Pray For The Suffering Philippines

A super typhoon Pepeng (Parma) hits the Philippines in 24 hours. It is packing maximum sustained winds of 195 kph (121 mph) with gusty winds of up to 230 kph (143 mph) and moving west northwest at 24 kph (15 mph). We are still struggling to recover from the aftermath of a deluge and a threat of another calamity is again hovering upon us. Let us pray together as one nation and one people that God spare us from further destruction.

To the visitors of this blog, please say a prayer for our country wherever you are --- Filipinos or citizens of the world. Our country is in destruction. We lack resources. We are in misery and we are at the total mercy of God and from people of goodwill around the world.

Include us in your prayers and may the good Lord bless you all in return!-30-

ORATIO IMPERATA
for
Deliverance of Calamities

Almighty Father, we raise our hearts to You in gratitude for the wonders of creation of which we are part, for Your providence in sustaining us in our needs, and for Your wisdom that guides the course of the universe.
We acknowledge our sins against You and the rest of creation.
We have not been good stewards of Nature.
We have confused Your command to subdue the earth.
The environment is made to suffer our wrongdoing, and now we reap the harvest of our abuse and indifference.
Global warming is upon us. Typhoons, floods, volcanic eruption, and other natural calamities occur in increasing number and intensity.
We turn to You, our loving Father, and beg forgiveness for our sins.
We ask that we, our loved ones and our hard earned possessions be spared from the threat of calamities, natural and man-made.
We beseech You to inspire us all to grow into responsible stewards of Your creation, and generous neighbors to those in need.
Amen.

Christine Reyes In A Change Of Heart: "Material Things Are Nothing, Have No Value"

Times are difficult. The country suffers destruction. We are helpless. We need help from the global community to start anew and rebuild our lives and communities from the ravages of a deluge.

Why did God allow this suffering to a people already agonizing in poverty, neglect, marginalization and debasement?

For sure, God has a message to the Filipino people embedded in Ondoy’s (Ketsana’s) great flood of 2009. Where did the water come from and why the inundation happen so fast? Is a six-hour non-stop heavy downpour done before? If yes, was there a flood? Why did the meteorologists fail to accurately give a forecast? I am incompetent in responding these scientific questions but as a man of faith I can simply say “God has a message to us.”

“In the eyes of God the earth was corrupt and full of lawlessness. When God saw how corrupt the earth had become, since all mortals led depraved lives on earth, he said to Noah: "I have decided to put an end to all mortals on earth; the earth is full of lawlessness because of them. So I will destroy them and all life on earth.” (Gen. 6:11-13)

God destroyed all life on earth except the chosen ones in Noah’s Ark because of corruption and lawlessness.

Two chapters later Moses wrote “When the Lord smelled the sweet odor, he said to himself: "Never again will I doom the earth because of man, . . . nor will I ever again strike down all living beings, as I have done.” (Gen.8:21)

We see the heart-rending devastation in wonder and fear. In effect, we realize our helplessness; reminded of our mortality and what properties and possessions are for.

We need God in our lives for without Him, we can do nothing. (John. 15:5) Sadly, how many of us live as if we do not need God anymore or as if God no longer exists?

The tri-media carry a lot of stories from victims claiming that prayers made them strong and determined to survive while others are thankful that despite losing everything such as house, clothing, appliances and other material possessions, they are alive and hopefully became closer to God and fellow humans.

Among these stories, I find Christine Reyes’ (a showbiz personality) words as very inspiring when she said:

“The experience was an eye-opener. I realized that material things are nothing; they have no value. You can lose them and replace them. Life is more precious. Once lost, wala na, hindi na maibabalik (it’s gone forever.) I used to be secretive and sensitive. After that nightmare on Sept. 26, my outlook in life has changed. I look at life differently now. Life is short, every moment is precious. Enjoy it to the fullest with your loved ones because you can never tell kung kelan ka mawawala (when your time is up)."

I hope that politicians and even ordinary mortals heard that.

To be rich, let me say, is not a sin if the wealth is earned justly and honestly. It is a reward to one’s hard work. Accumulated possessions produced otherwise, if we believe the wisdom of the old, lead us to the smooth path of damnation. Individuals who have unexplained wealth use their richness for all kinds of vice or crime. Some use it to rape or to deny the human dignity of a less fortunate fellow human being.

Life, the greatest gift of God is not only precious but sacred yet, how many times we read or hear stories which account the destruction of life through crime, abortion, euthanasia, illegal drugs, tobacco and alcohol?

Christine was remarkable when she said that “material things are nothing; they have no value.” From the human point of view, she is impractical but the truth in her words are in-between the lines and she means that “material things are not the panacea of life". They cannot guarantee one’s immunity from calamities or disease, happiness or satisfaction and yes, nothing can be brought to the next life that guarantees salvation. Christ warns “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?" (Mark 8:36) "For what is a man advantaged, if he gains the whole world, and loses himself, or be cast away?" (Luke 9:25)

When she said “enjoy it (life) to the fullest”, I believe that she did not contextually or totally mean mundane but a conscientious life lived to the fullest under the watchful eye of the Omnipotent. While at the rooftop waiting for a rescue, she was praying together with her pamankin (niece/nephew) and indeed the prayers were answered when they were brought to safety. Let no one underestimate the power of prayer!

If there is something spiritually enriching we learned from this disaster, it is an awareness that God is so powerful and we need Him. Life, precious and finite is in the hands of God. Wealth or possessions no matter how great or small can be lost very quickly.

The "rainbow" reminds us that God will never again strike all living beings but this should not be a reason for this country to remain corrupt and apathetic and for us to continue neglecting human dignity.-30-