FAIR SUNSHINE

Second day of a proposed 55 day shoot for an ongoing production. I left the house at 4 AM so I wouldn't get caught in traffic and made a stop over at the office to get some sleep before driving out again. Arrived on set around 12 noon and inspected the green screens that will be used for the shot which to my surprise was done in such a short period. I was informed afterwards that the director still needed me for the night shots. When I checked the schedule, it wouldn't be until around 10 PM. I had a lot of time to kill. I thought to myself, "so that's why I brought the cross today." I also loaded an extra stash of tracts than usual. I decided to go out to the town plaza to first observe the people, trying to look for a good spot where to stand and place my camera. This is a very tight place with a lot of people in close proximity, just an arm's reach away. A procession just went by celebrating the month of May as the month of flower devotion to th...

I drove home from work around 6AM coming from the usual overnight stay at the studio. My drive normally takes around 2 and a half hours if traffic is manageable (5 hours worst case) as I live 33 miles out. I often have to literally bathe myself with my water bottle just to keep awake, the other remedy being a stop over half-way at a small convenience store along Dahlia, Fairview to get some salted barbecue nuts (Nagaraya). I went in and got a bottle of rootbeer plus the snack and sat down just for a bit just to help me stay awake. A young kid gently knocked on the window in front of me outside. Street kids frequent places like this to ask for food, and I love talking with them about their families and life, so I went out. I asked if he wanted some of my snacks and he said yes, so I sat with him outside where there were seats provided. His name is Noel, 14 years old, his mother is supposedly working somewhere and will pick him up around evening to eat. Till then he is left to f...

I have always wanted to play the cello ever since. I bought this about 2 or 3 years ago if memory serves me right and I only got to play good to some point. But it has since just watched me work in the office standing idly against the wall. When time came for me to raise up money to buy our own printer so we can print our own tracts at our convenience, I decided to put this up for sale. However painful. At first I asked the print shops around the area where I work what the cost would be. One leaf will cost me either P3 or P1.50 depending on the minimum order. I really did not have that amount. Good thing my technician suggested I buy my own printer instead. He recommended me this EPSON L360. Nothing can be more convenient. We can now print out what we need at more than half the price. We just have to allot a portion of our salary for the consumables. 

For a while I looked at my director and saw his shoes, his signature pants, his watch, his shades, his new cap. He looked clean. Decent. Expensive. Then I walked out to the set. Everyone had decent shoes. Mine was over 4 years old. So old all the labels have torn off and the heel was already smiling. Everyone was busy with the task at hand. Everyone was friendly with everybody else. I don't even know what I'm doing here. I guess its safe to assume everybody was made up in their minds to see this day through. I just wanted to go back to the car and go home. Ever since the Lord clearly impressed his love for me, everything else of worldly value in my eyes faded away. My love for big bikes. My love for doing what I do best at work. My love for doing leather work. My love for camaraderie and attention. My love for being myself. It has been said that the Lord's salvation comes at a high cost and exchange. But then I start to see that there really is no comparing the Lord to anyt...

After holding House Church we drove out to a local mall a few kilometers from where we lived. I have always imagined myself standing here before, but now it has come to pass. The family team went to their designated positions and handed out tracts while I stood in the middle of the road with the cross - praying repeatedly in silence for the Lord to send just one that evening. After a while he gently told me to change location and walk further up the road. So I did. It didn't take long for this fellow to cross the street towards me and ask what the cross was about. He asked, "Kuya, para saan yan? Handa saan?" (Brother, what is that for? Ready for what?) I answered, "para sa araw na tatayo ka sa harap ni Lord para managot sa lahat sa buhay mo." (For the day that you will stand before God and give an account for everything in your life.) That was a good 30 minutes of us talking intently and seriously about salvation and judgement, and what God was ...

I found a typo in the tract. One letter. Just one out of place letter. The word "ang" being incorrectly typed "and". At first I tried justifying it, thinking it would be a waste to throw all these out - more than 150 already printed worth around P200 - but the Lord impressed upon me to discard all of it.  It became clearer as we drew near to go out to witness that I should not distribute this. But I reasoned that the context had hardly changed. I double-checked what we had already disseminated, and it was only this batch that I re-edited and printed in the office using the new printer that had an error. At the very least, the earlier ones we had given out were correct. And so we settled with just 40 leaflets or so that has the correct edit. The Lord can bring to fruition 40 against 150. Its not in the numbers, but everything rests in pleasing God. Later in my 4AM devotions I found this. Leviticus 22:20-21 You must not present anything that has a ...

It was following our blessed stand at Tunko that Pastor Joe, the kind servant whom the Lord had sent for our encouragement, did warmly invite us to attend his small congregation in Gumaoc North. Upon our arrival, the sight was one of sweet satisfaction to the sincere heart! The church was pleasantly poor and unassuming, lacking all the gaudy trappings of worldly success. Yet, far greater than any physical adornment, this humble assembly possessed the precious jewel of sound doctrine! This is a treasure, alas, too often lost among the larger churches of the present day. We found a deep comfort in their tenets, which held a blessed similarity with what we already believe concerning the great matter of salvation and the necessary endurance unto the end. Furthermore, their sincere support for missions and the holy work of the missionary was a most welcome confirmation! They received us with a warmth that bespoke true Christian fellowship, and even prepared a small pizza treat at the cl...

Our next consecrated march led us out to Tunko, a bustling thoroughfare near the very boundary of Caloocan, not far from that famous Roman Catholic landmark known by the people as the Grotto. This intersection is yet another great vortex of humanity, drawing souls in and spewing them forth from four directions, signifying a critical post for the sounding of the Gospel trumpet. This day marked a significant and glorious first for both the place and for us: The Cross was lifted high above the multitude for all eyes to see! The simple timber, standing as a silent, formidable witness, proclaimed its truth to every passerby. My entire family, praise God, assisted me heartily in the great work, distributing our home-made tracts and stationing themselves faithfully upon both corners of the great intersection. This humble service, I trust, is a good and sure starting point in the lives of the children, a seed of public faith that I pray will take deep root within their souls in the years t...

My daughter and I found ourselves with a span of some three-quarters of an hour to fill before it was time to fetch her sister from the schoolhouse. And what better way to redeem this fleeting time than to employ our hands in the Lord's service, distributing the newly printed tracts we had on hand? The school’s dormitory was situated in the very middle of a bustling market area, where a constant stream of souls hurried by. Having parked but one street away, I took my stand at a quiet spot upon the side and began the work of handing them out. I confess that, for the first portion of this whole episode, the multitude did mostly ignore me. And so I was compelled to call out to them, declaring that the gift was free of all charge, costing them no expense, and was simply being given away. For you see, there was a lamentable time in this very locality when some well-meaning street preachers did stand upon the pavements to deliver the Gospel, but they carried with them envelopes, open...

I must here acknowledge the deep debt of gratitude owed to my sincere friend and brother in Christ, Paul Latour, whose counsel and example have proven tremendously instrumental in this newfound path of public obedience. For it was the Lord Himself who used this faithful servant to provide the very extra push my timid soul required toward the direction in which the Spirit had been speaking to me of late. Out of all the testimonies and fervent preaching videos I have consumed this past year, it was their specific method that resonated deeply with my inner intentions. Their unique approach—both to the necessity and the terrible urgency of the Gospel message, and the bold, uncompromising manner in which that message was delivered—struck a chord of agreement with my own settled convictions. It spoke directly to the spiritual need of my heart. And thus, it pleased the Lord to settle it unequivocally in my spirit that I should reach out and write to them, confirming this shared burden for the...