Truly Rich and Blessed

When Terrible Things Happen: #PrayforParis, #PrayfortheWorld

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I’m supposed to be working on some articles now (yes, this is the WAHM life for you! Working on a Saturday!). But I couldn’t help sneaking in this blog post, if only to try to put some sense into what I’m feeling right now. I’m sure most, if not all, of you have seen the images and news articles all over the Internet by now — with the hashtag — about the most recent terrorist attacks in Paris, France.

But it’s not just Paris that needs our prayers right now. I saw this on Instagram (on ) and immediately reposted it on :

paris terrorist attacks

In other places around the world, terrible, terrible things have happened… and are still happening as I type out these words. We don’t even need to look further than our own country actually, with all the bad news that we’ve been reading and watching about.

It’s enough to make you think, “Why is all this happening? Where is God in all this? Why is He letting this happen?”

It’s so hard to find answers to these questions at times… especially when it’s our children who ask them.

“Where is God when bad things happen?” we may ask. Jesus Himself assures us in Matthew 28:20:

paris terrorist attacks

He is ALWAYS with us. He will NEVER leave us.

But why is He letting these terrible things happen? Why the Paris terrorist attacks? Why the bombings? The earthquakes? And other natural and man-made disasters and calamities and tragedies?

Why?

To be perfectly honest with you, I don’t think we’ll ever have all the answers to these questions. Not until we see God face to face anyway (that’s if we, well, you know, ever get to Heaven). Just as it’s written in this article from Catholic News Agency:

Fully to understand why God permits anything, good or bad, we’d need to know the whole of His providential plan. But that is something we can’t know until we see God face to face in heaven. Then, presumably, it will become clear how everything fits together in the final fulfillment of God’s will. For now, we can only guess.

I do know though that many, many times, bad things happen because it’s people who do bad things. Like it says in this article, God created us to have free will:

…in order for us to experience love, God bestowed on us free will. But unfortunately, we humans have abused our free will by rejecting God and walking away from Him. And that has resulted in the introduction of two kinds of evil into the world: moral evil and natural evil. 

(Read the rest of the article by clicking on the link above; it’s a good read on why God allows tragedy and suffering. This article from Catholic Stand is another good read: “Why Does God Let Bad Things Happen?“)

It is a terrible tragedy when we use our free will for bad or evil, and not for good. I still can’t fathom how people can become so full of hate, and commit terrible deeds especially in the name of God and their faith. It’s sickening and heartbreaking and just plain wrong. 

So I really don’t know what I can do here on this side of the world to help ease the suffering of the victims of these terrible tragedies — except pray. Let us pray. And let us trust in God’s Word:

paris terrorist attacks

And further on in Romans 8, we read:

What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword? As it is written:

“For your sake we are being slain all the day;

we are looked upon as sheep to be slaughtered.”

No, in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

Yes, let’s trust in God’s word. In His love. In His power. Because if we don’t do so, it will be so much harder to face the world… the broken, hurting world that we live in.

To end, I want to share with you these beautiful words from my fellow CatholicMom.com contributor, Lori Hadorn-Disselkamp, who wrote an insightful piece titled, “Why Does God Allow Bad Things to Happen?“, earlier this year:

I guess we just have to trust that God is with us through it all — the good, the bad and the evil. We must also believe that love will always win out in the end. If we let love rule our thoughts and attitudes then evil will not be able to penetrate our souls and will never truly take over. We will overcome with God on our side.

We must let love rule our thoughts and attitudes. I must remember this, especially as a wife, mom and self-proclaimed “media missionary.” I may not be able to change the hearts of terrorists or even the people around me, but I can do all things with love… especially the things that will help shape my children’s thoughts and actions.

Love will always win out in the end, as long as we let love — TRUE love that comes only from God — rule our hearts, minds, spirits and bodies.

paris terrorist attacks

Let’s keep praying and loving… We’re all in this together!

Coming Home: Bo Sanchez’s Kerygma Conference 2015 (An Invitation & A Giveaway)

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*The giveaway for the Kerygma Conference 2015 is closed. Congratulations to Lady Lyn Escrieses!*

When you think of the word “home,” what’s the first thing that comes to your mind? Is it a big house? A cozy apartment? A posh condo?

Or is it something more?

If you were to ask me the same question, this is what comes to mind:

kerygma conference 2015

Home = Heaven with Jesus, Mama Mary and all the saints; my “original” family, and my own growing family now :)

It’s not about a physical structure. It’s not about the furniture or clutter (heehee, I just had to say that, since our physical home is full of it! 😉 ) or anything material.

Home, to me, is truly where your heart is. Just as it says in this quote by Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.:

Where we love is home – home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts.

As a Catholic, I truly believe that we will only find our ultimate “home” in Jesus; that our hearts will only find rest in Him. Just as Saint Augustine once said:

kerygma conference 2015

And while we are journeying here on Earth, and getting glimpses of our “True Home”, i.e. Heaven, we should take every opportunity to “come Home” to God; to experience His love, healing, power and grace. Because He wants to bless us. He wants to use us. He wants to change us.

That’s why I’m so grateful to God for the Kerygma Conference. Dubbed as “the biggest inspirational learning event in the country,” the Conference is an annual gathering where people from all walks of life can receive spiritual “nourishment” and practical teachings, too — on how to live better, more blessed lives so that, in turn, God can use them to bless others. 🙂

kerygma conference 2015

“Founded” in 2007 by bestselling author, dynamic lay preacher and “millionaire missionary” Bo Sanchez, the Kerygma Conference is having its ninth run this year. Our family has been #trulyrichandblessed to be part of it in a more “intimate” way for the past few years, since my husband serves as the Project Manager (aka Events Coordinator) for the Conference.

kerygma conference 2015

I’ve personally seen how people’s lives have been changed for the better through the Conference, and so I’d like to invite you to attend it, and be blessed and empowered through all the talks.

kerygma conference 2015

Join us and the rest of the expected crowd of 20,000 participants at the Kerygma Conference in Metro Manila on November 19-22, 2015 at SMX Convention Center and SM Mall of Asia Arena (there will be separate runs in Cebu and ).

kerygma conference 2015

Kuya/Bro. Bo Sanchez, the Kerygma preachers, and other world-class speakers will be sharing fresh and life-changing insights during the plenary talks and different classes, which have been categorized into 5 different “streams”: (1) business and career, (2) leadership and education, (3) family and relationships, (4) health and wellness, and (5) church and ministry systems.

This way, the Conference has something for every attendee, and for every aspect of a person’s life. 🙂 (Click here to download the Kerygma Conference 2015 brochure for the details of the class schedules and speakers.) 

In face, there will even be a special Youth Conference on November 21-22.

kerygma conference 2015

For the main Conference attendees, we will surely be inspired by all the speakers, who have been carefully chosen for their passion and dedication to their respective crafts and missions.

This year’s plenary speakers include international speaker ” who will be sharing his relentless passion for life and faith (watch the short video below to learn more about how God changed Justin’s life).

Other plenary speakers include Fr. Joel Jason, one of the most sought-after Filipino theologians and current head of the Commission on Family and Life of the Archdiocese of Manila, and Rex Mendoza, an esteemed corporate leader of various corporations such as AIA Group, Philam Life, Ayala Land, and Globe Telecom.

kerygma conference 2015

Arun Gogna, senior Feast builder of the Feast Alabang, and Alvin Barcelona, one of the senior Feast builders at the Feast Bay Area will also be there.

On November 22, the Feast of Christ the King, the Kerygma Conference will end with two “Grand Feasts” at the Mall of Asia Arena. Holy Masses will be celebrated by Fr. Jerry Orbos, SVD (A.M. session) and Fr. Mario Sobrejuanite, SSP (P.M. session). Plenary talks after each Mass will be given by Bo Sanchez and Alvin Barcelona.

kerygma conference 2015

Non-conference attendees can attend the Grand Feast A.M. session by purchasing tickets from www.smtickets.com.

kerygma conference 2015

Meanwhile, the Grand Feast P.M. session attendees (i.e. Kerygma Conference ticket-holders) will be treated to entertainment numbers by Ogie Alcasid, Regine Velasquez-Alcasid and Jaya.

kerygma conference 2015

So I invite you, dear friends and readers, and even those who may have just stumbled upon this blog, come home to blessings and inspiration this November at the Kerygma Conference 2015. Get your tickets now at www.kerygmaconference.com.

kerygma conference 2015

BUT WAIT! 🙂

As mentioned in the title of this post, this isn’t just an invitation to the Conference — it’s to tell you about this awesome giveaway! 🙂

Thanks to the generosity of the Kerygma Conference Team, I’m giving away TWO (2) Power Package Tickets plus freebies from The Generics Pharmacy to ONE #trulyrichandblessed person. 🙂 Power Package tickets entitle the bearers to admission to the 4-day conference, complete with the classes of your choice — total of 9 classes [3 classes a day].

So here’s what you need to do to join the giveaway (this is open to anyone with a Facebook and/or Instagram account; please make sure that your Instagram account is set to Public):

1. Follow me on Instagram: . Leave a comment on my photo there, where I mention this post. (Look for the photo which includes the Saint Augustine quote; i.e. the SECOND photo in this blog post.)

2. If you are on Instagram, post a photo (any photo will do!) and tag and @kerygmaconference. You must include a caption that says why you wish to attend the Kerygma Conference. For example: “I want to attend the Kerygma Conference because I believe that God will speak to me powerfully there! @kerygmaconference”

3. Like my NEW Facebook page: ““, NOT “Truly Rich Mom”. Look for the post that mentions this Kerygma Conference 2015 invitation and giveaway, and share it on your personal wall. (Again, look for the photo which includes the Saint Augustine quote; i.e. the SECOND photo in this blog post.)

IMPORTANT: Your Facebook share/post must be set to Public. You must also state why you wish to attend the Kerygma Conference in your personal “share”/post, and tag @Truly Rich and Blessed and @Kerygma Conference, plus tag at least THREE (3) of your friends on Facebook.

4. Leave a comment on this blog post, “Coming Home: Bo Sanchez’s Kerygma Conference 2015 (An Invitation & A Giveaway),” with your name, the link to your Facebook post and/OR your Instagram post about this giveaway. In the comment, please tell me what your version of “Coming Home” means. For example: “Coming Home to me means coming home to God, the only Source of peace and joy.”

One winner will be announced on Monday, the 16th of November, here on this blog post, and .

kerygma conference 2015

This is what my new FB page looks like. 🙂 Just to be sure you follow the right instructions. :)

To end, may I just request that you please say a prayer for all those preparing for the Conference, including my husband and his team, and our respective families? Your prayers would mean a lot to us!

Praying for all of you too, especially those who will be joining the giveaway, and those who will be attending/serving at the Kerygma Conference! 🙂 God bless us all!

 

Image credits: First photo — Picture of Madonna and Child by sritangphoto | FreeDigitalPhotos.net

 

5 Ways to Bring Your Family Closer Together

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If you’re a regular reader of this blog, or follow my work on Smart Parenting and Philstar.com, or read my posts on and , you’ll know that I’m a total advocate for intentional family time… for making meaningful memories with our families, and for cherishing our relationships with family members! 🙂

family mass

Preparing to “play Mass” as a family. 🙂 In preparation for our eldest’s First Holy Communion

Of course, neither my husband nor I are “perfect” at this yet — at making each and every moment with our family count. We have a looooong way to go, so it helps to get tips from other people!

This is why I am super thankful to my newfound acquaintances and collaborators at Marccx Media — they’ve come up with this guest post to share tips on how we can bring our families closer together. 🙂 I hope you’ll enjoy and be blessed by this!

5 Ways to Bring Your Family Closer Together

 

With work commitments, doctor’s appointments, parent/teacher meetings, playdates, errands, and more, it can be hard to bring the family together. Something always seems to gets in the way, whether your kids are young and living at home, away at college, or with families of their own, the challenges of living in today’s fast-paced society can have harmful effects on the family unit, and it’s essential that we do our best to stay connected even through life’s little obstacles.

According to the New Kids Center, children should learn the importance of family in their lives and know that they can always turn to them in their hour of need. Healthychildren.org advocates the importance of parents and children having genuine respect for one another. Even when there are disagreements or physical separation, demonstrating love, caring, trust, and concern is important at all times to keep the family close.

Here are 5 simple ways to bring your family closer together:

1. Eat dinner as a family.

eatin dinner

It may sound simple, but with family member’s conflicting schedules it can be easy to let life take over. Make time as often as possible to actually sit down with your family and break bread together. Turn off the television, shut down your computer, and listen to one another as you ask about each other’s day.

If your relatives live close by, you could try making one day a week, such as Sunday, a family time and invite grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and other relatives other to encourage bonding with your kids.

2. Ban smartphones at certain times.

phone

Gone are the days when the television was considered the unhealthy intruder at the dinner table. Now it’s more than likely at any mealtime that half of those present will be seeing how many “likes” their profile picture got. But chatting with friends who aren’t in the room can isolate us from the people who matter most.

If you’re having trouble getting the attention of your children or partner, or you yourself are constantly listening out for that unmistakable ping of a WhatsApp message, Facebook alert or chime of an incoming email, learn to turn off your smart phones at certain times of day. Make a rule that everyone respects and use that family time for real face-to-face communication.

3. Teach your children how to cook by making it a family fun time.

cook

OK, so we’re not all Martha Stewart, but even if you hate to cook, it can be a fun activity to do with your family. You could ask Grandma for family recipes, follow a TV cooking show, or even ask your kids to come up with the idea and spark their creativity. Just remember to supervise your children in the kitchen at all times.

4. Create rituals and traditions.

readaloud

Part of our family “rituals”: Read-aloud time every day! 🙂 These are some of the books we read aloud earlier this week — inspired by the kids’ questions about how babies are made! ;)

This might sound a little strange, but by creating your own rituals and traditions, such as Monday night cook-offs and Friday night games or movie nights, you can actually bond more closely with the family and won’t replace family time with other activities.

5. Don’t let distance defeat you.

commIf your family is separated by distance, whether it’s interstate or international, there are ways to use technology to bring your family together. Make sure that you schedule time every week to speak with your far away family members, and think about building family blogs, a family website, or photo albums.

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How do you make time with your family meaningful? Share your tips and experiences with us in the comments!

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*Special thanks to Michael Peggs for writing this post for us! Michael is the founder of Marccx Media, a digital marketing agency specializing in SEO and Content Marketing. Before Marcxx, Peggs worked at Google in business development, forming digital media and advertising partnerships. He is also a blogger and podcaster, hosting the iTunes Top 10 New & Noteworthy podcast You University – The Personal Branding Podcast.

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Photo credits: 2nd photo by stockimages / 3rd photo by nenetus / 4th photo by marin / 6th photo by Ambro — All on FreeDigitalPhotos.net. All other photos by author.

READ, WATCH and REFLECT: Meet the True “Supermom”!

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I have a raw, honest (and very embarrassing) confession to make: This past month — my birthday month! — I have had a lot of downright ugly, crying episodes and “crazy mama” breakdowns. 🙁

It’s like I was on a big emotional roller coaster ride, and while many people say that it could be mostly due to pregnancy hormones, I know that it’s also because I have been trying to run on my own strength lately. Which is kind of ironic, really, since the last episode of “The Truly Rich Mom Show” had me reminding everyone that “Even Jesus Needed Help.”

The truth is, I haven’t really been walking my talk lately… and my ugly-cry-mama-is-acting-like-a-basket-case episodes were the result — I failed, time and again, to seek help. I didn’t ask God for help; didn’t bask in His presence; didn’t rest in His embrace; didn’t lean into His Word. *sigh*

This is sort of what I looked like on bad days! :( (Image by David Castillo Dominici | FreeDigitalPhotos.net)

This is sort of what I looked like on bad days! 🙁 (Image by David Castillo Dominici | FreeDigitalPhotos.net)

The good news is… it’s never too late to get up and start again, right? That’s what I love about our God and His grace. That’s why we are all #trulyrichandblessed — because His love and forgiveness are never-ending. Praise God for that! 🙂

Now, you might be wondering… why on earth is she baring her soul again? Why is she so open about all her weaknesses, struggles, hardships?

Well, my friends, it’s all about #keepingitreal. 🙂 I receive a lot of comments from friends, family members and acquaintances about how I seem so great at “doing it all,” and “keeping it together,” and “balancing everything.” About how I am a “supermom” even.

And, like I always tell them, I don’t do it all, I suck at keeping it together, I have a hard time balancing everything (and one of the “things” that I’m trying to balance always ends up falling!). Most of all, I’m NOT a “supermom.”

But I can introduce you to someone who is… the TRUE “Supermom” actually! 🙂 She is a powerful ally and intercessor for all of us, especially us moms. Watch the latest episode of the show below to find out who she is:

My prayer is that we will all learn to seek God’s help, no matter how “rock-bottom” our situations may seem. May we also seek the intercession of the True Supermom, our Blessed Mother, to help us live out our calling every day, all for God’s greater glory! 🙂

I love this image of "Madonnina," also known as "Madonna of the Streets" by Roberto Ferruzzi - I used to have a big poster with the same image on our bedroom wall in Timor! I remember looking at it during my first-time mom days, when my eldest was still a newborn!

I love this image of “Madonnina,” also known as “Madonna of the Streets” by Roberto Ferruzzi (Source). I used to have a big poster with the same image on our bedroom wall in Timor! I remember looking at it during my first-time mom days, when my eldest was still a newborn, and asking Mama Mary to help me during those trying, challenging days!

Reflect: Do I consider the Blessed Virgin Mary as my own mother? Do I seek her intercession and help every day?

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Special thanks to Elin for sponsoring my dress for this episode! 🙂

For fabulous and functional options for your wardrobe, please visit Elin’s website or click on the image below. 🙂

Elin logo new

Updates + The Scholastic Readers Cup 2015: 4 Important Reminders for Parents and Educators

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It has been quite a while since my last post here, I know.

To tell you the truth, I have had my hands full again with oh so many things (the usual — the kids, chores, WORK, etc.), not to mention events that I have been attending as “media” (though I am still not used to being labelled as such!) and events to which I have been invited as a speaker (Invite me, invite me! Before I give birth, haha!).

HSS talk

I was invited to give a talk lately at the PTA Assembly of Holy Spirit School — I learned a lot from chatting with the teachers and parents! 🙂 Photo from my Instagram feed (yup, I’m finally on IG — , if you want! 😉 )

Then there is also the “laziness” that comes with being pregnant — many days, all I want to do is lie in bed and read a book (or scroll through my social media feeds! Aaarrggghhh!).

On the few occasions when I did get to sit down and attempt to write a blog post, I was dismayed to find out that I couldn’t log in to WordPress! Huhuhu! 🙁 (It’s a loooong story, but let me just say — I need to subscribe to a new internet service provider!)

Anyway… here I am now, at my mom’s place, taking advantage of the fact that I can finally access the back end of this blog. (Thank you for your patience, everyone!)

First thing on my bloggy agenda is to share important reminders about reading and problem-solving, and learning in general — based on lessons that I learned from attending the Scholastic Readers Cup 2015 last month.

scholastic readers cup 2015

I was most inspired by the talk given by Dr. Duriya Aziz, Vice President of Scholastic Asia — she sounded a lot like some of my former teachers in Brunei, actually! :)

I won’t go into the nitty-gritty of the event though, because:

(a) I already wrote about it for Philstar.com;

(b) it’s 4.30 a.m. and I should be sleeping (so says every person who discovers that I am awake and online at hours like these! “You should be resting; growing your baby requires enough sleep; etc.!”); and

(c) the toddler might wake up to nurse and I won’t be able to finish this post because I’ll end up falling asleep beside her! 😛

So… please forgive me but I’ll just go straight to the point of why I found the Scholastic Readers Cup 2015 truly educational and insightful, especially as a parent and an educator-of-sorts (since we homeschool and all 🙂 ). Here are my four main takeaways, which, I believe, serve as important reminders for all educators and parents, since we parents are considered the primary educators of our children:

1. We need to teach children how to learn and how to use what they learn.

scholastic readers cup 2015

As a parent, one of my goals is to raise independent learners who know how to learn, meaning, how to get information on anything and everything they want to. I think this goal would apply whether or not we homeschool.

At the Scholastic Readers Cup 2015 though, I was reminded that, in today’s society, it’s not just what you know that matters; it’s what you can do with that knowledge that is most important. This is something that both parents and teachers should remember when teaching kids. We need to teach them about the “usefulness” of what they learn; after all, learning should be purposeful, right? 🙂

2. We need to encourage children to read beyond what is “required” of them.

scholastic readers cup 2015

This is something I have been personally struggling with working on with my kids. They LOVE it when I read aloud to them, but are not yet very big on independent reading beyond what is required of their curriculum. So, we’re working on improving the culture of reading that we currently have, by hoarding getting books which the kids find interesting (many of which are actually from Scholastic!).

I also plan to use charts to help us achieve our goals, which will help the kids track the number of books that they read. Of course, since our Kindergartener/beginning reader doesn’t read so fluently yet, her book “requirements” will be simpler, and limited to the phonics readers we are currently using.

3. We need to encourage and teach children to be problem-solvers.

scholastic readers cup 2015

Based on the slide pictured above, plus Dr. Aziz’s talk, we must remember that both reading and problem-solving (related to proficiency in mathematics) are important. I personally was both a language and math “nerd” when I was still a student, but admittedly loved language more (hence, my current “job description” as writer/editor/communicator!).

As a parent (and a teacher), I hope for my kids to love (or at least like) both too — reading and math. I know that I need to encourage and inspire them to actually have that “love” though, and it is definitely challenging! Time to make concrete plans for the new school year! 😉

Schoolteachers would also do well to encourage their students to be proficient in both math and reading, as this would mean better opportunities for the children later on in life.

4. We need to assess children to help them prepare for the future.

scholastic readers cup 2015

Personally, as a recently self-declared “,” I am not very fond of assessment tools like tests and exams. I actually don’t give my kids regular quizzes, tests and exams. But after attending the Scholastic Readers Cup this year, I was encouraged to look at tests and exams in a different light — more as a “teaching tool,” rather than a way to see what grades my kids are capable of getting. (I know, I know — my bad for thinking of them as such!)

Assessment is not a bad thing — it helps us parents and teachers determine a child’s certain level in a specific subject, so that we can identify areas that need improvement. Something I need to constantly keep in mind! 🙂

In hindsight, I can say that I am really glad that I was invited to the Scholastic Readers Cup 2015. I learned a lot, and am even more inspired to be my children’s “first and best teacher,” as my friends from The Learning Basket always say! 🙂

Scholastic is the world’s largest publisher and distributor of over 600 original titles every year. The Readers Cup is an event that recognizes the exemplary efforts of educators — from teachers and librarians, to principals and schools. At this year’s Readers Cup, Scholastic also launched its new programs, namely Literacy Pro, Literacy Pro Library, and PR1ME Mathematics.

For more information on Scholastic, and its products and programs, email or contact (02) 944READ (7323). You can find also them online via their website: http://scholastic.asia/en and on Facebook: .

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