it was Friday the 13th of March. i never believed in the bad luck it ever brings people. i just know now that i'd always remember that date.. or at least the experience..
as a youth worker, one of my assignments was to hold the monetary budget for CYA activities. i was given Php 10,000 initially. i was instructed that as soon as the money was almost exhausted, i would immediately request for additional budget. A few days came after the handing over of the budget, the money in my hands went down to just Php 7, 768 because we had lots of activities that needed money. Then came Mar 13.. we had a planned prayer meeting at ADDU, and i used part of the budget to buy food and drinks for the participants of the prayer meeting. i really enjoyed the activity, it really felt good praising and worshiping the Lord like nothing else mattered.. ;) i was especially struck with the encouragement given to us by ate Maila, a CYA alumni.. she told us that God should not be shut in a box, because His great love for us will still flow abundantly from that box and will tirelessly stream towards us... Yes, you are right, God is generous.
Later on, after the activity.. kuya Glenn, ate Maila, Gerard and i rode a taxi going to D'Leonor to attend the Emmaus basic course.. looking for money to pay the taxi fare, i reached out for my small money bag containing the CYA fund (since that was also a CYA-related taxi ride).. i realized that the money bag was not in my satchel! So i told myself to calm down and pay the taxi fare using the CYA petty cash first,.. as i paid the driver, ate Maila handed over an additional Php 20 as a gift to the driver.. God is really generous! ;)
Now for the real thing, where on Earth could that money bag, containing 6000+ amount of money, has been? i searched for it in my satchel, it was not there.. i looked for it in my ecobag - negative! Gosh! There is no doubt, it could only be in C303 where we held the prayer meeting! i tried to calm down again. For sure, this foolishness of mine has a purpose that only God knows.. i tried to borrow kuya Glenn's phone to call Hazel, she with her classmates were the last people i saw using the room, they could find the money bag and keep it until i could recover it from them! Unfortunately, she does not answer her phone. i thought of going back, but "no", i said, "i would not want to be late for the Emmaus basic course for that 6000+ money." i prayed to God, "Lord, please let somebody responsible find it and return it to me or to any CYAer (since a receipt there was addressed as CYA Davao)." i again prayed, "Lord, if the person really needs the money, let him/her keep it, just let him/her give me back the receipts needed for the liquidation report." i already thought of ways on how to replace the money.. maybe i could use some money i've saved... maybe i could request for a salary cash advance... i really was praying that no matter what happens, i would be making the right decisions from now on... (gosh! Holy Spirit, help me...) i tried to focus on the talks given.. in fairness, it helped keep my mind out of the money problem... yeah, i realized, God is bigger than all the money in the world combined! ;) in a way, i experienced more calmness than fear throughout the entire night of the activity.. Perhaps this was a message that i could still recover all that i have left, or maybe this was a message that God would be with me in this little spice in my life...
after the Emmaus activity, i immediately went to ADDU in the hope of finding the moneybag. i reached Roxas gate and explained to Mr. Security Guard my situation.. he told me to wait as he would call and ask by phone other guards on duty.. Holding the phone into his left ear, he asked me how much money was in the bag.. i answered, "About 6000+, but before it was 7000+.. i am not sure of my estimation..."
"What color was the bag?"
"Blue with flower patterns.."
"What else was in the bag?"
"Receipts with 'CYA Davao' written on them"
"What else was in there?"
"A pencil, an eraser..."
i was growing with excitement because it felt like they were just confirming me of my ownership of the bag.. ;)
i blurted further details of what was in the bag, until Mr. Security Guard told me to get 'it' in the Jacinto gate... i then thanked him tirelessly.. i hurried to the gate and i almost felt like i was tripping.. after seeing and recovering the bag, i thanked with almost teary eyes the guards stationed at Jacinto gate ... i was jumpy by then and because of the joy it brought me, i gave two CYA Newsletters to Mr. Security Guard.. i realized that God was so generous, i lost the CYA budget only to find it in the hands of honest security guards!
Insights:
1. Perhaps my bag really looked shabby that no one ever got interested with it. Maybe it just camouflaged with where i left it that no one really noticed unless the room was inspected... just like in a soup.. no one really notices the salt that is in there but it is actually very essential in bringing taste to the soup. Let us be like salts, not seeking attention, only faithfully doing their duty..
2. God gives abundantly. i realized i should stop becoming a vessel and start being a channel of God's love and blessing -free flowing through me, never blocking anything from others and not keeping anything for myself.. after all, God is more than enough..
3. i claimed that i would never worry about money in my whole life - not because i am planning to get rich, but because it is never really a problem... God is bigger than any man-made idea, like money... so why should it be a problem? ;)
4. God loves me so much that it is impossible for me to deny this love... i have to shout it from my heart to other's hearts!
Riding the jeepney home, i realized i had a long day... i am coming home tired, but i was full and joyful, because i had a long day experiencing God's love... So my prayer is that may all of us have another long day tomorrow with Jesus!
God loves you!
P.S. i thought only 6000+ was left in the bag, it was actually still 7000+ :)
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