faith – ancore!

Hustisya.

What could’ve been a major milestone in Rene Baterbonia and Chukwuemeka Divine Adili’s journey became a millstone that drowned their dreams.

We continue to grieve with and pray for the people of Talacogon and Nigeria as the full, unadulterated truth remain shackled.

Can you see it?

Lady Justice sand sculpture. Grok Imagine.

Recent news reveal the sinister spirit that’s long been at work not just in the school system but in families, in communities and even in churches.

Here and abroad we hear of teachers caught in indecent acts and sexual harrassment cases. How many of those have been solved?

As the Philippines continues to struggle and regain its wobbly footing from the tragedy of a 7.8 magnitude earthquake, we hear of the macabre, untimely death of students brought about by two gun-firing youths.

It is not surprising, given that our very own Senate recently had its halls echo with gunshots.

A tangled weave of ball-passing negligence hangs in the air and though many of us are alert enough to perceive it, we remain powerless to do anything – except, perhaps, temper our responses and shift our focus.

Satan is not backing down.

Being the father of lies, he is a master con artist, venturing out to steal, kill and destroy all that is good.

He does so through these channels: appetite, beauty, and knowledge. It’s an age-old tactic that he used to entice Eve – and Adam – in the Garden.

“When the woman saw that the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eyes, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom, she took the fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate it. And the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; so they sewed together fig leaves and made coverings for themselves.” Genesis‬ ‭3‬:‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭BSB‬‬

I remember when Charlie Kirk was a**a**inat*d in 2025, he was speaking in a school, in the middle of laying the groundwork for the Gospel. The enemy tried to silence his voice, to extinguish his light and though his case remains unsolved, it ignited an unquenchable fire in the hearts of many teenagers who followed him.

Lady Justice. made with Grok Imagine.

The picture around the world is going to get from worse to worst before it becomes good.

It’s going to take a while.

Yet we can CHOOSE.

In the basic pursuit of satisfying our human appetites, we can choose: to tend our own gardens, mind our own businesses, stay in our lanes, protect our bubbles and let evil run its course.

Or we can pray.

We can PRAY not only “in church”. We can pray in our beds, in our homes, in the kitchen, in the garden, in schools, in the play areas, in the basketball court or in the courts of justice, in the streets…

Let us REPENT and RETURN not “to the church”. Let us return to God!

Let us return to Him in the midst of the mundane, in the little things, the unpublished things, behind the curtains, and certainly off cam!

Let us BE the church whom God has called us to be: men, women, children, families who prevail in prayer.

Let us be courageous and unwavering in the pursuit of truth and the beauty of His design.

Let us be so intimate with the Holy Spirit in a way that shuns all noise and empowers us to follow His signal towards what is truly good and eternally beautiful.

Nakapiring man ang mga mata ni Lady Justice as she balances the scale, hindi siya ang magpapataw ng sintensya. Siya ay bulag, pipi at bingi – isang estatwa na hindi nakakakita, walang boses, at hindi nakakarinig.

Ngunit ang Panginoong Diyos, our Creator God who is Good personified in Jesus Christ, ang May-akda ng buhay, ang Diyos ng Hustisya, ang Siyang magpapataw ng sintensya.

Hindi Siya bulag, hindi Siya pipi at lalong hindi Siya bingi.

Ang pag-ibig at hustisya Niya ay walang sini-sino at walang pagkiling.

Hindi man natin maunawaan ang Kanyang pahintulot sa bawat trahedyang ating kinakaharap, ang Kanyang mga plano at pangako ang mananaig.

God gives us not only perfect peace in the midst of the chaos and noise; He renders perfect justice and opens doors that no man can ever shut.

Pray with me.

Father God, You know all things, You search all things and nothing is ever hidden from You. All things are naked before You and opened to Your eyes. You are to whom I must give account.

Father God, I have no kindness, no goodness, no compassion apart from You. Forgive me for the times I rely on my own morality instead of Your Word.

By Your grace, Father God, I choose today to put my trust in You. I will keep choosing to do what is right even when no one is looking.

Thank You, LORD Jesus for making a way for us. Holy Spirit, please fill me, empower me to always choose to be truthful, to be kind, to be compassionate, to do good, and to be courageous over evil. Even when nobody else will go with me, I will follow You.

For Yours alone is the kingdom, and the power and the glory forever, Amen.

For You

The Wiggle Room

As I watched my six-year-old wiggle through kids’ church yesterday, I saw God’s love in action—His rules paired with grace create a “wiggle room” where we can grow. Allow me to boast in the LORD whose faithfulness has always been my portion.

Grateful for People
I’m blessed and honored to have mutual follows with some of the best REAL people on X. My account is small so if you’re following me on X or other platforms and reading this, know that I’m eternally grateful for you. I’m choosing not to stress about any algorithm or trend. Years ago, a painful experience taught me that God is easier to please than people and when I prioritize pleasing Him instead, life becomes pleasantly peaceful.

God’s Order in Christian Parenting
Fast forward to October 19, 2025, a Sunday. I was with my husband, our six-year-old son, and one of my sisters in the worship hall for the 6pm service. My mom was cheerfully serving as an usher at the doors.

Earlier, I watched my son in the 3pm kids’ church from a distance. He was all over the place—running, jumping from mat to mat, playing with other boys. Yet, for a good part of the program, he sat on the mat, listened, obeyed instructions, watched the live Bible story on stage, and answered pop-quiz Bible questions with other kids aged 6 and up. I smiled as he raised his hand a number of times to ask questions or to be allowed to speak.

How do you handle a group of kids needing bathroom breaks while still meeting a learning goal? I observed a Lifeshaper as she prepared to take my son and other kids to an area outside the hall. She handed them a flat rope with rings and let each kid hold onto a ring to stay with the group. With each step, she literally walked them through the day’s big idea (“God helps me to bless others”) and memory verse: “My body and my mind may become weak, but God is my strength. He is mine forever” (Psalm 73:26 ICB). She sat them in a circle and gave clear instructions to go one at a time. My son waited patiently for his turn. It seemed a bit too long but, thankfully, he was able to hold it in.

I don’t love rules, yet as a parent, I’m a stickler for order. I’ve learned that rules and order go hand-in-hand. Without clear rules, there’s no semblance of order. God is a God of order and peace, and His rules are given out of love—to protect us, not restrict us; to nurture our free will, not suppress it; not only for aesthetics but fully for His glory.

Wiggle Room of God’s Love
I get frustrated when people disobey rules, but the older I get, the more I see that humanity benefits with a bit of wiggle room. That wiggle room is called love. Watching the Lifeshaper lovingly create space for the kids to learn and grow, I knew there’s something my family and I must do. (More on this in a future post, Lord-willing.)

During the 6pm service, we stood together. One of the songs, “Stand Strong” is memorable for me as my husband and I sang with our hands entwined, arms raised in worship to our God. That wasn’t something we normally do as a couple. By God’s grace, we weren’t campaigning—we were championing something bigger than ourselves. We’re championing each other as co-heirs in God’s Kingdom. We’re championing marriage as God designed it, tearing down idols, breaking unhealthy cycles, and pruning dysfunctions. We’re two imperfect people championing the perfect cause of Christ down the line. We don’t have millions of followers or net worth, but we have a mustard seed of faith planted in our hearts. That’s more than enough for us to persevere, as my life verse reminds me:

“Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:12-14 ESV)

A Legacy of Faith
Years ago, when I was a volunteer in kids’ church, a guy gave me a poster with this verse: “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.” (1 Corinthians 15:10 ESV)

I’ve long lost that poster, but the guy who gave me that poster is now my husband of nearly 13 years. On top of the pounds and grey hairs we’re gaining, we have Christ. We have a son growing in Christ, a Mama serving Christ, and families getting to know Christ. And, yes, we have a lot of wiggle room in Christ. We’ll keep pressing on, working hard, and persevering. In between and along the way, we’ll make time for rest and play.

Thank you for reading! Where is God giving you “wiggle room” to grow in faith right now? Share your thoughts in the comments below or tag me on X when you do. Shabbat Shalom!

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