Pray

Manila is like any other large city in the world: there are distinct class differences when you travel from one side of the city to the other.

But something that shocked me while I was there was how surprisingly faithful one of those sides is…

There are a lot of people in the streets in Manila. And they range from babies to the elderly. It doesn’t seem fair that someone can be born in the streets and die in the streets — maybe spending their entire life there.

Filipino kids in "Ondoy" flood

A few years ago a Filipina friend brought me to a Catholic mass while I was in Manila.  While we were driving there, we stopped at several traffic lights.

At each one of them, little girls and boys — probably around 8 to 10 years old — would surround the car and beg for money.

My friend told me that it’s hard to give them money because most of them end up buying aerosol cans.

She explained that when they get high they stop worrying about how hungry they are.

A few minutes later we arrived at the church. It was in a nice area so I was expecting to see wealthy Filipinos. I was thinking that if anyone should be in church right now it would be them — giving thanks for how “blessed” they are. Instead, I saw the opposite. It was packed with poor people. Even more surprising was how happy they were. There were smiles everywhere.  I couldn’t believe it.

To me, that was a miracle. I was moved at how people with so little could be so faithful.

After that experience I started reading the Bible again — and I came to my own conclusion as to why those people were so happy in church: they might not have much, but they’ve got their faith… and that’s all they need.

I personally believe that one of the best things you can do for the victims of the typhoon is to pray for them.  Pray that they keep their faith. Especially during difficult times like this when they might question God — but when they need Him the most.

The following isn’t from the Bible, but its message is inspiring…

Footsteps In The Sand

Footsteps in the Sand

One night a man had a dream.
He dreamed he was walking along the beach with Jesus.

Across the sky flashed scenes from his life.

For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand: one belonging to him, and the other to Jesus.

When the last scene of his life flashed before him he looked back, at the footprints in the sand.

He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints.

He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times of his life.

This really bothered him and he questioned Jesus about it:
“LORD, you said that once I decided to follow you, you’d walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life there  is only one set of footprints. I don’t understand why when I needed you most you would leave me.”

The LORD replied:
“My son, My precious child, I love you and I would never leave you,
During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”