Ako Na'ng May Galaxy : )

Actually, ayoko na sanang isulat to'ng blog na to baka kasi sabihin ng iba nagyayabang lang ako; and besides, tinotoo naman ni God yung promise Niya na bibigyan Niya ako ng Samsung Galaxy Tab.

But I decided to write this still, for some few reasons: Number one, this is a testimony that good things come to those who wait in the Lord's timing, and number two, I want to write this blog as my way of thanking the person that God used to make His promise a reality---my ever-loving sister, ate Daisy.

The first time that I ever laid my hands on a Samsung Galaxy Tab was back in the early part of January 2011. I've been hearing about it in the 2010 year-end news that it will be one of the gadgets that's worth buying. Anyway, I won't go into so much detail since this is not a sponsored blog and Samsung will not pay me for this. What I can only say though, is that this gadget fits my professional needs perfectly.

And that's when I started to ask God to give me a Galaxy Tab. Back then, ako ang nag-set ng time frame. Sabi ko kay Lord, "No later than first week of March". Ang tapang ko diba? Parang ako ang masusunod.

Eh, kasi naman, that time I was applying for a credit card and I was very positive that my application will be approved in time para mabili ko yung Tab. During that time, Samsung Tab cost PhP32,000.00 and I was more than willing to spend that much.

Ending, walang application na na-process (sa hindi ko maipaliwanag na dahilan, hindi mahanap ng Credit Card company ang application form ko)therefore, walang Galaxy na nabili on the first week of March, at sa mga sumunod pang weeks.

So I said to myself: it wasn't for me...

I went back to living a normal life, or rather I woke up from my day dreaming. Kalimutan na ang Tab, sabi nga: may binabagayan yan.

Until one day, nag-text si Popol sakin, at mas excited pa siya dahil from 32k, binaba ng Samsung ang presyo ng tablet nila to 22K (wifi ready with sim) and 17k (wifi only). Sabi ko, yung 17k kaya ko na yon. kaya one Friday night, kasama ko'ng nagwi-window shopping si lolo Randy at napatunayan ko'ng totoo nga ang sinasabi ni Popol na nagbagsak presyo talaga ang Samsung.

Sabi sa announcement, yung selling price na 17k at 22k will be good until April 17 lang. Kaya ang una kong ginawa pag-uwi ko is nag e-mail ako sa ate Daisy ko sa US para magpa-sponsor ng $200.00. Yung kulang ako na sasagot.

Now, para sa ika-aalam ng lahat, mahirap ang buhay sa US and $200 can surely go a long way. Pero ang ate ko, she's so generous. Hindi bale nang walang matira sa kaniya basta nai-provide nya ang hinihingi ng mga tao sa paligid niya (OMG.. naiiyak ako T_T); Positive ang reply nya sa akin and she promised to give me that $200 na hiningi ko sa kaniya.

In my heart, alam ko na this is the time para bigyan ako ni Lord ng gift na since January ko pa hinihingi sa Kaniya. Pero on the day na bibilhin ko na yung tablet, nag-chat kami ng ate ko and my heart was so broken kasi she was so sad (or maybe even depressed).

Kasi naman, sa kabila ng pagiging generous and selfless niya, meron siyang mga pasaway na anak at siyempre, mga umaasang kapatid (including me, dahil sa tablet). Ang malungkot kasi, ang alam lang namin is manghingi pero ni hindi man lang sumagi sa isip namin yung mga naging sakripisyo ni ate para maibigay yung mga hinihingi namin.

In my desire to sympathize with her, hindi ko na ipinasok sa usapan yung $200 na hinihingi ko. Again, sinabi ko: it's not for me talaga, todo na to.. Pero bago matapos yung chat namin, binanggit niya na naghulog na siya ng $200 at sa liit ng conversion rate, instead of 8K, 9K ang binigay niya sa akin. Mixed emotion ako siyempre. Hindi ko alam kung kukunin ko ba yung 9K or wag na lang. Ending, kinuha ko pa rin (kapalan na lang ng mukha).

Sa totoo lang, I know how it feels na may mga tao'ng bigla na lang hihingi sa iyo ng tulong na para bang iniisip nila na isa kang diyos na naghihintay lang ng kanilang mga panalangin. Yun bang ang tingin nila sa'yo eh porque malaki ang sweldo mo eh wala ka nang karapatang mag-budget para sa mga needs mo dahil hihingi sila at kailangang mapunan muna yung mga needs nila.

Anyway, hindi ako si Bitter Ocampo, so enough of my grievances. To make the long story short, binili ko yung tablet last April 16. And take note, hindi yung tigsi-17K ang binigay sakin ni Lord, kundi yung tigti-22K.

Sobrang saya ko. Kasi naman, by the grace of God, nabili ko siya na hindi gumagamit ng credit card. In your face, CAO Isf na ginawa nang bisyo na iwala ang application form ko (kasi as of the writing of this blog, yung second application ko ay wala pa ring update kong in process na)--I don't need your plastic cash.

Imagine, kung na-aaprove ako sa credit card application ko, makakabili nga ako ng Samsung Tab pero may utang naman ako for one year. This is what I mean by "good things come to those who wait in God's timing". Kasi may Samsung Tab ako at wala akong hinuhulugan ng isang taon--at hindi siya P32k.

Again, IN YOUR FACE, CAO ISF!

As my way of showing gratitude naman to my ate Daisy, I'll help lessen her worries by ensuring that her children will know the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior; and guide them in their journey as youths. At syempre, I'll also help her sa kaniyang mga sponsored blogs; dagdag income din yun sa kaniya.

So that's it. God is faithful. He fulfills His promises.

Ang prayer ko: Lord, make me just like you---hindi ulyanin.


mwah!

Summer Rain

Whoah.. I just realized that I haven't blogged in a long time and it's already past my March due date! This one's quite long but if you read a little further, I'll let you in on one of my secrets... :)

I'm right now here in Silang, Cavite (Philippines), writing this blog while the rest prepares for the outing. Thanks to my niece, Samantha Ame, who graduated first honor of their class, we're having this family bonding today. Yey!

But-- of all the days, why is it just raining outside? Isn't this supposed to be summer time? Heck-- this isn't going to stop us from going to Indang.. haha..

And speaking of rain.. March has been a month of blessings for me: Showers of Blessing! This is what I meant by summer rain. Allow me to count them all...



*** As of the writing of this blog, it's been 2 years and 9 months that I've been working in HSBC, and I can truly say that GOD found that job for me. You see, when I left my work as a full time high school teacher and decided to shift into the world of customer service my greatest fear is not the humiliation of getting a so-called "demotion", but to actually land a job that would require me to work on a Sunday.

But who would've thought that I'd be working for a department that only works five days a week--Saturdays and Sundays off. After about a year and a half, though, that department shut down and I had to transfer to another department, hence the fear returned. But then again, GOD IS SO GOOD. When I told my boss that I am a Christian worker and that I need to have a Sunday off, he assigned me to a team that, again, works from Mondays to Fridays; and the best part is this: that team remained the Number 1 Team, by God's grace, from May 2010 (the same month I joined the team) to December 2010, which means we get to choose our preferred work schedule. So the rest is history.

*** By the end of 2010, I had to be separated from my team---the Number ONE Team. The management says its one way for us to grow professionally, and that is by being able to work our way to the top, given a new set of team mates.

Honestly, the thought of leaving my team haunted me because if I ever become a part of a statistically-challenged team, my Sunday off will be in so much trouble. It haunted me so much that I even sent a letter to the Senior Vice President of our company, who then relayed my concern to our AVP and VP. By the time my concern was addressed, though, I've already been working with my new team for about a week and I have already met my new boss.

The good thing is: I liked my new team (this team used to take 2nd place-after my team), and I liked my new boss (just as I liked my previous boss). When our AVP and VP heard this, they were the happiest persons in the world, and they let me vent out all my frustrations without even trying to rebut. Their take on my case was one of the humbling experiences I've had in HSBC. They're the bosses, and yet they listened to me.

Humbled as I was, however, the idea of loosing my Sunday off never left me one bit. by the time I joined my new team, I still have a Saturday and Sunday off (January 2011). But in the next few months, the team standing will be updated. The question is: will this new team perform like it did before? Will I still get that most coveted Saturday and Sunday off?

*** In March 2011, my new boss sent us an e-mail with the subject: "Unofficial Team Standing". What I did first, when I opened the e-mail, was to look for the lowest scoring teams -- and I didn't find our team there. Of course, I won't because our team ranked NUMBER 1. This team that used to be second place when I was in my previous team is now the top ranking team. I was happy, but because it says "unofficial" my prayer was "Lord, make it real!".

In the next few days, what was then "unofficial" finally became "official". WE ARE NUMBER ONE! We get to keep our Saturday and Sunday off -- again.

Every day, after work, I always make it a habit to stop over our church first, before finally heading home -- it's one of my ways to rest in the Lord. I was so happy that I kept telling my church mates that I am a very blessed Christian. God is just so good to me.

*** Remember my February Finale blog? That was the time when I learned to let go of my bitterness. And as a reward, GOD put into my boss' heart the idea that I should get a bonus, not one, not two, but THREE YEARS IN A ROW! HSBC calls it Deferred Cash Incentive (DCI), in which every February (starting 2012) providing that I maintain a satisfactory performance, I will be awarded a five-digit.00 bonus on top of my usual bonus for the next three years. Imagine that! Again, I get to call myself again a very blessed Christian.

Ok, I promised I'll let you know my secret. And the secret is this:




That's Talent, Time, and Treasure. If surrendering your treasure, time, and talent to Jesus is no more a "will issue", but has developed into a habit, God in return finds pleasure in giving you, not just your "needs", but your "wants" as well. Once you learned to love what God loves, you'd be surprised that He'll give you so much blessings, that it actually goes beyond measure.

Let me end this blog with these words:THE LORD, JESUS CHRIST IS GIVING ME A SAMSUNG GALAXY TABLET PC NEXT SUNDAY...



... No, I mean: Young Professionals, see you in our fellowship next Sunday...

...Or better: Young Professionals, see you in our fellowship next Sunday, and I'll just grab my SAMSUNG Galaxy TABLET before the program starts : )

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"Delight thyself also in the Lord and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart.."--- Psalm 37:4