Meet the Monk

I remember the first time I saw monks way back 2006 in Bahrain airport. I don't know why I am afraid to them, maybe because I was just shocked because that's my first time to see people who dressed like them and they seemed so serious and doesn't know how to smile.

Out of curiosity during our tour at Tooth Relic in Kandy, Sri Lanka I was one of the four campers who entered the temple. I asked first one of the campers if its possible to take photo with a monk. She told me we should ask permission first since like any other not all monks are friendly and will give way.

As form of respect, you can see some signs that selfie is not allowed inside and your back should not in front of their statues when taking pictures. And when they caught you to disobey the protocol, oh my immediately they will get your camera or phone, check it and if found selfie photos taken inside, they will immediately ask you to delete. When you are visiting anywhere, whether its a religious complex or anywhere, the key word should be obey and respect.

Its quiet inside the temple and though I really want to take a photo with the monk, I was hesitant to do so. I'm thinking - maybe its not allowed also since we're inside or what if they will reject us. So after roaming inside the temple, we go out as usual. But behind my mind I really need to have at least one shot of photo with a monk, since I may not have an opportunity to have one.

Good thing I have the boys - I don't know exactly who approached the monk. The next thing I know is Nan is asking me to stand beside the monk and taking picture.

I want to ask questions to him but obviously (flower on his hands) he needs to go inside the temple. So I just asked the help of Wikipedia to answer the questions on my mind :) The traditional Buddhist wear robes. The robe is generally called civara. Antarvasa is the inner robe covering the lower body while for the upper body its uttarasanga. Other items that may have been worn are: the kushalaka - the waist cloth and the samakaksika, the buckled belt. 

Guys if visiting temple is part of your tour, my advise for you is not to wear loud color shirt or dress. Believe me cos the guy next to me experienced it already, right William? Isn't William and the monk has some resemblance? Just thinking bagay siguro yung robe kay William hehehe.

And see those policemen in the background, they are not just standing for nothing they really working and their eyes are rolling to all tourists. Guys be an law abiding tourists. Respect and obey their policies or else in the end you'll be in trouble like what our fellow tourist experienced.

Thanks to our tour guide Mr. Brandy for talking to these not ordinary policemen cos according to Janix they have stars on their uniform or else maybe William will sleep on the cell :)

Who I am - A Call to Grow Beyond

If someone asks you "Who are you?" what will be your answer.

That's the first question we encountered on the Grow Beyond Family Camp Sri Lanka 2017. The question sound so easy to answer. 

Here's the exact answer I wrote on my paper:

I am Jennifer Cleofe Arellano

I am a child of God

I am a daughter of a King

I am the eldest & the only daughter in the family

I am an expectant from the Lord on this camp.

Its common to start by telling our name. Our name is our first identity for others to know us. But sometimes even our name is a duplicate of someone. I tried to search my name in google and voila there are some people holding exactly the same name that I have. How can our identity be our own if someone has it also?

The question is "Who are you?" We usually answered that I am a graduate of this course, I am a manager or employee, etc. or sometimes even stating our possessions and the like. But is that "who are you?" or "what you are?"

Sometimes we see and define ourselves on how others see and define us. We tend to forget that we are unique, we are peculiar and we are created in the image of our Maker. 

"I am not what I think I am and I am not what you think I am. I am what I think that you think I am"

Before, I really avoid looking at the mirror. I am afraid to see the image - the distorted image in front of me. But after the assurance I received from my Maker that I am fearfully and wonderfully made, and that I am created from inmost being and knitted together in my mother's womb, I know I have nothing to fear on the image that I see on the mirror. Through God who strengthens me and give me enough daily dosage of His grace, I can stand and conquer the fear that I have - the fear of rejection, the fear of being outcast, and so on. People may judge us for what or who we are and not, but Jesus will not. He love us for who we are. He is always ready to embrace us, all we need is to surrender ourselves to Him, have faith and give Him our full trust to manage our lives.

Until you do not overcome your earthly identity then you'll never be free and to overcome it, there's only ONE WAY - to accept JESUS as your PERSONAL SAVIOR.

Our God intended us to be who we are for a purpose. By our strength we cannot live on that purpose, only through His grace, only through Him we can do it.

GOD DESIGNED ONE COPY OF YOU, make sure you live on it.

A Call to GROW BEYOND our Earthly Identity

" For this favor I bend my knees before the Father, from whom every fatherhood in heaven and on earth is named, in order that He may grant to you- according to His riches and glory - power to become strong through His Spirit in the Inner Man, for Christ to dwell in your hearts through faith, to become firmly rooted and established in love, in order that you may become strong (enough) to apprehend together with all the saints, what is the breadth, the length, the height, and depth, to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, in order that you may be filled to all the fullness of God" Ephesians 3:14-19