One Special Gift

Today is a very special day. It's my 38th birthday.

This day is very special for me because more than the greetings I got from friends and family, more than the material gifts I received... God gave me a special gift today.  It's my realization of who I am as ME.  It's like when you have this jewelry box all your life then you discovered it has a secret pocket inside, that's the kind of excitement I have right now.

My gigantic Oreo cake
Lunch with my Sun Life family at Epiphany, Global Cuisine Redefined

It's like you know something that others don't.  Can you picture what I'm saying?

I feel very empowered with this radical peace I have inside.  Peace that I know only God can give.  Peace that surpasses all understanding. It's the feeling of knowing what belongs to you and in spite of all the tricks the enemy darts at you, you know and you know and you know that there's nothing he and his pawns can do to impede its way from finding you.

Have you ever thought you lost something?  Maybe a piece of jewelry or a sale? But you know in your heart that if that belongs to you, it will find its way back to you?  Sweet!

That's how I feel.  It's very liberating.

Some of my presents... I heart!

Of course, I will be forever grateful for friends and family.  They are blessings from God.  I also thank the Lord because I have so much love in my heart and it's overflowing.  I have so much love to give.  Now that I finally found my true source of happiness, I know my well will never be emptied.

I'm so happy. Can you tell?  =)

It's Almost Christmas

It's almost Christmas!

Had my first Christmas party for this year last night. It was our branch's Christmas party in Greenhills held at the second level of Mann Hann Restaurant in San Juan. Food and gifts were overflowing! We had games and prizes too.

Red Spruce (That's our branch name)

Red Spruce group photo

But there are two things I wanted to share with you.

I've been wanting to have a beautiful lamp for my night table, but every time I had the chance to buy one, I kept putting if off. I felt like it wasn't really a priority. But God knows how much I wanted one and thank God I waited. Last night, we played the white elephant gift exchange. Boy, was it hilarious! Guess what item I ended up bringing home. A lamp! Woohoo!

That's not all. During our raffle event, I was eying to get either the foldable storage box/stool which would be perfect to keep my clients' files or the foldable picnic basket, you know just because. There were so many beautiful items on the table for giveaway. But my name was picked when it was the foldable storage box/stool that was being given away. Neat!

Later that night, while getting ready for bed, I thought of how God knows exactly what we need and knows exactly when to give it to us. His timing is always perfect!

How To Handle Adversity

I've been wanting to have a copy of this book but wasn't able to find one when I was desperately looking for it two months ago. I couldn't find it in our local bookstores.

My dear friend, Sylvia, sent me one and I got it this morning!

I'm excited to start reading it.

Thank you so much, Sylvia!!! I love the dedication you wrote.

"If you are a child of God whose heart's desire is to see God glorified through you, adversity will not put you down for the count. There will be those initial moments of shock and confusion. But the man or woman who has God's perspective on this life and the life to come will always emerge victorious."

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4

Truly Grateful

Something happened this morning that my heart is still brimming with joy until this very minute. God proved to me again that His Words are true and that He is faithful. For the past three days or so I was telling Him, "God, you know my bills are due next week and I still don't have enough funds to cover everything that I need to pay for. But you promised that you will provide, so, God I trust you will."

This morning, to my surprise, one dear bloggy friend who's one of my closest here in blogsville blessed me with $100. That's more than enough to cover my remaining payables.

Why am I sharing this?

I want to encourage all of you that indeed when we put our trust in God, when we operate in faith, when we obey Him, when we don't lose hope and give up... God will show up! He does provide and He's never late!

Are you, like me, facing something impossible in your life today? Let me tell you, DON'T GIVE UP!!! God knows our heart's desires. He knows what we need. He knows everything that's going on in our lives. He knows our every thought even before we think it.

"You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar." Psalm 139:2

Dear friends, the God we serve is alive and He is faithful.

Calendar Swap

I joined Dora's calendar exchange late last year. I got mine in the mail last January 30. It came all the way from Scotland.

Thanks, Claire, for the beautiful calendar.

Thankful Thursday

This week I thank God for:

• My good friend Sylvia. She wrote me an email that just gave my heart so much joy. Friends who'd stand with you in prayer and believe with you, for me that's priceless. Here's what she said, "keep on holding on Pia, and even if everyone else no longer believes, I'm believing and holding out right along with you."

• The extra money He provided me with from our Baguio trip. I was just expecting a small amount but I was surprised to get six times more than I was expecting. God is truly awesome!
  

• The Refreshing Times CD from Daystar Television Network. I can't even remember if I requested for this CD or they just gave away this wonderful compilation of worship songs to all their partners and friends.
  

Friends, I'm sharing with you these blessings to encourage each of you to wait upon the Lord. There was a point in my life when money was a major problem, but God did not turn His back on me. He's been faithfully providing for my needs. If He did it for me, He will surely do it for you too.

I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord: be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." Psalm 27:13-14

For more Thankful Thursday, visit Iris over at Sting My Heart. Have a happy weekend ahead y'all. God bless! =D