Love is in the Air

It is almost Valentine's Day. Others have sworn it off as a petty commercial holiday. But out of the context of aisles and aisles of Hallmark cards and thousands of pounds of those cute little Sweetheart candies, I decided to take this opportunity to reflect on the force behind the holiday: LOVE.

Also, enjoy my current playlist, "Kilig," a tribute to songs that I consider as classic Tagalog love songs! :)

Taste and See

"Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him." (Psalm 34:8)

Today, we LITERALLY were able to taste and see the goodness of God! My email to the Dream Team Wedding Machine:

Hi, Dream Team!

Adrian & Belle and Edison & I just came back from our tasting appointment at the Crowne Plaza. It was a very pleasant experience!

First of all, we give them credit because they originally told us that they couldn’t book any tasting appointment until February. However, after I let them know that we have a January 31st deadline from our stationer for the final drafts of the invitation and response cards (entrée choices needed), the Director of Catering happily accommodated us.

When we got to the hotel, she directed us to their restaurant where the Executive Chef came out to meet us and let us know their objective: to give us the peace of mind that what we will see (and taste) at today’s appointment is what we will get at the wedding reception.

Back in October, we were down to two reception site choices, and we prayed for the Lord’s guidance to make it a clear choice for us. And when that prayer was granted, when the choice was too obvious to ignore, we stood in awe and praise – marveling at God’s work of wonder. And today… we couldn’t help but thank the Lord once again for another glorious manifestation of His love! The presentation… the food… the details… the staff… everything was the way we envisioned – the perfect combination of class and comfort… of coziness and elegance… Halatang may kagagawan si Lord! :)

So I want to take a moment to thank you all for your continued support and prayers throughout the planning. Today, more than ever, I couldn’t agree more with the saying:

In everything you do, put God first… and He will direct you and crown your efforts with success.

With His Love,
Audrey: DTWM, Inc. :)

Wedding of the Year

At the strike of twelve midnight on New Year's Eve, I knew we had to get on with our planning for Belle and Adrian's wedding - full steam ahead... So after the Christmas and New Year's hustle and bustle dust has settled, it has definitely been just about the wedding!

I thank God for the support that we get from friends and family - the Dream Team Wedding Machine, Inc. (DTWM, Inc.) - we call ourselves! (Heehee) This is definitely a team project, a family affair.


I breathe in... I breathe out...


Gotta send those emails out...


I wake up... I sleep tight...


Gotta coordinate these meetings and those appointments...


I eat... I drink...


Gotta update the Daily Status Report (DSR) and spreadsheets...


And all throughout the day, with each task and with every heartbeat - for love of my sister and her future husband - I pray to the Lord:


A beautiful wedding

A wonderful marriage

A lifetime of love and holiness

All for God's glory!

Life is But a Dream

My spiritual journey has gotten me in touch with my soul, my spirit that will continue to live long after my time on earth has passed. May I always be reminded of that fact, so I can live the best life I could possibly live, to glorify my Creator, my Lord and Savior!

Great Reminders:

Man is like to vanity, his days are as a shadow that passeth away. (Psalm 144:4)

Life is a temporary assignment... To make the best use of your life, you must never forget two truths: First, compared with eternity, life is extremely brief. Second, earth is only a temporary residence... Christians should carry spiritual green cards to remind us that our citizenship is in heaven. (Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Life)

I expect to pass through this world but once. Any good, therefore, that I can do or any kindness I can show to any fellow creature, let me do it now. Let me not defer or neglect it for I shall not pass this way again. (Stephen Grellet)

The Dash by Linda Ellis

Mission to Inspire

"The Mass is over. Your mission begins."

That was about two decades ago when I heard a priest proclaim this invitation to the congregation. Thus, the beginning of my life-long journey to discover the Creator's grand purpose for my being.

In 1995, I shared a collective mission with the World Youth Day participants: "To bring the message to everyone in a voice loud and clear: Tell the world of His love."

Ten years later, I was blessed by Rick Warren's "The Purpose Driven Life." Reading and reflecting on the questions at the end of each chapter allowed me to focus in and draft my life statement.

At the close of this year, I praise and thank the Lord for bringing me another step closer to discovering my path. When He delivered me to His Course on Faith, my MISSION TO INSPIRE was unfolded:

Born to love and serve the Lord,
I take delight in proclaiming His Word
And being a fountain of joy
To those around me.

This is just the beginning...

A New Beginning

Good Morning!

I am so excited to start anew with my new blog. It's time to leave my old one behind:
http://aukelei.blogs.friendster.com/aukelei/

I hadn't really been consistent with blogging on that one. But thanks to my good friend, Anto, who has inspired me to break free from all my reservations to blog. Up until recently, I thought my thoughts are supposed to be reserved for my journals ALONE. But there is something liberating about blogging... it gives me a sense of community. I don't know if people will ever read my blogs, but maybe if they do ever get to it, they might pick a thing or two up that could be relevant to what they are going through.

So this is my quiet time with GOD - reflecting, blogging - and if somebody gets blessed by it, then that is just a sweet miracle of GOD's glory!