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