayon sa sakto nga trabaho. Sama pananglitan kon ikaw walay tarong ug pahulay sa gabii unya daghan pa gayud ka ug trabaho pagka ugma, siguro gayud nga maapektuhan ang imong trabaho tungod kay wala naman gayud ikaw’y igong kusog tungod sa kakapoy. Usahay ang kakapoy makabungkag usab ug relasyon diha sa pamilya. Tungod sa kakapoy dili na hinoon maatiman ang pamilya. Mutugot ba kamo nga kini mahitabo diha kaninyo? Dili gayud!

Busa, ang giingon sa atong Gino sa atong ebanghelyo karon “pahulay sad oi!” buot niyang ipasabot, tan awa ug pamalandungi ang imong nabuhat sa tibuok adlaw o tibuok bulan. Nakaayo ba kini kanimo ug sa imong pamilya? Wala ka bay nabanggaan o nadaut nga relasyon diha sa imong pagpaningkamot? Pahulay aron ikaw makapadayon sa imong panaw. Mura ba ug sa motor pa, pa change oil pod! Aron ka makadagan ug layo layo.

Isa sa paagi sa pagpahulay mao ang akong gisugilon sa sinugdanan. Adunay uban gusto nga magretreat, adunay uban usab gusto magbakasyon sa mga mamingaw nga dapit. Kon unsa man atong buhaton, ang importante nga imong mabaliktanaw ang imong nabuhat ug aron ikaw makapadayon pa imong mga buhaton pa!

Gikapoy naka? Pahulay sa!