Light A Candle: The Metro World Child Story

As a little child, Pastor Bill Wilson was left at a corner street in Brooklyn, New York City by his alcoholic mother in summer of 1961. Hoping his mother would come back for him, he waited there patiently - without food, water and shelter. After three days, someone reached out to him for help. It was then when he believed that even a single person can make a difference. In 1980, he founded Metro World Child.

It's nice to know that there are existing organizations who are working unselfishly for the sake of the next generation, just like Metro World Child. It is a global faith-based, humanitarian organization serving nearly 100,000 children each week with after school programs, Sunday School services, child sponsorship, special programs and personal home visits.

Pastor Bill Wilson went to the Philippines with a mission in his heart to reach the poor, unreached, inner-city kids of Metro Manila. Metro World Child has grown to over 40 partner churches in over eight different provinces including Metro Manila, Davao and Palawan. Currently, it has reach over 20,000 children on a weekly basis.

On March 8, 2014, Metro World Child started Sidewalk Sunday School in Barangay San Dionisio, Paranaque City. More than 200 kids participated in the program. During the program, the kids are taught about God's love and Bible stories.

The children enjoyed singing songs.

Had fun-filled games and lots of gift surprises.

At the very young age, the children are taught how to pray.

After the tiring but wonderful activities, snacks are being served.

In my personal interview with Pastor Bill Wilson, what he said about "recruitment of people" struck me. "The advertisers are spending millions of dollars just to communicate effectively to the young generation. They know that if they would invest in the youth, they are planting a bountiful harvest of brand recall and market share for the next generations. Same as each group of individuals who are recruiting people everyday - gangsters, fraternities, rebels, criminals, etc. Why not we do something to snatch them from being the problem of the society? We can't afford to lose a generation of righteous leaders who will walk with integrity and fear God most. Are we going to curse the darkness or simply light a candle?", said Pastor Bill.

To know more about Metro World Child, please visit www.metroworldchild.org.ph. We don't need fame or gold to be able to make a difference to the lives of many. We can help by giving, sponsoring a child, praying and volunteering at Metro World Child. It's a call for us to light a candle and give these young ones a hope for a better future.

Move your cheese

Change is somehow a word that we are tired of hearing almost every day.

“For a change...”
“Change for the better.”
“Why won’t you change yourself first?”
“You’ll never change!”
“I want to change the way I think about myself.”
“Please, keep the change.” (Just kidding.)

It’s also a tough decision to make because change has never been easy. Just imagine if you are asked to give up drinking coffee for 30 days when you used to drink at least 2 cups a day. Difficult? Of course.

(Image source: dianecossie.com)

In embracing change, we must undergo a process that will help us realize the importance of the change we are going to make and how it will affect our daily lives. Start by asking yourself these questions:
- How will I benefit from this?
- Will I be significant to others?
- What’s the long term effect of this change?
- How sure I am for this change?
- How long will this change take?

I gave up working full-time for a change. It was not an easy decision. In the course of waiting for opportunities, many things are infiltrating my head: missing everyday travel to office, chatting with colleagues, generating reports, defining sales targets, meeting clients, staying at home is boring, monthly bills arriving and so forth. Because most people are used to working from 8 am to 5 pm daily, they think I belong to a different tribe of working professional. Some are wondering that I am just wandering around. When change is obvious, people either respond or react on it. Dye your hair with red and you’ll become the talk of the town.

What are you planning to do? In this life, it’s either you change yourself or people will make you change. Don’t wait till someone moves your cheese for you. If you really want a "real" change, make it happen.

Winning is addictive

There are many things that are very addictive. Coffee. Chocolates. Sweets. Text messaging. Movies. Many more. Even love.

Silently, there's one thing that we can be very addictive of and we are normally unconscious about it. Would you believe that you can be addictive to winning?

It's nice to win an argument. It's fantastic to win in a contest. It's terrific to win over an opponent. It's great to see people celebrating with you on your winning moment. So memorable.

Think about this: When you are addictive to winning, there's a chance that you won't see failure and defeat as something that can mold your character.

When Manny Pacquiao was knocked out by his rival Juan Manuel Marquez, it revealed his true self. He has World Boxing Titles in 8 divisions. The world loved him- advertisers, fans, politicians...everyone. Manny understood that winning and losing is part of the game. He didn't take it personally. So, what if he lost? His achievements are already chronicled anyway and no one has done the same thing yet.

How many of us would think we must win at all times? Well, winning is good. After all, we will do our best to win. We spend time studying and practicing to win, get a medal and plaque of excellence. Yet, let not winning mold us and dictate what we should become. Let losing be an experience that can reveal our true self and reflect what went wrong. Remember, we can't win all arguments. Jus let the winners enjoy their moment of being a star. They deserve it.

I tell you, no one will listen to you if you are a loser. So, take that chance to think of what you have really won by losing. You may have lost in a battle, but you may have gained much of a character. By doing your best, trying hard, sweating a lot, you are already a winner.