Breath of Fresh Air

Last weekend’s campout at Dos Picos truly felt like a breath of fresh air. It gave us a much-needed break from our routines and, even more, helped us sense God’s healing presence—both as individuals and as a community. I want to thank Family Ministries for organizing and leading this special experience. Thank you to Richmond and Aimee Flores, James and Ember Tibudan, and everyone who helped with planning or tasks. I also want to give special thanks to Dr. Geoffrey and Mags Tio, our guest speakers. Their talk on Inverted Kintsugi helped us see how recognizing our own brokenness is the first step to receiving God’s restoration.

Many people shared positive feedback about the presentation and asked if we could offer it again for more of our church family. I feel the same way, so I’ve started talking with our guest speaker about planning another Inverted Kintsugi weekend at our church soon.

On Monday morning, before we packed up, I shared a final thought with the remaining campers—our own “Gideon and his 300.” I reflected on the Apostle Paul’s conversion in Acts 9 and how I can relate to his brokenness before he met Jesus. Paul had studied under the respected rabbi Gamaliel and followed the law closely, but on his way to Damascus, Jesus stopped him and showed him that he was chasing after something man-made rather than God.

God set three clear steps in motion to start Paul’s healing: he fell to the ground (v. 4), lost his sight for a time (v. 9), and was led to safety by his companions (v. 8). Through all of this, Jesus called Paul to accept his true purpose in God’s plan to redeem humanity. This was the beginning of Paul’s own restoration, which later inspired him to invite others to find salvation as well.

Finding healing through Jesus really is a breath of fresh air.

-Pastor Limuel Liwanag