Where I Belong...

To be in Community – Proof of Our Love to God

          We often tell God and other people that we love Him. Yet the Lord is very clear when He said that “Whoever confesses that he loves God yet hates his brother is a liar.” Hence, our love for God should overflow by loving our neighbors. This will be much easier to express when we are in community. He is calling us to prove our love for Him by loving those in the community in spite of many differences. In being a community, we are further called on to serve since this is a fruit of genuine love. Service means working out of perfect love without expecting any affirmation, consolation nor payment in return. It is voluntary and not an obligation. It is not considered a responsibility nor a burden but a blessing and an opportunity for grace to come in. Our community is suppose to increase our love for God even more as it is a special calling to be together in union with Christ. Hence, it is also important that we always come together and pray so that we can become light to those are still in the dark.  J

          Praise God for the gift of communities.  

BREVS FOREVER...FRIENDS FOREVER...

An Anime’s Story

                Kurama... Hiei...Kazuma Kuwabara... Yusuke Urameshi, etc... you familiar with these names?  Okay, how about Dennis, Vincent, Alfred, and Eugene?  Oh well they are the same guys from Yu Yu Hakusho or GHOST FIGHTERS!  Riiigghhht!  Yeah yeah I know...the English version is not at all that 100% wholesome nor its Tagalog version with all the creepy creatures from the underworld and the way they actually slaughter the humans and vice versa.  Eugene is the spirit detective who makes sure the evil ones are kept from harming the human world as instructed by Koenma, the prince of the spirit world.  And so on and on and on... And why am I mentioning it? Oh nothing! Just finished 15 cd’s of the whole season of Ghost fighters compliments of my brother Lookie. Hah!  Yeap with all the gruesome cartoon scenes I was so fascinated watching the anime.  Don't get me wrong.  I’m never a fan of violence and I faint at the sight of too much blood (found that out when I had 3 blood tests in just one occasion).  But what struck me the most is the kind of friendship these guys had.  They were different beings with different talents and started indifferently towards each other.  However, their differences made them into a great team that stick to each other for richer and for poorer, in sickness and in health, ‘til death...do they uhhhh...get stronger! Hehe!

                Actually watching it reminded me of the Brevs.  Not that we fight demons head on, but how real friendship is built in our community despite the many challenges we face.  More so, the greater the hardship, the stronger our bonds become.  Hope you noticed that.  We also have our own differences yet in the Brevs, every uniqueness is appreciated and affirmed making each person to grow even to a better Catholic.  With that kind of bond, we are able to conquer the forces of evil bringing every soul to Christ the King!

THIS IS MY STORY...

Grade school!

                It’s funny that the team’s experiences gave me a rewind of my life as far as grade school.  That time, (well...you don’t have to know when was that specifically) I was one of the most competitive students there is.  I danced when they asked me to dance.  I acted and gave my all in any form of speech competitions.  I managed to get all honor cards for all subjects so that I can present them to my parents and win their attention.  I wanted to be competitive to maintain my image as beauty and brains! I was pretty cute that time...objections?  Hey I was forced to join a beauty pageant in 6^th grade...major major winner!  Okay I’m bragging here...but my point is despite the adorable victories I had, I was a failure.  I failed having true friends.  I jumped from one group to another.  I longed to have a best friend yet nobody wanted me.  I became a pleaser addict.  I tried to be good to everybody but then...they always left me after half the school year’s over.  The longest time I was able to keep my friends was when I was in 6^th grade thanks to our guidance counsellor who created a group called Project Well Spring (cool nerds).  I guess popularity was not at all rewarding.

High school!

                My high school life was the opposite.  Since I was attending an all-girls school, I thought I would somehow have a permanent group.  So what I did?  I did not join extracurricular activities.  I concentrated on studying and hanging out with studious people.  I still had the spark of competitiveness as I tried my best to cope up being an outstanding student.  Oh yes!  I was able to keep my friends longer this time.  How?  We were classmates until junior high. Ha! Ha!  However, I was really different from them.  Aside from studies, while they talked about boys and fashion, I kept talking about Disney and Don Bluth cartoons and even singing their theme songs during break time.  So they didn’t want me around for quite a while.  Guess they got tired of listening to me as I usually go flat on the notes!   I also met my first real best friend who I loved so much that I gave her anything she wanted that was mine –from food to wardrobe to whatever!  Maybe if I had a boyfriend I could have given it to her too.  It was as if buying her friendship.  (That, my friends, is very dangerous.  We will talk about that on our next chat).  Where is she now?  I don't know.  I never saw her again when she graduated.  I miss her though. J

                  My Senior year was different.  I met our formator, Bro. Alex and became part of the youth ministry of a Charismatic community where he was then a consecrated brother.  That time, I longed for real friendship.  A friendship that is Christ-centered.  So I became a weirdo in school...avoiding worldly friends and always looking within...praying and fasting...I concentrated on being friends with the Lord.  You should have seen me!  I was...uhmm...alone!

College!

                First two years in college, I was picky (no wonder I never had a bf those days) and was very choosy with friends.  I usually hang-out with my fellow youth ministry members.  Otherwise, you would see me...again, alone.  I was just too spiritual.  Is that a good thing?  Maybe so...it helped me establish a firmer relationship with the Lord.  But I suppose everything was just a preparation for the greatest surprise of all times – the BREVS!

BREV ERA!

                On my 3^rd year in college, Lookie, Cardo, KuJo and I were reunited with bro. A!  Thus, the Brevs era!  Together with Grace, Shobe, the rest of the KC, Rodge, Buttercup and the Rivers of Living Water, a new friendship began.  It felt like family.  No qualms of revealing our true selves.  Coming together, serving during the mass and singing were so effortless.  We were enjoying each other’s company and experiencing a joy that heals.  I say “heals” because all of us were actually broken in so many ways.  But that brokenness did not hinder us from getting to know each other, accepting each one’s weaknesses, and loving like brothers and sisters.  Those times, I felt I belonged.  I was affirmed.  I didn’t have to be conscious on how I looked, the way I dressed, and I was free to share who I was.

Present Day...still part of Brev Era

                Ok those people I’ve specifically mentioned above?  Where are they anyway?  Hey!  We are still together.  We are the dream team!  Ghost fight...err...Brev Shepherds as you know.  We are still the same old (I mean not so old) broken people who came together, evolved and became Brevs.  Through the years, we had a lot of ups and downs.  We had fought with all our powers and abilities.  You could have witnessed our disappearing acts!  We’re all good at it.  Our clashes and battles with the outside world cannot be compared with the battles we had in the circle.  But we are still here!  That’s the miracle of friendship not built by human hands but by the love of God.  Truly friends are friends forever if the Lord’s the lord of them as the song goes.  Our common weakness?  We can’t live without each other...success is not complete if somebody is missing.  Our differences gels us in harmony.  We complement each other.  That’s why I’m proud that I have been gifted the greatest friends who are so important in achieving our dreams as a community.  We have great dreams and seemingly impossible goals but I believe we can do it because we have a dream team in our midst. 

The Dream Team...

                First, our master, Bro. A! who is the head and our mentor.  Most of the creative ideas come from him.  He is anointed in bringing together and teaching young people (like us).  He is a genius and an artist so be careful with his mood swings.  We have Rodge, the look-alike of John Lloyd, whose expertise is technology.  A heartthrob in looks and in deed.  Typically stands his grounds...can’t convince him that easy.  Lookie, my brother, is the accountant.  He is a Bo Sanchez-Michael V in the making.  Started as a very young preacher...funny but very strict.  Buttercup, my adopted bro, gets the job done in a jiffy.  He delivers even if he looks like joking around most of the time.  His weakness?  My brother!  (joke!)  His other weakness is Cardo.  Cardo is our superior I.Q. guy but always maintains his cool and poise so nobody notices when he makes a mistake(shh...don’t tell him I told you) but he is honest to admit it anyway.  Got super talents in music too but prefers to travel around the world and be our ambassador.  You want an honest opinion?  He would give it to you even if it hurts.  Actually, these three have their own superhero team...it’s just that they can’t be considered superheroes unless they exist in the Brevs.

                Now the girls team.  We have our  PR manager, gorgeous Grace.  She is the voice of the Brevs.  And she can put on high notes to those people who are not giving their best for God.  We have our very talented  persevering gentle Shobe.  She is beautiful inside and out but you can’t go near her easily as you will find yourself frozen while she enchants you with her music and charm.  Her downfall?  She thinks she is a failure...duh??!!  And finally, me.  I get to do the boring job.  I keep the money but not allowed to spend it.  I do the reading and the listening.  They talk a lot and then I do the writing.  I’m their cry baby...too emotional that they have to either pamper or make “batok” most of the time.

                Even then, we love each other and respect each other.  We are protective of each other and forgive each other.  Yeap!  I’m surrounded with the best people in the world.  They can do what I can’t yet they want me around.  That’s why I consider them not just friends but my spiritual family along with the rest of the Brevs. 

A Spiritual Family

                According to Robert Kiyosaki in his book, Rich Brother Rich Sister, “Family number two is our spiritual family, the family that draws us with its call, the promise of acceptance, true understanding, and happiness.  It is a community in which we know the power of unconditional love and find that which we know, in our hearts, is missing from our life.  Our spiritual family is our true home, an environment where we can live the life we are born to live and gain the perspective and ability to accept and appreciate other thoughts and points of view.”

                Henceforth, for all the Brevs, start living the Brev life; keep loving and building that special bond of friendship while enjoying the road to holiness.  And for those who are still seeking their spiritual family, hope you find it in our community.

                "I shall not call you servants any more, because servants do not know what their master is about. Instead I have called you friends, since I have made known to you everything I learned from my Father."

- John 15,15

               

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Brevs on Its 11th Year

The Brevs are indeed growing up. As the days go by, more and more Brevs are being sent away to spread the Good News to the world. However, a new breed would always spring up and take over the temporary duties left by a Brev-on-Mission. Let us not be disheartened if we do not see those people whom we were with the past years. Everything has a purpose, so to speak. What we have now is God’s will for us. No matter where we are, once a Brev always a Brev…for we are a chosen race. We move on…we cannot delay what God has planned for us even before our community was formed; or even before we were born. It is not merely the people we are working with that will make any mission we have a success. We, as individuals, will always make mistakes no matter how talented we are. We are but humans – sinful and weak. We cannot perfect our individuality…we simply rely on God’s grace for us to strive to be like Him. Nonetheless, we can always try to perfect our commitment with God.

Our commitment to serve and love God in the best way we can is success in its genuine form. We do not rely on our fellow brevs to do good always; otherwise, we will just end up disappointed. What we should be concerned of is if WE are personally living out our motto: “Nothin’ but the Best for God!” How are we contributing to its general success? Besides, it is primarily because we love God that is why we are here. Our goal as a community would just be secondary to this. It will always be how we responded to the Call of Love that matters most of all. Everything else will follow for once we say our “YES,” God will give us the necessary graces that we need to accomplish the things He has entrusted to us. Our focus is how to please and serve God and not on how the others would either inspire or affect us before we are motivated to move.

Commitment is a sacrifice. We sacrifice our own will, set aside our emotional disposition, denying ourselves from our selfish desires, and getting over our secular foundation for the greater good. Though we are in an age where convenience is easily provided, let us not be afraid to experience difficulties and sufferings. More so, we must even value it. It is in overcoming our daily struggles for the love of God will our hearts be judged. It is all part of the package called Perfect Joy.

On our eleventh year, we are still beginning...a start of a new era! There are so much more to expect as Jesus is full of surprises. Let us always be open to what the Lord is giving us. Weak as we are, we are BUT A CHOSEN RACE. We have to accept that with all humility – that we have been entrusted a special mission in this generation and that our simple ways will make a great difference in this world. Hence, we have no choice but to persevere. Why? Simply because God loved us first! How can we ever refuse such a great love? “You did not choose me. I chose you...” Never say “I am tired” or “I give up” when serving for our labours when done for God’s glory will never be in vain. Do not say “I am unworthy” since nobody is worthy enough. We are in a spiritual warfare and the enemy will never stop attacking us. We have to be on our guard. Pray unceasingly as St. Paul would put it. The enemy persistently lures us to be lukewarm or to turn our backs to what we have been called to do. Remember, whenever these occur, it only means the Lord has something great in store for you.

Therefore, fellow Brevs, be happy! Receive God’s grace. Always remember [M.O.B] – Make good or make room but don’t make excuses. BREV IT UP! 8tch8!

know more about the brevs: http://damulag.yolasite.com
www.breviarians.org

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