Proclaiming the Gospel of Life

“Jesus said to his disciples, “Is a lamp brought in to be placed under a bushel basket or under a bed, and not to be placed on a lampstand?”
Mark 4:21

These words of Jesus spoke to my flickering missionary heart.

As a missionary, I am always expected to boldly proclaim the Gospel at all times and in all places. It sounds courageous, selfless, and heroic even for others. But in reality, the call to proclaim the gospel in this generation is formidable especially in our “woke” generation. Often, I would feel so little to be used by God to speak in front of hundreds of people.
There were times when I prepare for my talks or wait for my session to begin that I would swiftly glance around the room and have a quick  scan of my audience and imagine them often ready to throw an intimidating look at me and earnest to raise their hands and speak up while I was giving a talk, wishing to beat down all the points I have shared and presented. It would often lead me to unnecessary anxiety. But thankfully, all my negative thoughts would always end with God assuring me of His love and mercy. He would remind me again and again that the people who will hear what I will speak about in every session need the Gospel. They need the Good News so that they may live life according to God’s plan for them. But more so, I need to proclaim the Gospel because this is what I am called to. I would be selfish not to share the best gift in my life that I have received and that is knowing Jesus Christ. I need to proclaim the gospel so that more people would find the real meaning of life.

It’s always scary but the power of the Holy Spirit empowers me to speak with confidence because what I am speaking about marriage, family, and life is the truth. There’s nothing more that can give you confidence when you know you are on the side of the truth.

So the next time you are given the opportunity to proclaim the Gospel, say yes. Let the light of Christ shine brightly in your life so that others may see Him. Step in faith and our good Lord will help you accomplish what you must.

In Sickness and In Health, We Will Keep Fighting for Life

I am Roel Baldicañas, married to my beautiful wife Racel Baldicañas. Through the community, I was able to meet my better half. We became boyfriend and girlfriend for almost three years. And we’ve been husband and wife for nearly three years. We are blessed that we have been given the opportunity to serve God through the MFC community and serve as the Couple Servants of MFC Singles here in Davao.

It was not easy in our fight for life, especially for my wife. She was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease, and I don’t know what she was thinking during those times when she was sick. I know she fears dying because she wants to live longer and spend the rest of her life with our future family and me. I always tell her that she will be fine and we will be together forever. I told her not to worry because I would take care of her no matter what, and I know God has a good plan for us.

Then the time came when Racel had been asleep for six days, so we were so scared because the doctors couldn’t explain what was happening anymore. On the 4th day, the IM doctor told us that 4 of her organs were affected, her liver, brain, heart, and lungs. The doctor said to us that my wife needed to be intubated. So, I decided I would disagree because I didn’t want to give her another suffering. I told my mother-in-law and my wife’s siblings about this decision. During those six days, my wife was bloated because her body was full of water since she didn’t have dialysis for more than five sessions, and her blood pressure was also unstable. We thought her condition would get complicated, but on the seventh day, we experienced God’s miracle because my wife woke up at 1 am that Sunday on the Feast Day of Sto. Niño. God extended her life, so we have the chance to tell her everything that we want and show her how much we love her. That miracle made us realize that God is in control. The Lord gives and takes away; blessed be His name.

On February 17, my wife passed away. It may not be easy for us to accept her passing, but we know that she is in good hands right now in the hands of her maker – God. We are very thankful to God and all of you who journeyed with us – the MFC Community, relatives and friends, and even those we don’t know. Thank you for supporting us through your prayers and financial assistance. May God bless you in return a hundred folds.

Racel will always be in my heart. Every time I visited her twice or thrice a week, my sadness was relieved, knowing that our love for each other is worth fighting – for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, until death does us part.

My Dream for My Future Children

I am Terrence Untalan, a missionary for the Live Christ Share Christ since early this year and a married man for more than 6 months. My wife right now is on the third trimester of her pregnancy. God’s timing of calling me to missionary life, married life, and life of being a father happened in a span of 6 months. I believe this is not a coincidence. All these significant changes in my life are with a purpose.

In my few months of being a missionary, I have seen the need to instill appreciation for the beauty of life, true love, identity, family, and faith among the young. Whether we admit it or not, there is a thirst for these valuable things. Having been able to witness this reality made me see what could be the kind of world my child will be born into if I do not do anything.

This is the purpose why God called me to be a missionary as I become a family man. He wants me to dream for a better future for my future children. And every time there is a mission, that dream of making a difference even in my own little ways just grows stronger. I hope and pray that my children feel true love in our family as we center our lives in God; that they feel special because they are beautifully and wonderfully made by God; and that life is sacred, hence, should be cherished, lived, and protected. If our future children will be able to read this in the future, I hope they know their mother and I love them and will do everything and anything for their welfare. But most importantly, may they feel that God loves them more.

#ProofofLife #ProLifeGen

When God Revealed our Personal Mission to Spread the Gospel of Life

Catholic Couple

 

This year, God called me as a Pro-life missionary in Live Life. I know that it will be an opportunity to grow and an avenue to be closer to the Lord even more. Early this year as I prepared myself for the task of defending life, my wife and I encountered the Lord in a very personal way.

On January 26, we found out that my wife, Ten, was pregnant. God finally answered our prayers and blessed us with the gift of life! Truly, He is our promise keeper! Our families and some of our closest friends were the only ones who knew about the pregnancy. We were so happy and excited to be first time parents!

 

However, the pregnancy didn’t go as smoothly as we expected it to be. During our first pre-natal check-up, no sac was found in my wife’s uterus but the uterine wall was thickened. We had to waitfor another 2 weeks to see if the sac will be visible by then. During that times, we were anxious but were still really very hopeful that the baby would develop in the weeks that followed. My wife and I attended mass and prayed the rosary for this special intention. We even asked the intercession of St. Gerard Majella and Our Lady of Guadalupe.

On February 8, we had our follow-up check-up and we found out that the gestational sac was already implanted inside my wife’s uterus and it was 5W2D. We were very happy to hear this news! Though, my wife had to be on bed rest for another 2 weeks until the next ultrasound to check the heartbeat of the baby. On February 14, my wife had spotting, which was accompanied with pelvic and abdominal pain. Worried, we immediately called our OB and scheduled a check-up. During the TVS, the OB told us that the gestational sac was not growing. It was still the same size as the last ultrasound. The spotting turned into heavy bleeding and my wife was in deep pain. After 3 days, TVS was done again. The OB told us that we were having a spontaneous miscarriage in progress, as the sac was moving while the doctor was examining her.

On February 21, we lost our Baby Dominic. It was a roller coaster ride of emotions and until now we are still in pain because of what happened to our small family. Indeed the Lord gives and takes away, but still, blessed be His name. (Job 1:21)

 

Moving on in our married life, God revealed to us our calling as a couple to spread the Gospel of life. As a couple we will strive to be intentional in proclaiming the true beauty of life especially to those who are treating life as less important, to those who are having difficulties in conceiving and to those who are hopeless in life. We thank God for the gift of LCSC, for this will help us to bring other people back to Christ. We will make use of this personal mission to be holy and eventually reach heaven to meet our baby Dominic. Amen.

#CultureofLife #Prolife #ProLifeGen #FightforLife

A Great Responsibility

“Look around you. This is what we do. We help people.”

– May Parker, Spider-Man: No Way Home

Spoiler Alert: For those who haven’t watched the movie yet, anything you read beyond this point is a major spoiler. 

I am going to point out two specific scenes in the movie that particularly embodies the culture of life–and both of them highlight the character of Aunt May Parker. 

The first one was when Norman Osborn a.k.a. The Green Goblin went to the charitable organization where Aunt May worked in search of Peter Parker. Take note that this scene happened just almost after he appeared as the said villain and attacked Peter Parker as Spider-Man. This is why when Peter came to the F.E.A.S.T. (Food, Emergency Aid, Shelter, and Training) Community Center, he was obviously panicking, thinking that The Green Goblin may have done something bad to his aunt. However, to his surprise, he saw Aunt May consoling a lost and confused Norman. Peter, threatened by the presence of the villain, instinctively wanted to capture him and return him to where he came from. But this was where Aunt May intervened and asked her nephew to help Norman because bringing him back to his home universe without changing something in him will just result to his death.

Now, to be honest, during this part, I was kind of siding on Peter. I felt like something was wrong and things could go sideways. And while he was hesitating to trust Norman, Aunt May insisted by saying, “Look around you. This is what we do. We help people.” After that, Peter decided to help. 

Meanwhile, the second scene is the direct result of what happened in the first scene. For all those who have seen the movie, you know that in the end, our doubts were proven to be justified and consequently, things didn’t go well for our protagonists, especially Aunt May. After discovering that The Green Goblin had fooled them, Peter was so upset with himself for his decision to trust Norman. Seeing that how much he regrets making an act of kindness, Aunt May, before dying in the arms of her nephew uttered the trademark line that defined the Spider-Man franchise–“You did the right thing… You have a gift. You have power. And with great power, there must also come great responsibility.”

It’s saddening to witness how events developed from the first scene to the second scene. As a Spider-Man fan, I actually almost shed a tear when Aunt May died. Her death was absolutely unexpected. So, I thought to myself, this wouldn’t have happened if only Peter followed his instinct and just decided to bring all the villains back home without even caring what could have happened to them after. 

And this is where my reflection comes in. 

As a Live Life Champion, advocating for the Culture of Life has become a part of my day-to-day. As much as possible, I try to go beyond what’s usually expected from a missionary, like giving talks such as the Live Life Forum. The teachings of this LCSC pillar have a deep and personal meaning to me. And so, I make sure that I walk the talk. Allowing this culture to be a part of my daily life, affirms a huge part of my soul, of my being. However, despite this, as you can remember from my initial reaction to the two scenes I just narrated, my conviction is still not perfect. You maybe thinking, “Why make a big deal out of it? It’s just a movie.” Yes, maybe there were only mere characters in a fictional movie. But these “small things” that we don’t usually notice, reflect what our values truly are.

In the Live Life Forum, there is a part where we preach the Lord’s message that life is valuable, that we are all valuable. No matter who you are or where you came from, we are all equally loved. Our value as a person is never lessened by whatever mistake we made. There is always hope for us. At first glance, we get to be affirmed by this message as we feel validated by it. But an essential part of the message that’s easy to overlook is that “we are all valuable”. It also means that there is hope for others regardless of the sins they have committed. 

A person who is on the side of life must always be ready give second chances and believe in the intrinsic goodness of people. After all, we are made by God to be “very good”. 

And so, going back to the aforementioned scenes, such values related to the Culture of Life were what Aunt May showed everyone of us. Of course, there will always be risks. Believing in people may just lead us to  getting disappointed or even hurt in the end. But that’s what the love that comes from God entails–sacrifice. Nowadays, no one’s willing to make the sacrifice, to take responsibility. The world teaches us to just mind our own business. But this is not what God wants for us. He wants us to live life to the full by following the example of His Son, Jesus. He wants us to love each other, to care for each other. The fulfillment of our lives can only be found in our willingness to sacrifice for something bigger than ourselves. This is the essence of our humanity.

God has given us the GIFT of life. He gave us the freedom and the POWER to choose what is right. Now it’s up to us to decide–for with great power, there must also come great responsibility.

[1 Timothy 1:15-16]

‘It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost sinner Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.”

One Life Protects Another

Reflection on the article published by the National Catholic Register entitled A New Pro-Life Saint? This Italian Mother Sacrificed Her Life for Her Unborn Baby

Excerpt:

“They were expecting a third child – Riccardo – when they found out that her cancer had returned. 

Her first thought was of her unborn baby boy. 

“My reaction was to say over and over: ‘I am pregnant! I am pregnant! But doctor I am pregnant,’” she wrote in a 1995 letter to her little Riccardo. “I fought with all my power and did not give up on the idea of giving birth to you, so much so that the doctor understood everything and said no more.”

Maria Cristina refused the chemotherapy treatments that would have threatened her unborn baby’s life. Instead, she waited until after Riccardo was born, in 1994. But at that point, the cancer had already spread to her lungs and caused her tremendous suffering.”

Source: https://www.ncregister.com/cna/a-new-pro-life-saint-this-italian-mother-sacrificed-her-life-for-her-unborn-baby

Most of us try to find an easier path when we struggle, when we are faced with difficulties. But Maria Cristina Mocellin was so faithful and trustful in the Father’s love that she chose to bear the gift of life at the expense of hers.  As per her spiritual diary “I think that there is no suffering in the world that is not worth bearing for a child.” Through her words, I realized that having to carry a precious life should never be a question of what if but a hopeful prayer of what will become. I cannot imagine what she had to go through over the course of nine months to protect Riccardo, her baby—but one thing I am sure of is that the Father’s Love and faithfulness to His promise was there with her during the most difficult moments to comfort her. It is what carried her and her family through. 

The call to defend life today is more real than ever. It is an effortful battle against movements and ideologies that destroy life. As the world shifts its mindset to convenience, comfort and ease, the call to defend life must be spoken clearer and louder.  Our stand must not waver, we must be united. We are called to protect another’s life. We are called to be unconditionally pro-life.

#protectlife #prolife #ProlifeGen

Happily Ever After

It’s wedding season in the Philippines and you can especially feel the love in the air on this eve of Valentine’s Day. Flowers are being sold on the street, chocolates and sweets are on sale, and most couples have something special planned for the occasion. Growing up, I’ve always been the biggest fan of romantic comedies. Sleepless in Seattle, Notting Hill, and my personal favorite, The Wedding Singer, have all had a part in shaping my idea on love and romance. The guy would always go through some kind of hardship, end up with the girl, and live happily ever after. But, these movies never show the happily ever after. They never show what happens after the wedding car of the main characters drive off to the sunset. They never show what everyday life is like for the married couple.

I am very grateful that even if I am yet to see these scenarios played out in a movie, I was given the privilege to witness a glimpse of that in the everyday life of my parents. Looking back at these memories, it’s easy to see why there aren’t a lot of movies about married life. Marriage can get messy. There are occasional fights, misunderstandings, crying, the works. I have been a witness to some of it and at times it can be overwhelming. But I have also seen the beauty of marriage through my parents. I have seen how both my parents sacrificed for one another and for our family. I have seen how my mom would take care of my dad at all times and how dad would do the same especially when my mom fell ill.  I have even seen how my oftentimes aloof dad can bring a smile on my mom’s face when she needs it.

So much can be said about the beauty of marriage. But nothing can be more beautiful than the beautiful linkage of a man and woman made possible by the grace of God. A union that molds two individuals into one. A covenant that is bestowed the gift to bring life to the world.  As more and more stories of love get made into movies and tv shows, may we always know who and what love really is. It is God! Through the pursuing and unconditional love made real to us by Jesus. Even for us single people, this love is ever-present in the way that Christ is married to His Church. So regardless if you have a special someone to celebrate Valentines with, or you are without a partner, may we be reminded of the constant love being poured out to us through Jesus.

A Single Choice Echoes On

Every February is celebrated as the Pro-Life Month in the Philippines and when we hear Pro-Life we often think about birth, babies, the fight against abortion and similar advocacies. Of course there are many aspects to the Pro-Life movement such as defense of marriage and the family but today I would like to zoom in on abortion. Growing up, I have been blessed with a close bond with my mother. Even though I did not get any special treatment, I know that I was deeply loved and cared for. My mother and I talk and bond often. 

But there was one particular conversation that we had just recently, roughly a month after my grandfather passed away. She told me that during my grandfather’s wake, she discovered how her mother (now my grandmother) considered aborting her when she was in her womb. The suggestion came from my grandfather. At that time, they were a young couple who were struggling financially in the late 1960s. The news of having a third child was not something that they looked forward to. It meant one more mouth to feed. Another child to rear. Another child to send to school. Another life to care for. But the suggestion never came to be and both decided to entrust the pregnancy and their family life to God. The pregnancy eventually came to full term and my grandmother gave birth to their first daughter — a strong and lovely child on March 27, 1969. This little girl was my mother. 

This story was a huge revelation because in the family we all know that abortion is wrong. There is a common understanding that it is a great offense against God. After hearing what my mother shared, I also had a powerful realization – that I am so blessed that my grandparents chose life. I am so grateful that they chose to give birth to my mother. Had they chosen to abort her, I would not be here. Had they chosen to give her up, she would not have become the amazing teacher, mother, wife, friend, aunt, and friend that she is. 

Moreover, I am blessed that they have chosen my mother. Because when they chose her it meant giving her millions of possibilities. It meant giving her a shot to a future full of hope. It meant giving their family a chance. She was the first among her siblings to graduate from college. She eventually became a licensed teacher. Because she was given the chance at life, she was given a chance to have her own family. She had me and my four other siblings.  And this choice echoes on to our generation.

If my grandparents had chosen to abort my mother, I would not have had the same chance at life. I would not have experienced the joy and bliss of living this life, uncertain and sometimes messy as it may be. My life is far from what the world calls ideal. I have felt brokenness through the years and my heart has been crushed countless times. I still have days when I struggle so hard to face my personal battles. But even if life is imperfect and sometimes leaves me wounded, I would still choose life. In living, I have the opportunity to love and be deeply loved. Ultimately, I would choose life over and over again because in it, I have had the chance to know Jesus Christ and accept Him as my Lord and Savior.

So thank you grandparents for choosing life. Thank you for choosing to save my mother. You have saved my life.  

And to you who’s reading this, I hope this serves as a reminder to choose life at all times. Choose to see life not as a burden but instead as a wonderful blessing from our Almighty Father. Your life choices matter and they will resonate beyond your generation.