I grew up in the community. I remember when I was younger, my parents, who were CFC leaders, would always take me to KFC activities, bringing me along to CFC activities, and even teaching me how to play CFC songs so I could play the guitar for their household. At the age of 15, I joined Youth for Christ along with my younger brother. I became active only in the music ministry of our cluster and only attended activities where I was asked to play guitar. This led me to become so visible to my cluster couple coordinators at the time that they asked me to be the head of our cluster. I did not want to say yes but because out of gratitude on how our coordinators took care of us, I said yes.
Being the cluster head, I experienced so many new things. I never knew how hard the reality of being a YFC leader at that time. There were so many times I wanted to quit, I wanted to tell my ates and kuyas and couple coordinators that I don’t want to be a leader anymore. I wanted to go back to being just a member and get away from all the responsibility. What stopped me was meeting my first mentor, a kuya who was also in the music ministry. He was the one who introduced me to having a prayer time and always reminded me that in the service, it is never about me but the Lord working through me. He inspired me to continue serving as a YFC leader and showed me the beauty and blessing of having ates and kuyas who will be there for me in good and bad times, and show me the way to be like Christ.
Over the years, I embraced and enjoyed being a YFC leader. Meeting different people and experiencing so much with the Lord. When I was a graduating student in college, I decided to join the mission volunteer program of YFC Cebu because of how the missionaries at that time inspired me. My plans at that time were set, graduate college, work for awhile, and then pursue law while still serving in the community.
After passing the mission volunteer program, my FTPW kuya asked me to discern on becoming a fulltime pastoral worker like him. It was something that crossed my mind but I never gave much thought. At the same time, I was hired to work in the company for six months, so I told my kuya that I will spend that six months to discern, he told me to pray where is the Lord leading me.
At that time, my shift started in the afternoon, so I decided every morning to pray at the adoration chapel on the way to work. Every time I prayed there, I sincerely asked the Lord on where does He want me to be and what does He want me to do. And every time I prayed that, the Lord will always remind of the times I was loved, guided, and inspired by my ates and kuyas in YFC. Of how I always saw Christ in them the moments they would talk to me or when they would spend time to share their stories. I was confused, I had a plan for my future and did now know what to do. Out of this turmoil, I asked the Lord what was His message for me, and the Lord answered “Love, as you were loved”. To share the same love of Christ I have experienced from my ates and kuyas to my younger brothers and sisters as a missionary.
Looking back, this might not be the life that I planned to have when I was younger, but I firmly believe that being a missionary right now is the best thing that could have happened to me, because this is where the love of the Lord met me. This decision to be His missionary was never about what I sacrificed, but on all that I gain by following the call of the Lord for me.
