A Different Christmas

I hope you all had a beautiful, wonderful Christmas -- in however way you celebrated it! Robert and I had a lovely time. I was happy that he is spending it with his family and in his childhood home after years of celebrating it overseas.

It was definitely different for me because I did not get to experience the usual Christmas traditions I have become accustomed to practicing in my 30+ years of living in the Philippines. Nevertheless, it was a Christmas filled with hope and possibilities for me!

The only kind of Christmas I really knew was the sunny, tropical kind. My idea of getting dressed for Christmas was to be in a cute, pretty sundress. What a treat to wake up on Christmas Eve seeing this.

I used to deplore snow and the general concept of winter being a pleasant season. Today, I am finding myself getting used to it and appreciating the beauty it brings to my surroundings.

It still isn't my favorite time of the year but I realized what a $28 (thanks to fabulous coupon combinations!) thick, down jacket can do to make me less miserable. I can, today, humbly admit that my dislike of the cold weather was a product of a heart that refuses to embrace change.

Our church had a solemn Christmas candlelight service. I have a funny relationship with Christmas songs. I find them too boring to play on my iPod but I do enjoy singing it with a body of believers who lovingly honor the birth of Jesus Christ.

After the service, Robert took us to a property in Papillion, Nebraska which is famous of its elaborate outdoor Christmas decorations. It was quite a fascinating sight! We saw gingerbread men, a choir, folks skiing, drummer boys, the nativity scene, Snoopy, snowmen, a carousel, elves, helpers, and even a moving Santa Claus by the door (which I thought was a teeny bit creepy because it looked so real). If you live in Omaha, this is worth making a trip to.

I love giving presents! Probably one of my favorite things to do during the holiday season (aside from writing and mailing Christmas cards). And I am not going to lie, I love getting them too! It's not really about what I get, but the thought of someone thinking of me when they see something. Yes -- I feel really loved that way!

And of course, Christmas in Nebraska is not complete without my MIL cooking a delicious lunch! She roasts the best turkey -- I promise you! You think turkey white meat is dry and bland? Wait until you taste hers! It is soft, juicy and tasty. Her turkey should win awards.

Robert and I would like to thank family and friends who have thoughtfully sent gifts, cards, text messages, e-cards and made phone calls to wish us a merry Christmas. We really felt your love and I hope we were able to express it to all of you how much we love you back. The true meaning of Christmas is most felt when God's children take their time to express their love for one another.

If there is anything I can pray for you as you usher in the new year, please send them over to me! Hope you all felt the wonderful love of Jesus Christ this Christmas.

Merry Christmas!

May the birthday of Jesus Christ

fill your home with joy,

your heart with love

and your life with laughter.

Tell me:

What does Christmas mean to you?

You Love Him But He's Married

The death of Elizabeth Edwards last week gripped my heart in a way that I cannot even begin to explain. In the midst of a war with cancer, she battled an even more difficult war in the last few years of her life: a marriage that was permanently crippled by her husband's infidelity.

I am blessed to be married to a man who takes God's high standards of marriage seriously. This is a significant responsibility that should never be taken for granted by any husband.

His heart breaks for men who foolishly decide to leave their wives for another woman, thinking that this will fulfill an emptiness in their hearts that truly only God can fill.

I, on the other hand, clearly feel for wives who has experienced severe rejection from their husbands. I know a lot of you agree when I say that nothing can make a woman feel uglier and more insecure.

However, my heart grieves most for all the women out there finding themselves entangled with a married man. It is a choice no woman should ever have to make because it's life that literally walks away from the will of God.

If you can identify yourself as this woman, I have some thoughts that I would like to share with you.

1) Perhaps the most common reason that everyone uses for getting involved extra-marital affairs is that the husband has been sexually and emotionally suffering in his marriage for a long time. "They have been having serious problems before I even came along," you say to yourself.  Therefore, you cannot possibly be responsible for a marriage that falls apart.

My friend, while it is true that the marriage has probably been going through a lot of problems before you came along, you are taking away that crucial opportunity for the husband and wife to have no choice but to cling to God so that He may perform miracles on their marriage. It is never your job nor your place to be the source of the solution.

2) When a man is having problems with his marriage, he has two choices:

(a) walk away because he feels he has done everything according to his own strength and it's time to give up

or

(b) recognize he cannot do it on his own and humbly recognizes he needs God during this time.

Is the man who would rather take the first option really that much more attractive?

3) You are loved and created beautiful in eyes of your heavenly Father. You probably do not believe that right now.

You probably think that man will give you the best love you can ever have. It probably boosts your self-confidence that a man would prefer you over his wife.

It aches so much in me to even think that you believe that. Your God loves you and wants a relationship with you. Part of His plans for you is to give you a single, honorable man who has no eyes for anyone else except you.

Jesus wants to give you the marriage of your dreams. A marriage that involves you, the man He created for you, and Him.

Choosing to be with a married man is literally telling God: "I do not believe that You have someone for me. I do not trust You in this area. I would rather have faith in what this man is offering me than what You are willing to give to me."


My friend, I do not wish to place condemnation in your heart. You are not an awful person. What's awful are the lies that you choose to believe because you have given your heart to a man who does not know what 'honor' really means. And I do not even blame you for believing him.

But I promise you this: there is freedom in walking away from these lies and start moving into a place of truth. I cannot even begin to tell you how beautiful life is when you start allowing Jesus Christ to fill everything that your heart needs.

Please talk to someone today. There is a way out. And that path is the best first step to freedom you will ever make.

Walkway: Reflections on the Stations of the Cross

On Palm Sunday, I decided to start the week in a reflective spirit by going over Bonifacio High Street and check out Church Simplified's Walkway, which is a modern, interactive version of the Stations of the Cross. Each station has a story to tell on how Jesus Christ willingly went through that painful journey so that He may take our place for the redemption of our sins.





A station looks like this.


It tells a story of a significant point in Christ's journey with the Cross.


Then it is followed by a reflection question and an action item.


Every time I read the Gospels and visualize what Jesus Christ did for me, I break down and cry -- not of sad tears but of the feeling of this overwhelming, passionate love that can only come from a God that cares about me so much.


Walkway will be at Bonifacio High Street until the evening of Easter Sunday. I highly recommend that you set aside a couple of hours going through each station.



Have a blessed Holy Week!