There are quotes on the cups?

Yet another reason to say I don't pay attention that much. Apparently Starbucks has started placing quotes on its coffee cups. It's their way of getting people more involved with the brand, by having them put in their own thoughts on its website. Then they would choose the best quotes and print them on the cups.



I just had a hot chocolate from Starbucks and I didn't notice the quote on my cup. Heh. But someone who did notice it was a woman from Ohio. She actually got offended by what she read on her cup: "Why in moments of crisis do we ask God for strength and help? As cognitive beings, why would we ask something that may well be a figment of our imaginations for guidance? Why not search inside ourselves for the power to overcome? After all, we are strong enough to cause most of the catastrophes we need to endure." The woman, who is also Catholic and a Starbucks lover, has decided to bring her coffee runs elsewhere.

If you had the sudden urge to get a hot Dulce de Leche from Starbucks, and once you get it you notice the above quote on your cup, what would you do? Would you get offended and boycott Starbucks, or would you consider it as freedom of speech and let it go?

I asked a friend of mine, who shall remain nameless but I am linking to his blog, what he thought about it. He said it's all about your attitude on stuff like this. For him, he takes that as a challenge. No he will not boycott Starbucks, but instead he is inspired to submit all of his thoughts about God to Starbucks' website. Get everybody else to do that, so we will fill the site with Christianity and the Gospel of life. And he's right, because it's another way to be a witness!

If you want to take on the challenge, go to www.starbucks.com/wayiseeit

And for the record, when I went to the site, this is the quote that I got (just goes to show that the views are very diverse): "I wish couples who desperately take every means to conceive a child would realize that adoption is a wonderful alternative. A child who becomes your child through adoption completes a family. Just as when you commit to your spouse or partner there are no biological ties, yet a family was formed. This child enters a family the same way! It is not blood and flesh that form a family, but the heart."

What It's All About

You know why I like this picture? No, not because I'm there and look like I know what I'm doing (which, I can tell you now, is all an act). Or that it was taken by a Nikon D50, the older brother of my baby D40.

If you take a look at the picture, you could see that the photographer focused on the crucifix, and the musicians are just in the background, kinda blurred.

Which is really what it's all about isn't it? In worship, it's not about the music ministry. Music ministers are merely servants. They assist the worshipers to have an amazing praying experience. It's all about God. All about Him and His majesty, His glory, His mercy, His faithfulness, His grace... everything!

God is good and worthy of all praise. Playing songs of praise and worship for Him and the worshipers is an honor and is always a humbling experience.

The 11th Commandment

I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. (John 13:34)

Earlier our Office Manager came in my office crying, asking me for our President's cellphone number. I thought somebody died in her family or something, so I hastily looked for the number and gave it to her. I asked her what's wrong, and she said our VP of Sales got angry at her and started cussing at her. Apparently they were trying to get referrals and they couldn't get any, so our VP said it's because of the sound of her voice and the way she talks. So he got upset and started dropping the F bombs on her.

This incident reminded me of how much love is needed in the world... especially at home and in the workplace. Everybody keeps saying we need world peace, but how do we achieve that? By love.

"If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other."
"Jesus said love one another. He didn't say love the whole world."
-Mother Teresa

We are all brothers and sisters, and God is our father. If that's the case, shouldn't we be loving one another? A lot of times it's not, because it is really hard. Two months ago I started asking God to help me be a more patient and loving person. I prayed to Mother Teresa to help me be like her. The past weekend I attended a Singles Weekend Retreat, and one of the things that was said in one of the talks was that if you ask God to make you a more loving person, He will give you to most difficult person to love. Which is exactly the case for me, with my service and my day job, it is a real struggle. I'm not exactly the most patient person in the world. Most of the time I fail, but what else can I do but pick myself up and try again.

A thousand times I've failed
Still Your mercy remains
Should I stumble again
I'm caught in Your grace
-From the Inside Out, Hillsong

And I know I need to work on this because every time I am asked to give a talk, for some reason the talk I'm supposed to give relates to what I'm currently going through. Like I am being taught a lesson through the talk. So when I was asked by SFC South Maryland to give a talk in their upcoming Christian Life Program, I said yes because I always see it as God asking me to do this for Him - so why would I say no, right? - and also because I want to support my friends in that unit (and then what usually happens is, several hours before the talk I kick myself for accepting the task because I hate public speaking. But that's another story, moving on...).

So what do you know, the talk I'm supposed to give is Christian Ideal: Loving Your Neighbor. I laughed when I learned what talk it was. I said wow God, that's so not subtle at all. I guess I need to start working on myself then. Otherwise I'd be a hypocrite.

Our VP just came in and started joking about the incident, like he didn't care that he made somebody cry. It's a good thing I was helping a client with a network issue over the phone, or I would have been expected to get in on the joke too, as did the other people in the office.

Or maybe it's not a good thing, maybe I should have been a witness of love.