Christmas for a Cause
YES, Christmas is a Go. It isn’t postponed, it isn’t cancelled.
That’s the merry, courageous declaration of the Concert for a Cause dubbed Tuloy-Tuloy Pa Rin Ang Pasko with K-5 held at the Barcelona Academy in Marilao, Bulacan, on December 18, 2021.
Sponsored by Feast Singapore, the Concert is for the benefit of our Mercy Ministries, particularly the Light of Jesus Pastoral Care Center to give wisdom and comfort to the depressed; Light of Jesus Prison Ministry for mercy and compassion to those in prison; and the Jeremiah Foundation 33:6-7, for healing of abused girls.
The Concert begins with the lighting of the Advent candles, warm welcome by hosts Bro. Randall Serrano (above left) and Bro. JC Libiran, then opening song by Bro. Aio Barcelona, declaring, yes, with Christmas, our victory has come!
Inspirational Message by BRO. BO SANCHEZ:
Feasters in Singapore, leaders of The Feast, and all our friends gathered to watch this Concert…To the sponsors to fund this Concert, to make all this possible! I honor you with all my heart. I thank you for your kindness. I thank you for being selfless. I thank you making a decision—not only to think just about yourself and your little world, and your little problems— but to go out and to be a blessing to the world, be a gift during this Christmas!
We are all storytellers. God made us storytellers. We tell stories. Our life is filled with stories… Our life is one big story. Not only that. Where does meaning come from? We go through problems, crises, and trials, and burdens, and anxieties, and worries.
I just talked to a friend of mine over the phone. My gosh, this woman is amazing. She has a son who has cerebral palsy. This woman is 75 years old. I’ve known her for decades. Her son is 54 years old. This guy – he cannot stand. He cannot walk. He cannot even prop himself up. He cannot eat by himself. He cannot bathe by himself. Everything has to be done for him by his mom. And this woman has been taking care of her son for 54 years. She’s 75 and still carrying her son… And by just listening to her tell the story of her life… I want you to know that she can still smile. She can still sing. And she can still pray. Because she sees the story with a different meaning.
It’s not just a story of pain, not just a story of burden. No. It’s a story of faith. No. 1: That God is with her. No. 2: She’s loving her son. That’s the meaning of her story. And that is why she can smile, and sing, and pray.
My dear friend, you’re facing something, you’re facing your trial, your crisis. The meaning does not come from the story. The meaning comes from the storyteller. And through the eyes of your faith, you look at your life and you say, “God is with me.”
Declare that. Claim that belief in God. And then also say, “I am here to love someone else other than me.”
Yes, I love myself. Of course. We make a decision to love ourself. And then from that foundation we start loving other people. It cannot end up here, with ourself. We got to make a decision to go out to make and love other people. And that’s what you are doing today in this Concert.
I pray for you, for the abundance of God to flow into your life.
In the mighty name of Jesus, receive all His goodness and love, not only for you but also for your family. God bless you! Merry Christmas! Tell a beautiful story with God at the center.
Hosts Bro. JC Libiran and Bro. Randall Serrano merrily introduce the main performers— the K5 in the concert title:
The Kerygma 5—singing Feast preachers taking their band name from Kerygma, the name of the inspirational magazine founded by Bro. Bo, a Greek word meaning to proclaim or preach, which has come to mean the proclamation of Jesus’ teachings– eventually our core mission as His followers.
The Concert for a Cause is actually a Concert for a Cost—as the Kerygma 5 start the concert proper with a tag showing the campaign already has an initial P600.00 donation, of which the top donation is P500.00, the target total target proceed as P500,000, and 2 donors giving the first cash gifts.
The K5, singing Christmas songs, oldies but goodies, and favorites, from top: Bro. Alvin Barcelona; Bro. Obet Cabrillas; Bro. Jon Escoto; Bro. Arun Gogna; Special Guest Sis. Rissa Singson Kawpeng, editor-in-chief of Kerygma, now named The Feast magazine; and Bro. Adrian Panganiban, concept and show director…
The campaign continues, appealing to “Spread the love this season of giving…”
And look, the donations swiftly increase…
… to P342, 331!
Feast Singapore kindly doubles the collected amount…
And our Mercy Ministries receive a Christmas gift totaling P695,662– over a hundred more than the target collection!
And then a shower of balloons in all the colors of the Rainbow— the sign of God preserving life after the Great Flood, and eventually, saving us from destruction, as promised in Geneses 9:13:
“I have set my rainbow in the clouds and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.”
