When I look back at the faithfulness of God in my life, I couldn’t help but stand in awe. He has indeed been the one who brought me out of the rut I was in before. However, I also believe that God used other people to minister to me, to encourage me, to get me frustrated, to have pity on myself or to just be brutally frank with me.
I would like to honor a few women who have been all of the above to me. They have pushed me to be better. They have tested my patience. They have encouraged me to be the woman God wanted me to be. Don’t get me wrong here. I haven’t “arrived” at the level of spiritual maturity. As the apostle Paul also says, he does not claim to have known it all or achieved a level of greatness with regards to his Christian walk. But like Paul, I am also still struggling. Still being pruned by our heavenly Father so that we can finish the race He has set before us.
Here are the outstanding woman who became instruments of God’s love in my life.
Women are the flowers in the garden of life
My Mommy. She was only 17 when she had me and she had to go through a lot early in life. Yet she stood strong amid all the trials that came her way. She is not perfect. But she tried her best to be the perfect mother for me and my brothers.
I attribute my domestic skills to her. She is a domestic goddess, not diva because she never was one. She dedicated her life to raising a family. Her priority was and is her family. She “forced” me to take up Dentistry because she already had in mind what my future would be. She doesn’t want me to work in the media because of the long hours, which was what I wanted, because according to her, I should be at home taking care of my family. Hey, look at me now, I am at home with my family and I could still work part time in my profession.
Even if she is a stay-at-home-mom she would always be busy doing something. She helped worked for our education. She is generous with her time. But she would also find time for herself. I remember back then, she would be irritated if you wake her when she is napping. Sleep is a priority to her. She never stays up late because she wakes up early to work the next day. She pampers herself too. She is a regular at the parlor because I think that is her downtime. Now that she is based in the states, she makes it a point to go to the gym regularly.
She is dedicated to anything she gets her hands into. Whether it be cooking, cleaning or caring for other people, she will be there and she will perfect the task.
She influenced me to be close to God. She was a prayerful woman and would share how God answered prayers. I appreciated her more when I became a mother myself.
Mayeen Ilagan. I met Mayeen when I was pregnant with our first child, Coby. She and her husband, Francis were giving a breastfeeding workshop to would-be-moms in a hospital. After the sessions, she did some follow up with us and we found out that we have a lot of things in common. She and her husband invited us for a couples’ bible study in their home. This went on for months until I finally realized what Christ has really done on the cross. And that the world does not revolve around me but God alone. I am glad that during this time of awakening my husband also accepted Christ as his Lord and Savior.
Since then, Mayeen and Francis have become our spiritual parents. Mayeen was so patient with me, well, up to know. I would run to her before especially when I’m too crushed or too weak. She would encourage me to look to the Word and our conversations would always close with a word of prayer.
She became like an older sister to me. I would watch her every time she talks to her boys. I would never hear her or see her shout at them, but she would just call them to her side and whisper or talk quietly to them. How could you be so calm? 🙂 I wish I was that calm.
Our friendship means a lot to me and I would always be grateful to God for them.
Girlie Argosino. She is one of the pioneer homeschooling moms in the Philippines. I met her when we were on our second year or third year of homeschooling. She is the busiest woman ever! She would be my go-to-gal when I need some inspiration and just somebody to talk to when I’m about to burst in anger. She talks sense to me all the time. The times when I told her I would give up on homeschooling, she would not convince me otherwise but she would quietly be praying for me, I know. She is truly an inspiration. She is like a mother to me too because I could feel the sincerity in her heart. Where would our homeschooling be without our Teacher Girlie? 🙂
These three important relationships have been developed through the years and I’m praying that our relationship will continue until we are all together in God’s kingdom.
I have made connections with other women in the recent years and some of them have also inspired me in their own special way. I hope I could make an entry about these women too in the future.